USL: Drogba Rising to new challenge
- by Paul Kennedy @pkedit, Apr 13, 2017
"To own a team and be a player at the same time is unusual but it's going to be very
exciting," Drogba said "It's a good transition because I want to carry on playing but I'm almost 40 and it's important for me to prepare for my later career."
Drogba won four Premier
League titles, four FA Cups, three League Cups and two Community Shields in England and three league and cup titles in Turkey. In 2012, he played on Chelsea’s UEFA Champions League winner.
The USL is in its fifth season in Phoenix. Phoenix FC folded after one season, and Arizona United played three seasons until majority owner Kyle Eng sold his interest to a group headed
by Berke Bakay.
The Rising was a last-minute entry into the MLS expansion race and has built a pop-up stadium near Tempe, where it opened the 2017 season before a record crowd of
6,890 fans.
“We want our club and our city to be synonymous with international excellence, and Didier Drogba is a testament to Phoenix Rising FC’s commitment to that
mission,” said Bakay. “Soccer is an international language understood by sports fans all over the world, and we want to help inspire fluency among new fans every where we play throughout
North America.”
Rising's roster also includes former Mexico star Omar Bravo and Englishman Shaun Wright-Phillips.
Very smart move by one of the best. Most beautiful place in America in my opinion. Good luck.