Commerce City, CO – This past Saturday, Colorado Rapids retired Marcelo Balboa’s #17 jersey. He was an amazing player and has become an ambassador for the club, the U.S. Men’s National Team, and Colorado. He was spectacular on the field and has become deeply human since retirement as an academy coach and bilingual color commentator. Here’s an anthology of 17 things, stories, quotes, etc. that confirm Marcelo Balboa as a Rapids, MLS, and American Soccer legend.
The bicycle kicks: The World Cup close call and MLS Goal of the Year
Celo attempted a bicycle kick goal against Colombia in the second to last group stage game of the 1994 World Cup. It came off a corner. He missed it by two feet, if that. Little did he know future MLS owner Phil Anschutz would see it and be impressed even if he didn’t score.
Balboa joked he and Jeff Agoos would have competitions to see who had the better bike. Six years later, April 22, 2000, he attempted another bicycle kick at Columbus Crew. Off a cross, he hit it perfectly to score the 2000 MLS Goal of the Year. Colorado won 3-2.
“My memory sucks from all the concussions,” he lamented to Burgundy Wave. “To this day, the actual live game, I don’t remember. I got knocked out. It’s the best goal that I’ve scored. The story was told to me is that I got knocked out. There was no concussion protocol.”
He got knocked out earlier in the game. The trainer asked him what the score was. He said 2-1. It was still scoreless. The trailer claims Balboa said he was subbed out, he would kill him. He stayed in the game. Scored the bike. They won the game. There’s a dark side to that moment for sure.
“I’ll take it,” Balboa said peacefully. “I’ve hurt myself many a time trying to score that in practice,” with the national team.
Iconic hair at the World Cup and beyond:
That team had so much hair aura in 1994. It was led by the starting center backs: Big crazy ginger Alexi Lalas and Balboa. The mullet. The goatee. The mustache. Then the ponytail after head coach Bora Milutinović said he needed to cut his har.
Balboa grew his hair out when he was rehabbing his ACL injury before the 1994 World Cup.
“I said I’m not going to cut my hair until I can play again. My grandfather said ‘grow it while you can grow it. Because eventually it’s not going to grow anymore.'”
Balboa’s had basically the same hair look since 1996. It’s just a matter of how recently he’s trimmed the beard and shaved the cheeks. He did have a side burn phase. Probably got some bad fashion advice from Lexi. There’s a few grey hairs to deal with.
Any MLS 1.0 fan sees the hair or a silhouette, you know it’s him. It’s iconic.
Rehabbing an ACL tear in 6 months to make the 1994 World Cup:
The year before the World Cup, Balboa tore his ACL in a game against Iceland. He was mic’d up for that game and struggled to not swear after he heard his knee pop. The doctor even waited till they were back in the locker room to tell him.
With technology where it was in the early 90s, 12-months would have been good rehab stint. Balboa checked out the training regiment of Paul Gascoigne, who came back in 6 months. Celo had a target of 8 months to make it back in time for the World Cup. How does the human body do that?
“Determination. I thought my dream was over, to play in a World Cup. I had surgery. My target was 6 months. I struggled. I went through depression. I couldn’t get out of bed.”
Fernande Clavijo came in one day and said “get the f*** up. I’m not going to the World Cup without you. Get your a** out of bed. We’re going to practice.”
Clavijo dragged Balboa out of bed and neither looked back. He adopted the Gascoigne rehab approach. Therapy in the morning. Bike ride in the afternoon. Running would have been too hard on his knee. An overheard conversation may have provided the motivation he needed to finish the job.
“I heard two of the coaches say ‘we need to move on for Marcelo.'”
That lit a fire for the then 26-year-old. He finished the rehab. Doctor’s said they weren’t sure it was safe. So he trained with a brace on. Training went ok. Bora wouldn’t let him play. He finally got into a game. He played terribly. He kept working at it.
He was unquestionably a starter on the back four before the injury. After all the work before the injury, cutting his hair, and crushing rehab, had he done enough to re-earn that trust?
“I remember sitting there the night before the World Cup. Bora put his arm around me and told me I was starting. It was a blessing.”
In the words of LL Cool J, don’t call it a comeback.
Winning with the Colorado Foxes:
Before the USMNT mythology and MLS, Balboa had already played in Colorado and won stuff. In 1992, he played alongside Robin Fraser for the Colorado Foxes in the American Professional Soccer League (APSL). The pre-MLS days of semi-pro soccer were the Wild West. The Foxes played at the old dog track in front of hundreds of people. It kept Balboa fit and in form to compete for a spot on the national team.
