DaMarcus Beasley

At 42 years old, DaMarcus Beasley has this physical status:

DaMarcus Lamont Beasley (born May 24, 1982) is a former American professional soccer player.

A versatile left-footed player, Beasley played both as a left winger and left wingback throughout his career.

He retired from soccer after the 2019 MLS Season. After starring at the 1999 FIFA U-17 World Championship, Beasley emerged as a star with the Chicago Fire before making a move to Dutch club PSV Eindhoven in 2004.

He spent a decade abroad, playing for clubs in The Netherlands, England, Scotland, Germany, and Mexico before returning stateside in 2014 with the Houston Dynamo Beasley is the only U.S. man to play in four FIFA World Cups, his first in 2002 and his latest in 2014, earning 126 caps during his 16 year international career.

Personal life

Beasley's older brother Jamar was a member of the Cedar Rapids Rampage, United States national futsal team, and former player in MLS and for the US under-20 team. DaMarcus and Jamar got involved with soccer as children due to their father wanting them to be involved in sports. He also played football and basketball as a kid. He has also launched a jewellery collection in collaboration with The Diamond Studio, a Scottish jewellery suite. On February 1, 2010, Beasley's car was firebombed in front of his house in Glasgow.

On October 28, 2020, Fort Wayne FC announced Beasley's addition to their ownership group as co-owner of the club. The teams has announced plans to self-promoted from USL League Two to USL League One beginning in the 2023 season.

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Club career

Beasley, a native of Fort Wayne, Indiana, is a member of the United States Soccer Federation's Residency Program in Bradenton, Florida. Beasley attended South Side High School for two years before moving to Florida. Beasley won the Silver Ball as the tournament's second best player, behind teammate Landon Donovan.

Beasley joined MLS on March 16, 1999, and was assigned to the Los Angeles Galaxy. However, he was traded by the Chicago Fire in February 2000 in exchange for first-round picks in the 2000 MLS SuperDraft and 2001 MLS SuperDraft. He had not made any appearances with LA. While being named to the league Best XI in 2003, he would excel with Chicago, scoring 14 goals and total 20 assists over 4.5 seasons. He was close to signing for Southampton FC in 2004, but MLS turned down the bid due in large part to Beasley's displeasure.

PSV Eindhoven, the Dutch giants, announced a transfer fee with MLS worth $2.5 million on July 19, 2004. He has been in jail for four years.

Guus Hiddink, the owner of PSV, brought Beasley in as the successor to Arjen Robben (who went to Chelsea), and Beasley was given the number 11 jersey. Beasley played 29 games, scored 6 goals in 34 domestic games of the Dutch season, and helped PSV win their 18th league title in his first season in the Ethical Liga. After Beasley's goal in the final minute of regulation tied the match, PSV advanced to the final of the 2004–05 KNVB Cup on May 28, 2005 by defeating Feyenoord in a penalty shootout.

Beasley was the first American to play in the UEFA Champions League's semi-finals against Milan, in addition to having an impact on the domestic level. PSV lost 2–0 at the San Siro in the first leg, while PSV won 3-1 at Philips Stadion in the second leg, despite being banned based on the away goals rule. Despite the loss, Beasley was a key figure in 12 Champions League games, leading his team with four goals.

As a result of an accident on January 16, 2006, DaMarcus was fined €1,500 ($1,852) for driving under the influence of alcohol. For the next three months, his Dutch driving privileges were suspended, followed by a three-month probationary period.

After a disappointing individual season for Beasley in which PSV captured their 19th championship on August 31, 2006, he joined English Premier League side Manchester City on a season-long loan, fulfilling his dream to play in England. However, his first few weeks with City were marred by injuries, limiting his ability to play. Beasley scored his first goal for City on December 30, a match-winner against West Ham United in the 83rd minute. After playing 22 appearances in total, he went on to score three times more before returning to PSV.

