From New Jersey to FIFA World Cup: Alexi Lalas is grateful for historic Rutgers men's soccer career
Alexi Lalas vividly remembers the 16-hour car ride with his father from Birmingham, Michigan, to New Brunswick, New Jersey, to meet with then-Rutgers men’s soccer head coach Bob Reasso in 1988.
Lalas’ recruitment to play for the Scarlet Knights was unique. He was offered admission to Cook College – and despite not being particularly interested in learning about agriculture – Lalas took advantage of the opportunity simply because he wanted to play for Rutgers.
“It was the best decision that I’ve ever made – completely the wrong way in terms of getting and assessing a college out there, but serendipity and the soccer gods smiled upon me,” Lalas said.
The adjustment to New Jersey was difficult for Lalas, who was not used to such a big state school like Rutgers.
“I did not speak, I think, for the first three months that I was at Rutgers,” he said. “It actually worked out okay because people were scared to death of me – it was an incredible intimidation factor.”
But once Lalas settled on the Banks, he never looked back as his soccer career rapidly took off.
The Knights reached the Final Four and the NCAA Tournament title game in 1989 and 1990, respectively. Rutgers couldn’t build off that success in 1991, but Lalas – a three-year captain – finished his time as a Knight with 82 starts, the eighth-most in program history.
Lalas is the only Rutgers player to receive three All-American honors (1989, 1990 and 1991) and win the MAC Hermann Trophy (1991), the most prestigious award in NCAA soccer given to the best player in the nation each season.
With many accolades to his name, you would think that Lalas went on to play for a top-tier Major League Soccer (MLS) team following his legendary Knights career. But the MLS wasn’t founded yet – and its predecessor, the North American Soccer League, shut down in 1984 – leaving Lalas to focus on earning a call-up to the United States men’s national team (USMNT).
Lalas was invited to USMNT national camps before making his first appearance with the team in a friendly against Mexico on March 12, 1991, a moment he would never forget. Lalas largely credits his time on the Banks as the reason he got the chance to play in the first place.
“So what Rutgers did was it provided the platform to be seen nationally and I harnessed that and used that,” he said. “If I hadn’t had that platform of Rutgers, then, I wouldn’t have been seen and gotten those opportunities. I did look at each and every opportunity I had to put on that shirt, put my hand over my heart, sing that anthem and represent what I feel is the greatest country in the world. I took that seriously and I approached it with a deference and with a respect that went beyond whether we won or lost on the field.”
But that was just the beginning of Lalas’ international career. Three years later, he would represent his country on the biggest stage: the FIFA World Cup. Lalas played every minute for the USMNT at the 1994 FIFA World Cup held in the United States. It was a monumental tournament for the USMNT – they advanced out of their group, upsetting Colombia and tying with Switzerland, before losing to Brazil, the competition's eventual winners, in the Round of 16.
“It really changed my life forever, and I live the power of what it can do to an individual,” Lalas said on playing in the World Cup. “A couple of years ago, I’m running around in Michigan, and then a few years ago, I’m running around on college fields, and now I’m in front of a billion people. It was just fortune that smiled upon me because that particular place at that particular time.”
Following his performance at the World Cup, Lalas signed his first-ever club contract with Italian side Padova and became the first American to play in Serie A. He made 44 appearances and scored 3 goals in two seasons.
“To be the first American to (play in the Serie A), that was special,” he said. “I learned so much on and off the field – obviously you’re playing against the best in the world day in and day out … I grew up as a person and I grew up as a player.”
With the MLS set for its inaugural season in 1996, Lalas signed for the newly-founded New England Revolution. He was an instant starter and named an MLS All-Star in 1996 and 1997 before being traded to the MetroStars – now the New York Red Bulls.
A year later, Lalas was traded to the Kansas City Wizards, now Sporting Kansas City. Lalas played 30 matches with the Wizards but announced his retirement on Oct. 10, 1999. Lalas only stayed retired for one year, though. He signed with the LA Galaxy on Jan. 16, 2001, and had a successful season, winning the CONCACAF Champions Cup and U.S. Open Cup. The following season, the Galaxy won the Supporters Shield and MLS Cup. Following the 2002 campaign, Lalas retired for good.
Lalas now works as an analyst for FOX Sports, covering MLS, USMNT and World Cup matches. He was inducted into the Rutgers Athletics Hall of Fame in 1998 and the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 2006.
Lalas is grateful for his time at Rutgers, which he says did more than make him a better soccer player. He will always be remembered as one of the best men’s soccer players for the Knights and is already a USMNT legend.
“When I look at my time at Rutgers, it changed me forever – not just as a soccer player, but as a person,” Lalas said. “It provided me an experience, but also lessons in terms of how to adapt and adjust and to integrate into what are sometimes difficult and certainly challenging different type of environments, and that served me well through life.”
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