No title since 2014
It was supposed to be the showcase match on Major League Soccer week 1. The Los Angeles Galaxy were to host City rivals Los Angeles FC to open the season at the monumental Rose Bowl Stadium, home to the 1994 World Cup final. But heavy rain, mixed with snow and flooding, meant the Rose Bowl game had to be suspended and moved to July 4.
The weather in Southern California is perhaps a bit of a metaphor for what the LA Galaxy are currently going through ahead of the 2023 season. Undoubtedly, the Galaxy are the league’s most storied club. A founding member of MLS, the Galaxy have won five MLS Cups, more than any other team in the league. The Galaxy are also first in the eternal MLS standings with 1431 points from 931 matches (overview).
It was also the Galaxy that signed David Beckham in 2007 from Real Madrid in a deal that would eventually be worth more than $500m once you include the $25m expansion fee clause that turned into Inter Miami CF. The money invested in Beckham by LA Galaxy owner Philip Anschutz would be more than worth it. With Beckham in the squad, the Galaxy would not just win two MLS Cups and two Supporters’ Shields, but the arrival of the Englishman would also usher in a new era of growth and expansion.
Ten years after Beckham: LA Galaxy fall behind upstarts LAFC
Ten years after Beckham’s departure from MLS, the league will welcome its 29th franchise: St. Louis City SC. Seven teams were added during the Beckham era; another 16 have been added since and ahead of the 2023 season MLS signed a landmark deal with Apple TV. With all that in mind, it is not surprising that there is now a statue of the iconic English player in front of the Dignity Health Sports Park—a massive sports complex that includes the 27,000-seat stadium that the Galaxy call their home. Yet while there is no doubt that Beckham and the Galaxy have changed MLS, there is also a sense that the competition is somewhat leaving behind the league’s most historic franchise.
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Although the Galaxy still sign star players like Zlatan Ibrahimovic (from 2018 to 2020) and Chicharito in 2020, it has been eight full seasons since they have won the MLS Cup. Furthermore, upstarts LAFC, based close to downtown LA at the picturesque BMO Stadium, won the MLS Cup in 2022. It is also LAFC, and not the Galaxy, who with a squad value of €56.6m, have the most valuable squad in the league. The Galaxy are 12th with a squad value of €40.23m.
Of course, there are still superstars in this squad. Chicharito, for example, might be the most recognized name in Concacaf, and the 34-year-old Mexican led the Galaxy in scoring last season with 18 goals and three assists in 32 games. Then there is the Spanish sensation Riqui Puig, who the club signed from Barcelona last August and, based on talent, is one of the best players in MLS.
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Puig, in fact, was available to the media when Transfermarkt visited the Galaxy ahead of the MLS is Back opening weekend. “With the 2026 World Cup coming here, it is a league that is becoming increasingly attractive for younger players,” Puig said when asked about his decision to join the LA Galaxy. “It is a league with a great future with a great future and one where younger players can learn a different style of play.”
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The Puig deal, in fact, can be seen as a bit of a watershed moment for the Galaxy as they are now coming to terms with a league that is changing at a fast pace. When the Galaxy last won a title, MLS was dominated by aging stars seeing out their careers in North America. Nowadays, the likes of LAFC, Philadelphia Union, New York City FC and Austin FC are banking on younger, mostly domestic, and South American talent for success.
Slowly but surely, the Galaxy are also coming to the conclusion that they must change their recruitment strategy. In Dejan Joveljić, the club had already signed a young forward from Eintracht Frankfurt during the 2021 season. Kévin Cabral was also added in 2021. Both are young players and their transfers highlighted that the Galaxy have somewhat understood that MLS is changing, but neither player was impactful yet. Cabral, in fact, has been traded to the Colorado Rapids this winter.
LA Galaxy: Between MLS sanctions and ultra boycotts
Furthermore, last season, the Galaxy signed an aging star in Douglas Costa. Costa was a superstar at Shakhtar Donetsk, Bayern, and Juventus but struggled in Brazil with Grêmio and then last season with the Galaxy in MLS. Costa is the sort of player most in the league would now shy away from signing. Costa was training individually, recovering from an injury when TM visited the club, and whether he will play a big role this season or be moved on as the club restructures remains to be seen.