In 1992, they won two Cup Finals played at Englewood High School. There was the APSL Final and the Professional Cup, a competition between teams across leagues. Think semi-pro Champions League or Open Cup.
Club León to Colorado: Playing in both Liga MX and MLS
Off the 1994 World Cup, most of the USMNT got new opportunities abroad. Several players went to Europe. But Balboa went south to join Club León in Liga MX. This was an amazing and challenging experience for him.
“The first time I put on the León jersey made me nervous as hell. Because of the rivalry between the U.S.A. and Mexico, it (Liga MX) was a very difficult league for Americans to go and play. The way Leon fans embraced me, I can’t tell you how happy it made my heart.”
Despite only spending two years at the club, Balboa is still beloved by León fans. Not a legend, but a player with a cult following. For being a guy known for his flare (bicycle kicks, dribbling into midfield, etc.), he knew how to get stuck in.
“I learned the hard way. My first game was against Club America. I got eaten alive. It took me five games to get comfortable.”
He recalls his first training where he got stuffed on a slide tackle by a new teammate and had to pick himself off the ground. He spoke Spanish fluently. He was Argentinian. But he was also an American international and a new player coming to take one of their jobs.
The lead up to the 1994 World Cup and two years in technically difficult Liga MX brought Balboa into his own. He could tackle hard. He was a sweeper defender. He could dribble in and spearhead the attack. He got on headers on set pieces. A center back, a defensive midfielder, or the 1990s central version of Trent Alexander-Arnold?
Copa America 1995: Solidarity and embracing COMNEBOL
Similar to his time in Mexico, that 1995 Copa America was a new challenge. The national team basically had a strike on the flight there. They barely practiced leading up to the start of the tournament while negotiating new contracts given the success they had in ’94. They put soccer on the map. They were getting professional club contracts. It was time for them to get a cut of the new profits the federation was raking in.
“We almost didn’t play the first game against Chile. We needed to be treated fairly,” Balboa said.
The team went on to win Group C. They spanked the Balboa homeland of Argentia 3-0. Diego Maradona forced his way into their locker room to congratulate them, tears in his eyes for how well they played.
They did all of this amid new found celebrity. A bunch of Americans, most of whom didn’t speak Spanish, stuck in small towns around Uruguay. Children passed them in the street saying “La-La,” mispronouncing Lalas. They had a breakfast and coffee shop area at a hotel with big glass panels. Balboa called it the “Fish Bowl.” They were watched.
Amid celebrity, nearly getting replaced by scabs, and playing under new manager Steve Sampson with his wonky 3-6-1 about to happen, they won their group, beat Mexico in penalties, and finished fourth. A 1-0 loss to Brazil happened again as they ran out of gas.
Balboa and those damn Yanks weren’t just a fad. They stuck it to the haters that ’94 wasn’t just luck. And they did it playing fun gritty American soccer. It set Balboa up well to Concacaf some dudes with León.
For fans who weren’t old enough or weren’t paying attention to MLS at the time, they mostly focus on the big moments or his style. There’s a bit less focus on his dynamics as a player. He averaged a goal contribution every three games in MLS as a center back and sometimes defensive midfielder. He was a sweeper, he was a butler when he needed to be, and he still played beautiful attacking football when he got forward. Find me another center back in MLS history that could do that. He wasn’t just a leader and the face of the franchise with an iconic look. He was a five-tool play who kept a middle-of-the-road team relevant in a league with D.C. United, LA Galaxy, and the Chicago Fire.
The Original Rapid: The club might not exist if not for a phone call with Phil Anschutz.
MLS was set to kick off in 1996. The year prior, Balboa is paying well with León. There’s even the possibility he makes a move to Cruz Azul, a bigger club at the time. Sunil Gulati, a former staffer at the U.S. Soccer Federation, now working MLS Commissioner, reaches out to him. Balboa goes and meets him at the hotel Gulati is staying at.
“He picks up the hotel phone. He says ‘Phil Anschutz wants to talk to you.’ I’m like ‘ok, who’s Phil Anschutz?'”
“He was the owner of the Rapids. He proceeds. We have a little conversation. And then Sunil says to him ‘hey Phil, why don’t you tell him what you told me’ and [Anschutz] says ‘listen, the only way I’m going to have a team in Colorado is if the guy who did the funny overhead kick plays on my team.'”
