As co-host of the new U.S. Soccer Podcast, MLSsoccer.com's own Charlie Davies helped facilitate yet another critical and informative discussion this week about race and its impacts both on our society at large, and more specifically in American soccer.
During that discussion, he offered a critical insight into what it meant as a young Black soccer player growing up in New Hampshire to be able to have US national team legend Cobi Jones as a role model.
“You were the guy, you were the face that I could look at you and say, I identify with Cobi Jones," Davies told Jones, one of this week's panelists. "That’s my hero. That’s my role model. There’s someone that looks like me. I can play this sport and be accepted. And it seemed like everyone loved you, and you got along with everybody.”
To hear Jones' response on what it was like growing up as a Black player in a predominantly white sport, and more from a discussion that also features former Columbus Crew SC goalkeeper Zack Steffen and US women's national team players Jessica McDonald and Crystal Dunn, check out the full edition of the podcast on YouTube, Apple or Spotify.