Rangers, a Scottish Premier League club, signed Beasley for £700,000 in June 2007. After Claudio Reyna, he became the second American to play for the Rangers' first team. Beasley made his Rangers debut on August 4, 2007, winning by a full 90 minutes over Inverness Caledonian Thistle. Beasley scored his first goal for the club against FK Zeta in a Champions League qualifier on August 7, 2007, becoming the first American to play for two clubs in the tournament. During the game, Beasley and his fellow black teammate, Jean-Claude Darcheville, were subjected to racial taunting by Zeta supporters, as well as fellow black teammate Jean-Claude Darcheville. He urged UEFA and FIFA to do something about the chants, which resulted in an investigation that was supposed to cracking down on the crowds at soccer matches. In Rangers' 2–1 victory over Kilmarnock on August 25, 2007, Beasley scored his first Scottish Premier League goal.

Beasley was instrumental in Rangers' 3–0 victory over Lyon in the Champions League group stage on October 2, 2007. In a victory for the Scottish side, he was instrumental in all three Rangers' goals. Rangers' inswinging corner was headed in by Lee McCulloch to give Rangers a 1–0 advantage. Beasley's wide open access to Alan Hutton allowed him to spring free and set up Daniel Cousin for the second time. Beasley also completed with a 50-meter aerial flight from Cousin while running, controlled, and finished. Beasley was named Man of the Match.

Beasley was hurt in a collision with goalkeeper Raphael Schäfer during a Champions League match against VfB Stuttgart. He was unable to complete the game and was called off, which meant he was forced to miss the game and was forced to be substituted. Given the severity of the injury, he was expected to miss the remainder of the Scottish Premier League season. Nevertheless, Beasley was included in the Rangers squad for the match against Dundee United on May 10. On May 19 against St Mirren, he made his return. Rangers' first appearance since his injury was suffered in the Scottish Cup final against Queen of the South; he notched a goal and an assist in the 3–2 victory.

Beasley appeared to have scored his first goal of the season on August 23, 2008, against Aberdeen at Pittodrie Stadium, although the penalty was wrongly ruled out for offside. Beasley helped Rangers win the SPL trophy for 2008-09, earning a gold medal for playing in ten league games during the season.

Beasley saw no playing time with Rangers during the 2009-2010 season. In December 2009, he said that he will request a transfer out of the team during the upcoming January transfer window in order to guarantee a spot in the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Beasley was given a run of games in the Rangers squad shortly after this announcement in December. He had some good results in games against Dundee United and Motherwell. Beasley expressed his desire to remain with Rangers and help them maintain their Scottish Premier League title after the Motherwell game. Although Rangers won the championship, Beasley was not entitled to a championship medal because she had played in only eight games, less than half of the required.

Beasley first signed a two-year deal with German Bundesliga club Hannover 96 on August 30, 2010. In a 2–0 away loss to VfL Wolfsburg on September 18, 2010, he made his debut on September 18, 2010 as a replacement in the 77th minute.

Beasley joined Puebla's Mexican Primera División on June 22, 2011. In his debut against Monterey in the Copa Tijuana, Beasley scored his first goal for the Puebla. In a 1–0 victory over Atlas in the first match of the 2011 Apertura Season on July 23, Beasley made his competitive debut for Los Camoteros. In a 2–1 victory over Puebla over August 21, he scored his first competitive goal for the Pueblas.

Beasley joined Houston Dynamo as a designated player on July 23, 2014. In a 1–0 victory over DC United on August 3, 2014, he made his Dynamo debut, starting at left back against DC United. Beasley suffered a hamstring injury on October 12 that ended his 2014 season. In his first year with Houston, he appeared in ten games for the Dynamo.

Beasley was selected for his 4th MLS All Star game in 2015 and was named the Dynamo team defender of the year. In a 2–1 victory over the San Jose Earthquakes on August 8, 2015, he scored his first goal for the Dynamo.

Beasley was out of work for over a month due to knee surgery in 2016. Beasley re-signed with the Dynamo this season, but he didn't get a salary cut or was no longer counted as a designated player.