“When a guy says I want to the guy who does the overhead kick, how do you say no? The dream was always to play in the United States and help build this league. We all scarified. I could have gone and play for Cruz Azul for the next five years,” Balboa added.
“I don’t think I feel proud. I feel honors. I could have easily chosen a different path. They gave a choice of where we wanted to play. The quality of life (in Colorado), it was an easy decision.”
It’s an interesting thought experiment: Does Anschutz still put one of his MLS teams in Denver if he can’t get Balboa? Maybe the Rapids don’t exist if Balboa signs that deal with Cruz Azul. Maybe if he scores that bicycle kick in the World Cup, he gets a big contract offer in Europe or South America and doesn’t come to MLS at all. The Rapids existence may be by the slimmest of margins.
Kroenke Sports & Entertainment purchased the Rapids from Anschutz in 2004. Anschutz still owns the LA Galaxy.
Scoring the first goal in Colorado Rapids history:
Colorado played their first ever game April 13, 1996. It was a road loss to Sporting KC. Balboa was hurt. The following Sunday April 21 (they could have played on 420), they hosted Dallas Burn at Old Mile High Stadium. The Pids won 3-1 with Balboa opening the scoring in the second half. He scored the third as well, on a half volley. Two goals from runs up the middle from a d-mid position. Who says American Football was negative in the 90s?
“I remember Jean Harbor doing all of the work. Beating a guy, laying a ball right here. For me to score a goal with my left foot, hilarious. What an assist. He beat three guys. He was like a linebacker. All I had to do was make a big run. Nobody ever says who got the first assist for the Rapids,” Balboa said with a smile.
Embracing the humble beginnings of MLS:
MLS 1.0 was wild. A buch of USMNT guys took pay cuts to come back to MLS. Everybody got one of those stars. Cobi Jones to LA Galaxy. Tab Ramos to MetroStars. Balboa to the Rapids. These players just weren’t recognizable, they had to poster boys and marketing, canvasing for the league.
“There were guys who left their job making 80 grand, who were making 30,000 dollars because they wanted to help this league,” said Balboa.
They’d do school visit. Colorado’s dressing room was a double trailer. Dallas Burn had a trailer as well. They’d stand out on Federal Blvd in uniform with signs the night before games to remind people to buy tickets.
“I remember the first year standing on Federal, across from the liquor store by Mile High. I’m waving a Rapids flag,” adding “It was part of the job. We didn’t do it for the money. We did it for the love of the game.”
“What we did was not normal. But it was fun.”
The league was built on the backs of that 1994 USMNT squad and the MLS Originals. They did the extra work and lived of 30 grand so Designated Players could make millions today.
Captaining the Rapids to two Cup Finals:
After finishing bottom of the table in their inaugural season (the MLS Wooden Spoon wasn’t started until 2016), Colorado made a run to the MLS Cup Final in 1997. They lost 2-1 to D.C. United, who went on to be the dynasty of MLS 1.0. That Rapids team faced a lot of adversity along the way. They made a run to the fourth seed and got wins against Kansas City and Dallas to make the final. They were underdogs. That final was an ugly game. Lots of rain punctuated by DCU fans on the drums.
“It was difficult. Playing in pouring rains. We were worried about our families because there was a blizzard back in Colorado. Our families couldn’t come out. They arrived after the game was finished so they didn’t see the game,” Balboa said.
“We made a few mistakes. (Adrian) Paz came off the bench. Paul Bravo pulled a hammy. Eight seed. We hung in there. We couldn’t get in a rhythm. We had our chances. No one gave us a chance to make the final in 1997.”
Then two years later, they made the 1999 U.S. Open Cup Final. Playing on a neutral site (Historic) Crew Stadium, they were the favorites against then A-League Rochester Rhinos. It was a bit of a smash and grab with goals in the 65th and 90th minute.
Colorado beat A-League sides Charleston Battery and Seattle Sounders and fellow MLS team Tampa Bay Mutiny on the way to the final. In both of these cup runs, the team had a blue collar approach that matched Balboa’s style of play and energy. Work hard, get stuck in, have a special moment in the attack that decides the game. Chris Henderson and Paul Bravo were good at that as well.
“The positive is that we got there. We just couldn’t take that last step.”
“Felt pressure as the game went on. They counter attacked and it didn’t go their way.”
Finding peace in getting traded and finally “retiring” a Rapids player:
The Rapids have a worryingly bad habit of parting ways with their legends. A good number of them don’t have great relationships today. Pablo Mastroeni was fired and eventually took the RSL job. Paul Bravo had a frustrating exit from the Front Office as Pádraig Smith took over. Conor Casey hasn’t been heard from in years since being interim Head Coach and being passed up for Robin Fraser, but being offered the Switchbacks job.
