D.C. United encourages voters, pushes for playoffs
Pulisic injures hamstring, and U.S. plays on Nov. 12
On Sept. 25, his 18th birthday, Griffin Yow received birthday wishes from his D.C. United teammates before training at Audi Field.
He also received a reminder from several of them: Register to vote, kid.
“My team was all over me,” Yow said, laughing. “They were like, ‘You’re eligible now. Make sure you do it.’ “
Yow followed through a few weeks ago, and on Thursday, he and his girlfriend endured a short line at Centreville Regional Library to vote.
“It didn’t really hit me until I was alone with my ballot,” said Yow, a second-year attacker from Clifton, Va. “It made me feel like I’m getting older and progressing and continuing on a good path. It’s a big moment, something I’m proud of.”
MLS is taking pride in a campaign, propelled by Black Players for Change and the MLS Players Association, that helped register about 95 percent of eligible players. Multiple teams have opened their stadiums for voting centers and ballot-return locations.
While most of the D.C. roster is from abroad and Kevin Paredes, 17, is too young, the team said the nine eligible players have registered. Amid the late-season push for a playoff berth, which continues Sunday night in Foxborough, Mass., against the New England Revolution, all have voted or are planning to do so.
While political chatter has permeated locker rooms and clubhouses nationwide, particularly in a year of social-justice causes and athlete-involved protests, it is heightened at Audi Field, which sits within view of the U.S. Capitol.
Discussions of tactical adjustments mix with climate-change debate.
“Playing for a sports team in Washington, D.C., we’re in the thick of it,” said Bill Hamid, 29, United’s starting goalkeeper for most of 10 years. “The dialogue has been healthy. You get to hear different perspectives because not everybody has the same views and same backgrounds. It’s a big learning opportunity.”
On Thursday, Hamid, a native of the D.C. area, voted for the first time.
Hamid didn’t vote in 2016, he said, “just off pure immaturity.”
“I didn’t understand the value,” he said. “I heard everyone say, ‘Vote, vote, vote!’ But I didn’t necessarily appreciate the importance not only for me, but for young girls and boys after me. I value it now.”
Hamid and goalkeeper Earl Edwards Jr. led United’s campaign to not only register players but to urge them to get involved in the process. Both are executive board members in Black Players for Change, which was founded this summer after George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis.
“There are guys who are very liberal and some who are quite conservative” around the league, said Hamid, who voted for Democratic candidate Joe Biden. “I’m not someone to judge people on their personal views. If you’re conservative and act on it, I respect you. If you don’t make your voice count by actually voting, that’s the part I find frustrating.”
A third goalkeeper, Chris Seitz, is also a vocal leader on such matters. “He offered to drive me to register and to vote,” said Yow, who won’t receive his driver’s license until next weekend.
Hamid said he told Yow and others that “it’s not only about you voting; it’s that you have fans now, and you have to encourage people to get involved.”
So on Oct. 21, Yow recorded a social media video encouraging his young fans to vote.
Midfielder Russell Canouse, United’s representative in the players’ union, was also involved in the registration push. “Most years, some of the younger guys probably aren’t interested in voting,” he said.
At 25, Canouse will vote for the first time. In 2016, he was playing in Germany and wasn’t engaged in U.S. politics.
“Since I’ve been back, I feel it’s become more important to be active in researching and understanding the landscape of where our country stands,” he said. “Being in D.C. adds another dynamic, too.”
While Hamid and others enjoy engaging in political talk before and after practice, Canouse shies from it. “We need to be careful about how much we bring into the locker-room environment,” he said.
Hamid said he disagrees with such stands “but I respect it.”
“We do need to keep a certain level of camaraderie and chemistry to be successful on the pitch,” he said.
Both players say political chatter has not caused any tension. “Definitely not,” said Canouse, who didn’t want to disclose his presidential choice.
Hamid and defender Chris Odoi-Atsem are among players leaguewide embracing activism this year. They have joined social justice marches, including one with players from the Washington Wizards and Mystics.
“When you’ve played your career in D.C., conversations about issues and politics happen organically,” Hamid said. “It’s my responsibility, it’s our responsibility, to pay attention, to be informed.”
Though they aren’t eligible to vote, some international players are engaged, as well. Hamid and Canouse noted Swedish-born defender Axel Sjoberg, a Marquette gradu
ate, for his political spirit.
MORE MLS: Major League Soccer postponed the Los Angeles FC’s scheduled game Sunday night at San Jose, and canceled Minnesota’s match at Sporting Kansas City because of the coronavirus pandemic.
LAFC had three positive cases among their player group. While the remaining players and staff have continued to test negative, the match was postponed to allow for additional testing and evaluation. MLS said it is evaluating whether the match can be rescheduled.
After confirming a case Wednesday, Minnesota had a second player Saturday with a confirmed positive test.
In Frisco, Texas, Fabrice-Jean Picault scored twice in FC Dallas’ 3-0 victory over the Houston Dynamo (4-9-9) on Saturday.
Franco Jara tapped in a sliding goal off a headed centering pass from Michael Barrios in the 19th minute to give Dallas (8-5-7) the lead.
In Nashville, Tenn., Boris Sekulic scored his second career MLS goal as Chicago tied Nashville 1-1.
Sekulic, a 29-year-old defender in his first season with the Fire, took a pass from Mauricio Pineda and side-footer a roller inside the post to make it 1-1 in the 42nd minute. Chicago (5-9-7) is a point ahead of Inter Miami for the 10th and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
PULISIC INJURED: Christian Pulisic’s participation in the United States’ first match in more than nine months could be in jeopardy after the Chelsea winger was injured in the warmup ahead of the Premier League game against Burnley on Saturday in Burnley, England.
Chelsea manager Frank Lampard said Pulisic “felt something on his hamstring” and was replaced in the starting lineup by Timo Werner.
“We’re talking minor, nothing serious,” Lampard said after Chelsea’s 3-0 win at Turf Moor, where Pulisic scored a hat trick in a league game last season.
The U.S. team is scheduled to play Wales in Swansea on Nov. 12, the Americans’ first international fixture since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic in March.