Son Heung-Min’s LAFC Teammate Reveals NBA, MLB’s Requests Just Days After Soccer Star’s Debut

Son Heung-min is living the dream—an American one, to be precise. It’s been just over a week since the South Korean international signed for LAFC and made his debut, yet the buzz around the most expensive arrival in MLS history shows no sign of slowing down. Forget soccer for a moment; the attention he’s already drawing from other sports, say basketball and baseball, suggests that Son is on the verge of becoming a true “ambassador” for the league.

The last time there was such buzz surrounding a major MLS arrival was when David Beckham–owned Inter Miami announced the signing of Argentinian superstar Lionel Messi, who has hardly stopped making waves in the States since. But from the looks of it, Son might just be the next big thing after La Pulga—at least, that’s what his LAFC teammate Ryan Hollingshead believes.

As per an interesting tweet from renowned journalist Favian Renkel, the American right-back mentioned in one of the press conferences earlier that Son Heung-min has apparently been invited to throw out the first pitch at baseball games and even mark his presence in the NBA by participating in the tip-offs.

That’s not all—Favian Renkel didn’t hesitate to suggest that the former Tottenham Hotspur star is on track to become the face of Major League Soccer. “There is clearly significant buzz around the idea of Son becoming an ambassador for MLS,” added the journalist, further emphasizing the impact of the 33-year-old’s arrival.

One certainly knows this isn’t the first time a soccer player or even a player from another sport, for a fact, has been called to make such an A-lister appearance in baseball or basketball games. But the fact that he is in such demand makes it obvious that Heung-min is certainly on a path to becoming a crown jewel of the MLS.

Not to mention that the former SV Hamburg forward is already drawing parallels with a certain entity that has already taken over the league’s popularity a couple of years ago, none other than Lionel Messi. Discussions like “Son might gain MLS more fans than Messi” have literally become a water-cooler topic among fans.

Everyone knows that since Messi’s arrival, many big names have joined the league, including the Miami skipper’s own teammates Luis Suárez, Jordi Alba, and Sergio Busquets. Yet none of them has made such an individual impact within just a week of stepping onto the American turf, making it clear that the Korean superstar is well on his way to building a majestic fandom of his own.

Son Heung-min is officially the next best thing in the MLS!

Remember when Lionel Messi signed for Inter Miami? His Adidas jersey disappeared from shelves almost instantly (even now, it’s tough to find one). Well, it seems Son Heung-min is starting to spark a similar craze. According to a report from Favian Renkel on X, Son’s arrival has led LAFC to sell out their authentic black 2024 Adidas primary jerseys for all players on the club’s website, with every men’s size except 3XL already gone.

The frenzy has even created a backlog, making it impossible for the league to keep these authentic black jerseys in stock for anyone, not just Son. Then again, ironically, the specific jersey Son wore in his debut is still available in every size, perhaps because it’s not as favored among ardent LAFC supporters.

Surprisingly, the Son Heung-min popularity factor doesn’t end there. Another report from Favian Renkel showed that, outside of Los Angeles, the cities most Googling Heung-min over the past week are San Francisco, Chicago, San Diego, Seattle, and New York — a level of buzz MLS hasn’t seen since Lionel Messi’s arrival.

What are your thoughts on this? Let us know in the comments.