Son makes record MLS move but ‘retirement league’ reputation remains

August 8 – Major League Soccer (MLS) and LAFC have sealed the deal for former Tottenham Hotspur captain and South Korea international Heung-min Son in a record-breaking transfer. 

LAFC will pay Spurs around $26.5 million (£20 million), the highest transfer fee ever paid by an MLS club. 

Son, 33, enjoyed ten years with Tottenham, winning the UEFA Europa League last season. 

He’ll now join Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi as the most recognisable face in the league while making LAFC a legitimate contender to challenge for trophies on multiple fronts. 

Los Angeles is home to the largest Korean population in the United States, with an estimated 320,000 potential fans. As evidenced by the number of South Korean fans to visit Tottenham, supporters travel thousands of miles to watch their hero, and throngs of autograph hunters were a regular sight outside the north London club’s training ground. 

Earlier this week, Son was at BMO Stadium watching the team compete in the Leagues Cup and said, “I just want to share the information that I have decided to leave this club (Tottenham) this summer. It was the most difficult decision I have made in my career. I have spent 10 years at Tottenham. The main reason is that I have achieved everything I can at Tottenham. I need a new environment for a fresh challenge. I’m grateful the club have respected my decision and wish Spurs well for the next season. 

“I came to north London as a kid — 23 years old, a very young age, a boy who couldn’t speak English. I leave this club as a man. Thank you to all the Spurs fans who have given me so much love. It felt like it was my home. 

“I think it is the right time to leave. I hope that everyone understands that and respects that.” 

The record transfer fee is yet another statement from MLS. Just last winter, Atlanta United paid Championship club Middlesbrough $22 million for the relatively unheard of Emmanuel Latte Lath. 

With Bayern Munich legend Thomas Müller signing for the Vancouver Whitecaps and Rodrigo de Paul joining his pal Messi in Miami, the league continues to attract big names. However, those big names are also the wrong side of 30 and give the impression that MLS could still be considered something of a retirement league for the stars of European football.