Beasley didn't miss a lot of time due to injury in 2017 but had a good season, being named an MLS All Star and leading the Dynamo to the MLS Playoffs for the first time in three seasons. He was awarded the MLS Fair Play Individual Award, which is given to the player who commits the fewest fouls and displays excellent sportsmanship.

Beasley and the Dynamo missed out on the playoffs in 2018, but they did win the US Open Cup, which qualified them for the 2019 CONCACAF Champions League. The Dynamo had qualified for the first time since 2013. Beasley resurrects his appearance in 2019 after being released on December 30, 2018.

Beasley and the Dynamo opened the 2019 season against Guastatoya on February 19, which was the first match of the season. Beasley scored the Dynamo's only goal of the game, scoring a poor foot volley from outside the box to win the game. Beasley was forced to return from a CCL match against Tigres on March 12, but he was uninjured. On March 20, he underwent knee surgery and was out for almost two months. In a 1–0 loss to the Portland Timbers on May 15, Beasley returned from injury and made his first MLS appearance of the season. Beasley, a comedian from May 20, announced on May 20 that he would retire after the 2019 season. Beasley will play in 18 sports in 2019, with his last appearance coming on October 6 in the Dynamo's final game of the season and Beasley's career. Beasley was subbed off in the 89th minute, sparking the audience to erupted. After the match, the Dynamo paid a tribute on the videoboard and Beasley addressed the audience, saying, "I wouldn't think of another club to end my career with." My house is in Houston. I'm not going to say goodbye."

International career

Beasley captained over 100 times for the United States national team, which was competing in four FIFA World Cups. In addition, he was a vital member of the United States team that took the CONCACAF Gold Cup in 2002, 2005, 2007, 2013 & 2017 as a spectator. Beasley, the team's captain, was the 2013 Gold Cup.

At the 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship in Argentina, Beasley competed for the Under-20 team. He received his first senior cap against China on January 27, 2001, age 18. He was selected in the United States' squad for the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea, competing in all three group tournaments as the team achieved its best results in over a century by reaching the quarter-finals.

Fans and US coach Bruce Arena chastised Beasley and fellow young midfielder Landon Donovan for poor play during the 2006 World Cup. He set up the United States' only goal (scored by Clint Dempsey) against Ghana and had a potential game-winning goal disallowed against Italy when Brian McBride was found to be screening Gianluigi Buffon in an offside position against Italy.

Beasley played the entire 90 minutes at left back in a 2010 World Cup qualifier against Trinidad and Tobago. Beasley said it was the first time he had played a complete game at the position in his career.

He saw his national team form decline significantly as Beasley struggled with injuries and playing time at Rangers. Beasley lost the ball on a short corner kick, sparking a Brazil counter-attack that culminated in a goal in the second game of the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup. He was called back to the tournament shortly after, and did not appear for the remainder of the tournament.

Beasley was welcomed by US coach Bob Bradley to the country's 23-man roster for the 2010 World Cup, but only one substitute appeared in a group stage match against Algeria. Beasley, who had appeared on four substitutes in the last two-and-a-half years, was selected for up-2014 World Cup qualifiers in March 2013. In a victory over Costa Rica, Jamaica, Panama, Panama, and Mexico, he started at left back and received positive feedback. Jürgen Klinsmann, the head of the United States national team, was named Beasley for the 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup, where he started at left-back for five of the six matches. The United States dominated the tournament.

Beasley, who was named in the United States' 2014 World Cup squad, joined Claudio Reyna and Kasey Keller as the only American players to play in four World Cup squads. He became the first player to play in four World Cup tournaments for the United States by participating against Ghana in the team's first match of the tournament. He appeared in all four matches for the United States, including a match against Belgium in the round of 16.

On December 15, 2014, Beasley revealed that he would have dropped out of the national team. However, he returned to the national team for the 2015 Gold Cup at the behest of United States coach Jürgen Klinsmann. He made one appearance in the tournament but only in the third round play-off match against Panama. He started the game in extra time and missed the last penalty. Beasley became the first American to participate in five World Cup qualifying cycles after starting left wingback in a June 2017 World Cup qualifier at Mexico.

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