For Love Of The 'Beautiful' Game
Phong Le
Title: President, Worcester Hydra FC
Homeland: Vietnam
Residence: Worcester
Education: Bachelor's and master's degrees, Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Semi-pro soccer makes its debut in Central Massachusetts next month when the Worcester Hydra take the field at Foley Stadium as part of the 73-team Professional Development League (PDL), the top feeder league in the United States for professional soccer. Leading the Hydra in the office is Phong Le, a Vietnamese native who has played the game since his youth and continues his passion for it as the team's president. We talked about what he and others call "the beautiful game," the impact of English superstar David Beckham, and the potential for soccer in the U.S.
Soccer is obviously quite popular as a youth activity and even at the high school and collegiate levels. How close is it to ranking up there in popularity with the other major U.S. sports?
In general, I believe that within 20 years plus, MLS (Major League Soccer) will crack into the top five leagues in the world. In the U.S., it's going to be huge in the next 10 or 20 years. Everybody is shooting for 2026 or 2030 (to bring the quadrennial World Cup competition to the U.S.). It will take a lot of time to bring a couple of players like Beckham so that you would see the game become popular.
Has Beckham helped?
Yep. Tremendously, I would say. If you want to turn (people) into hard-core soccer fans in the U.S., you have to bring big names over. Sometimes you tune in because you love that superstar. You want to see him play.
How would you describe the typical PDL player?
A typical PDL player is a young player who's looking to try and break through and make the next level. In terms of young players, you're talking about high school players, college players and then street players, someone who has the skills and pretty much got no training. And then if they want to break that barrier, go from amateur level, college level, all the way to a professional level. So that's really the bridge to (the professional) level, where you get paid to play. About 60 to 70 percent of the players who play PDL actually got drafted by MLS clubs. That's a huge, huge number. And that's one of the marketing points of PDL: If you play PDL, there's a good chance that you're going to make pro. And this is a good place for scouts from Europe (to look at talent) as well.
The team just started tryouts. What's the biggest challenge in putting a team together so that it's ready for the first week in May?
The time constraints, first of all, and then the college rules — NCAA rules — are very strict. Even training and then getting players to camp is going to be tough because of NCAA rules. We deal with coaches in Division 1 and Division 2 colleges to get their players out to training camp in order to get it going because you need time in order to (get the team to gel) because they come from pretty much everywhere.
You talked about the NCAA. Does that mean that current college players are being allowed to try out?
Yes, they're allowed to try out. However, it's going to be tricky to have them come to training camps because they have to maintain good (academic) records. And they're not allowed to go to all the training. They just play for the love of the game and they try to stay fit during the summer.
What's it like to run a sports franchise? What kind of background does one need to do it well?
You don't need a background to run a (soccer) franchise. All you need is a passion for the beautiful game ... you acquire the necessary skills and you look for opportunities.
Do you ever see someone going to a Hydra game as opposed to going to a PawSox game or a Sharks game?
Worcester to me is a perfect city to represent the United States. You walk down the street; you see every single race that you imagine. You (hear) every single language you can imagine. It's a perfect melting pot. When you're an immigrant, your first sport to fall in love with is soccer. That's something that we want to tap into. People love the game.
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