That restructuring process will mostly happen this winter as the club has been hit by MLS sanctions for violating salary budget and roster guidelines during the 2019 season. The sanctions also included a $1 million fine for the club and a $1 million loss of available future General Allocation Money (GAM), and the Galaxy will be prohibited from registering a player who requires the receipt of an International Transfer Certificate from outside of the United States and Canada during the Secondary Transfer Window in 2023.
Additionally, President Chris Klein has been suspended from any sporting-related responsibilities through the conclusion of the Primary Transfer Window in 2023. Sanctions and a lack of success have also meant that the Galaxy’s five major fan groups have called for a boycott until Klein resigns.
LA Galaxy boss Vanney: juggled double role as coach and sporting director
The Rose Bowl game would have been the major test for the ultra-groups and their resolve to stay away from games until meaningful change happens at the front office. For now, that development boils underneath the surface as the Galaxy, under head coach and acting sporting director Greg Vanney are preparing for their first match of the season against FC Dallas on Saturday, March 3.
Vanney, in fact, admitted that it was sometimes difficult to juggle his double role as a head coach and sporting director in the offseason. “In the offseason, you are not coaching the team; you are trying to build a roster, build a vision going forward with the group,” Vanney said. “You are involved with the scouting, laying out the profiles and type of players you want, puzzle pieces as you will as you put the puzzle together. Helping to give the resources to guys like Jovan [Kirovski] and Mike [Muñoz], who are out there networking and scouting, trying to help us find guys.”
The LA Galaxy head coach also admitted that the sanctions handed out by MLS mean that many decisions the club would have usually made in the summer will now be accelerated with the club trying to secure all major pieces during the Primary Transfer Window. “Everything gets fast-forwarded a little bit because you don’t have a summer window. Things must happen now, and want to be precise and make good decisions even though we don’t have a ton of time.”
LA Galaxy signings: “Two or three other guys in the process”
The Galaxy did write international headlines when they sold academy product Julián Araujo to Barcelona during the January window for €4 million. Araujo was not the only player to depart. As noted, the club also traded Cabral and on top of that moved Samuel Grandsir to AC Le Havre.
New to the club is Brazilian right-back Calegari. The 21-year-old joins on loan from Fluminese with an option to buy for €2m. But Vanney quickly pointed out that Calegari is unlikely to be the last signing this winter. “We probably have two or three other guys that we are in the process, who we want to fill in positions,” Vanney said.
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The 48-year-old, in fact, made it clear that the Galaxy will field a competitive roster this season. “I do think if we fill out our group and bring in the pieces we want,” Vanney said. “Then we have the depth to be competitive in all the different competitions. That is where we feel a big club should be, to be competitive in different events.”
LA Galaxy remain a desired destination for World-class talent
There is no doubt that the Galaxy are still a desired destination for World-class talent. Speaking to industry sources wanting to remain unnamed, at least one World-class player is currently eyeing the club as a potential destination. Sources stress that the Galaxy as a name and the City of Los Angeles as a package makes the MLS club a hot destination, despite the sanctions and recent lack of success.
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Perhaps it is the Beckham factor, but players view the LA Galaxy as a significant international brand. That is also the reason why the Galaxy were able to land a considerable talent like Puig. What the club, however, has been lacking is the ability to weaponize the brand and the desire of players to come to LA.
Vanney certainly wants to change that as the head coach and sporting director voices ambitious goals for the club this season. “For us, it is to continue taking steps forward as a group,” Vanney said about his goals with the club this season. “Ultimately, winning a championship is another step for us. I would like to see us in the Champions League next year; we should be a club to be present there every year. We should be at the top of the Supporters’ Shield because that shows consistency over 34 games.”
Those are lofty goals that match that of an ambitious fanbase. It also matches the history of a club that is still MLS royalty. For the Galaxy, 2023 is about a step towards former glory, rebuilding the trust of an exasperated fanbase, and finally ending the club’s title drought.
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