Marco Reus has arrived in Los Angeles, and so that no one misses it, there was a full-page ad in the Los Angeles TimesThis has now become a tradition when famous footballers arrive, and it is certainly interesting to find out who placed this ad and what exactly was written. In 2007, the LA Galaxy football club welcomed its new star David Beckham with the words: “He is here”. Eleven years later Zlatan Ibrahimovic brought an advertisement with his signature next to the Galaxy crest and with this message: “Dear Los Angeles, you’re welcome”. Dear Los Angeles, you’re welcome.
Now the ad for Marco Reus, 35 – switched by Borussia Dortmundthe German club he played for for twelve seasons before moving to the US professional league MLS. It is a blank white page, with the words “Reus. Beckham. Ibrahimovic. In that order” written at the top: “Treat him well, Los Angeles!”
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The tone is set: Marco Reus is not supposed to be a savior for this league, as Beckham was touted to be. He is also not supposed to be a spectacular self-promoter – a role that Ibrahomivic was happy to take on. Rather, Reus is presented as a fantastic footballer, on a par with, or – see the ad – even a little above, the other two. As a possibly more valuable addition in sporting terms and above all as someone who not only wants to sharpen his personal celebrity profile by crossing the Atlantic, but for whom even his current club wishes only the very best in his new adventure. Reus is supposed to be different to Beckham and Ibrahimovic.
This transfer is not about Germans suddenly becoming fans of the US league
Reus sees it very similarly. “When the decision was made that I would no longer play for Dortmund, I thought: ‘Okay, what can I do?'” said the 35-year-old at his presentation at the Galaxy grounds: “I spoke to my family and made the decision that I would continue wants to play football, but not in the Bundesliga or in Europe.” The Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr, where Cristiano Ronaldo plays, apparently lured him with a salary of ten million euros per season. But Reus wanted to go to the USA: “To be honest: The league is not popular in Germany. But when players like Lionel Messi come here, people are interested.”
Reus didn’t just want to go to America, he specifically wanted to go to Los Angeles; but that wasn’t easy due to the complicated MLS regulations. The rights to Reus belonged to Charlotte FC. “You can’t say: OK, we’d like to sign you,” says Galaxy manager Will Kuntz. Because it was about the Discovery Rights: Charlotte had, if you will, “discovered” Reus, and that was precisely why the salary was an issue, because Galaxy was not allowed to offer what it wanted: “There are numerous hurdles in this league, but we have overcome them all,” says Kuntz.
The end result: Charlotte gets $400,000, Reus around €1.6 million per season for his contract until the end of 2026. But there are ways to increase the salary. Like with Messi, whose basic salary in Miami can grow from €19.3 million to up to €57 million via bonuses, for example from MLB TV partner Apple for streaming subscriptions sold.
Open detailed viewThe club placed a newspaper advert and the fans thanked them with a large choreography: Marco Reus was one of the identification figures in Dortmund. (Photo: Bernd Thissen/dpa)
And in terms of sport? “I know that I’m not the youngest anymore,” says Reus: “I want to help the youngest players to mature and get better every day.” This transfer is not about Germans suddenly becoming MLS fans, but about the league becoming what it should be: After years of overambition, the MLS now sees itself as a league like the one behind the really big ones in Europe: as a springboard for local talent on the way to the more prominent stages. But that requires footballers that the youngsters can learn from.
This means that, of course, professionals like Messi or Reus should delight the audience and increase the quality of the sport; but they should also be role models for young talents: What is it like to train with Reus every day? To experience him as a colleague in the dressing room? To observe how he behaves away from the game, what he does for his career? Suddenly you see the difference between Beckham, Ibrahimovic and Reus.
That does not mean, of course, that short-term success is unimportant: with eight matchdays left before the end of the regular season, Galaxy has the second-most points in the league (49) behind Messi’s Miami (53). Due to the division into Eastern and Western Conferences, a meeting between the two clubs in the playoffs would only be possible in the final on December 7, with the host being the finalist with the most points. Together with 25-year-old Spaniard Riqui Puig, who joined from FC Barcelona in 2022, Reus will lead the Galaxy midfield in the future. “I think we fit together well. But it’s not just about the two of us,” says Reus: “I watched a few games on vacation: We have very, very good young players. The last title was ten years ago, I would say the team is ready. We are ready.”
Of course, they like to hear things like that in Los Angeles. The question remains when Reus will play for the first time. He is waiting for his visa; if it is issued in time, he could play against Atlanta United this weekend. If not, Reus’ first home game would be on September 14 against local rivals and defending champions LAFC. Nickname of this derby: Traffic, because of the traffic. And only when the German has gotten used to all the traffic jams will Marco Reus have truly arrived in Los Angeles.
