Wayne Rooney, the English national team’s longtime captain and all-time leading goal-scorer, is nearly assured to move stateside to play for D.C. United in Major League Soccer.
Mutual interest between Rooney and United was confirmed in May after he visited with team officials in Washington. Over the weekend, he and his agent were seen at the U.S. Consulate in Belfast, Northern Ireland, presumably for Rooney to file paperwork for a work visa.
The 32-year-old forward could infuse United’s offense with more firepower. He might also get a sports town focused on the Stanley Cup and Bryce Harper talking about soccer again. Here’s a primer on every angle of the likely transaction.
Unhappy with Everton
Rooney came through the junior ranks with Everton’s development teams and played his first Premier League seasons with that side. After 13 seasons with Manchester United, Rooney made a return to Everton, but whatever warm and fuzzy feelings there might have been soon evaporated.
Rooney was reportedly furious with his manager’s decision to sub him out of a match against Liverpool late in the Premier League season. He’s a few years past his prime and older than the average player of that elite-level league. Joining an American club would guarantee him playing time — as well as a new payday.
MLS as a retirement home
Rooney would be the latest marquee European name to find a new home in America in his 30s. The most famous of these occurred in 2007 when English star David Beckham left Real Madrid for a five-year contract with LA Galaxy.
More recently, Spanish striker David Villa joined New York City FC in its inaugural season. Longtime Liverpool midfielder Steven Gerrard played a season and a half for Galaxy before retiring, and earlier this year, Galaxy signed Zlatan Ibrahimovic of Sweden, who starred for various European powers.
Transfer rules
Players can only be purchased and sold in one of two transfer windows, summer and winter. England’s summer transfer window is already open, but in North America, it officially opens July 10.
United owns seven international roster spots, all of them full, so they will have to clear one or acquire one from another MLS club to add Rooney. And Rooney would not be allowed to play for United until after July 10. Coincidentally, United will christen Audi Field, the new soccer-specific stadium being built near Nationals Park, on July 14 with a match against the Vancouver Whitecaps.
United struggling
United’s 2-6-3 record gives them only nine standings points, good for the cellar of MLS’s Eastern Conference. The Red and Black have scored a paltry 15 goals in 11 matches; Rooney himself scored 11 goals across all competitions last season.
The likely logic of acquiring Rooney is that he will help United both on the field and off it, as the team markets itself in Washington’s crowded sports ecosystem. United has played most of their games on the road while waiting for Audi Field to be ready, and a new star could get casual fans excited when the team plays almost exclusively at home from July to October.
Not everyone feels Rooney would fix all the team’s problems, though. When United lost a close game to Seattle last Saturday, the official Twitter account for supporter group La Barra Brava wrote, “We suck. @dcunited wasted points tonight but Wayne Rooney. That is the solution. Sarcasm dripping.”
• Adam Zielonka can be reached at azielonka@washingtontimes.com.
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