Diversity goals in Major League Soccer

+ your body's own cannabinoids US Edition - Today's top story: How apartheid, European racism and Pelé helped cultivate a culture of diversity in US soccer that endures into the MLS [View in browser]( US Edition | 25 February 2023 [The Conversation] [The Conversation]( There’s nothing quite like the aural experience of a goal being scored in soccer. A momentary hush, followed by a blast of the ref’s whistle and the roar of the crowd. Given the tradition of having “home” and “away” ends, that sound can envelop you like a joyous hug or come at you like a mocking embrace. It all depends on your allegiance. Listen more carefully as Major League Soccer gets underway today and you will hear something else on the pitch: languages, and lots of them. Last season saw players from 82 different countries participate. This veritable league of nations is part of the reason the MLS considers itself the “most diverse” professional sport league in North America. John M Sloop, a Vanderbilt University soccer scholar, notes that professional soccer in the U.S. has [long been associated with racial and national diversity](. The NASL – a forerunner of the MLS primarily remembered today for the involvement of Brazilian superstar Pelé – was by design and happenstance racially mixed, he explains. Black players from the Caribbean, turned off by the predominately white makeup of European teams, headed to teams like the New York Generals and the Toronto Blizzard. They were joined by South Africans who were deprived of a level playing field at home because of apartheid. “While some overseas players returned home after their playing careers ended, others stayed to help the grassroots game in the U.S.,” Sloop writes. Some of the homegrown athletes they inspired will no doubt be taking to the field later today. This week we also liked articles about [ancient microbes](, a [sacred herb]( and [slam dunks](. Matt Williams Senior Breaking News and International Editor Patrick ‘Ace’ Ntsoelengoe in action for the Toronto Blizzard. Tony Bock/Toronto Star via Getty Images [How apartheid, European racism and Pelé helped cultivate a culture of diversity in US soccer that endures into the MLS]( John M Sloop, Vanderbilt University Major League Soccer – which starts the 2023 season on Feb. 25 – is deemed the most diverse league in the US. Its predecessor, the NASL, led the way. A healthy endocannabinoid system is critical to the human body’s immune functions. 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