Claudio Reyna hasnāt laced up his cleats and played professional soccer since announcing his retirement on July 16, 2008.
While the former United States menās national team captain doesnāt experience the thrill of representing his country or club on the playing field anymore, heās getting his fill of excitement doing the next best thing.
On May 22, 2013, Reyna was announced as New York City FCās Sporting Director; becoming the Clubās first employee.
āThereās nothing like playing, to be honest,ā Reyna said. āBeing on the field, running around and being able to compete is truly special, whether itās representing the United States or your club. Itās pretty difficult to compare, but I think this is probably the next best thing ā to be part of a club from scratch and growing it and putting ideas behind it and bringing great people on board from day one.
āWhen I was young one of my dreams was to be a professional soccer player. When I got older toward the end of my playing career I started to think of doing something like this. This was beyond my wildest expectations that I get to be part of a club in the greatest city in the world and to be able to build it from scratch. Iām sort of living a dream now just like I was when I was playing.ā
In addition to being a native son from New Jersey, Reyna appeared 87 times for Manchester City FC from 2003-07.
āItās a privilege to be a part of this and having my local roots makes it extra special,ā he said. āMy connection and relationship to Manchester City has been great. Itās an ironic situation that one of my former clubs happens to be a club that buys a team in MLS and Iām able to be a part of it. Those links are very special to me, knowing what Manchester City is all about back in England and to bring those club ethos and that culture to us here in New York is a privilege. Iām incredibly proud about what weāve done, but more excited about the potential growth in the future.ā
Reyna, who also spent time with Wolfsburg (where he was the first American to ever captain a club in Europe), Bayer Leverkusen, Rangers and Sunderland during his playing days, said one of the biggest differences between playing and working in the front office for a club is your mentality.
As a player, youāre more of an individual, he said. Youāre focused on yourself, whether itās your health, your routine, your meals. Now, Reyna has to be unselfish and devote his attention and efforts to New York City FC ā the staff, the players and everyone else involved with the leagueās newest organization.
āIn whatever role you take on, you have to have sort of a selfless mentality because itās no longer about you in any way,ā he said. āAll of my efforts have been about building a club thatās for the players and giving the staff the best opportunity to make their mark on this Club in this city. I think thatās something thatās been part of the transition; you have to step back more, let other people take the initiative and put the right people in place.ā
Reyna was especially proud of his first few hires: Jason Kreis as Head Coach and David Lee as Director of Player Recruitment. The three of them form a brain trust along with other key staff to go over decisions that impact the Club, whether itās in the present, and particularly, in the future.
āWorking with Claudio has been fantastic,ā Kreis said. āWe see the game of soccer in a particular way thatās similar to each other. We both also place a lot of emphasis on the character of people. Itās been a really pleasurable experience to work with somebody for the last year when it hasnāt really been an easy adventure for us.ā
Reyna marvels at how much the Club has grown since its inception. Not only is he proud of those accomplishments and improvements, heās also focused on the future.
āSince day one up until today itās just incredible to see how itās grown ā all of the different steps weāve made along the way to get to where we are, but also the excitement of the future, knowing thereās still so much growth in our club with our fans, our players and our team,ā Reyna said. āWeāll continue to build this Club in New York City while striving toward our goal of being one of the best in MLS.ā