Balboa was traded to the New York MetroStars before the start of the 2002 season. It pissed him off. He limped through an injury season. He ultimately went into media and coaching and found a home back at the club. But there was something missing. In away, Saturday allowed him to find peace with the part of him that felt betrayed by the club.
“I didn’t get to retire the way I wanted to because of the knee injury. I asked the Rapids if they could get my rights, I would try to play one more year coming off the bench. I wanted to retire as a Rapid. They said yeah. At the last minute, I won’t say who, they pulled the plug. This (jersey retirement) may give me an opportunity to close that chapter the way I want to.”
He has admitted several times he was relieved to not have the wear the “Inter Milan” style black and blue kits, “thank god.” He does miss the club being partnered with Kappa for jerseys because they used to do one-off special jerseys for 4th of July.
Being vulnerable and honest about struggles on and off the field:
A theme of this article and Balboa’s life is finding peace in imperfections and things one cannot control. He’s a deeply human and philosophical person. He’s also very imperfect. He’s spoken to the lateGrant Wahl about struggling with alcohol. He had dark moments with injuries as a Rapid and Yank and needed help from others at times. He isn’t perfect. That makes his human experience more relatable.
Those struggled started as a bilingual first-generation Argentinian American. He eventually overcame them and turn them into a strength. His dad forced him to speak Spanish at home, even though English was his first language. If it wasn’t for soccer, high school would have been a slog.
“I struggled with my Spanish. My first language was English. I struggled in school balanced with both. I was in Special Ed classes. The only thing that saved me was soccer. Because I had to have a C average to play.”
Balboa ended up being one grade short of being eligible for a scholarship. He was being scouted by Sigi Schmidt at UCLA. He recalls Sigi being disappointed in him. Balboa played two years of community college before transferring to San Diego State. Outside of winning a National Championship with the Bruins, his career turned out ok.
From academic struggles to bilingual media career:
Balboa didn’t let cultural or language issues affect his playing career in Mexico. He harnessed his speaking skills in retirement.
“JP Dellacamera was interviewing me (as a player). It was two years before I retired. He told me I should be a broadcaster. He inducted me into the U.S. Soccer Hall of Fame. He’s the one who pushed me into broadcasting.”
Balboa went on to be the Rapids color commentator on Altitude TV for the better part of a decade. When not doing Rapids games, he did Spanish language commentary for multiple outlets. He struck up a good relationship with now beloved play-by-play man Richard Fleming, who spoke on Saturday. He now does English and Spanish color commentary for MLS Season Pass on Apple TV. Not bad for a former high school jock who was in Special Education.
“When I do the Rapids game, I try to do a neutral broadcast. When I do Univision, I can be critical. I can joke around. The only difference, most time when I do Univision, I do the U.S. National Team. There’s not a lot of difference the way I do a game. You commentate for both games. Fans now a day are so knowledgeable, if you try to fluff it one way, they call you out. That’s doing a game fairly, not cheating the fans.”
“The biggest criticism I got was a tweet a few years ago ‘you know nothing about soccer. You’ve never played in England!’ I played in three World Cups.”
Unlike some of his former USMNT compatriots, he’s threaded the needle well of being a former player who now does commentary.
“When I broadcast, I try not to be friends with the players. It’s difficult to be friends with them but then be critical. I think Diego Rubio hates me at times. Then he likes me at times. I try. I leave players alone.”
Coaching the next generation in the Colorado Rapids Development Academy:
In addition to media, Balboa’s gotten into coaching. He’s worked mostly with the Rapids U-14 team and occasionally older age groups. He’s helped develop a number of academy graduates who went on to earn college scholarships. His main Homegrowns he coached were Darren Yapi and Sebastian Anderson. He had some overlap with Cole Bassett. Between this, media, being a dad, and hiking with Koda, he’s a busy man.
“There’s no offseason. I’ve been coaching the U-14s Rapids Academy for 10 years now.”
“I will die being a happy man being with an organization for 30 plus years. I still wake up every morning dying to practice with the academy. I will be here as long as you allow me to be here.”
“It helps that none of the Homegrowns I coached in the academy have sucked. It makes my heart happy to see a Darren Yapi score a goal.”
He’s mentoring the next generation of Rapids players.
Colorado Convert: Came for the soccer, stayed for the mountains
A pox on all those Californians coming to Colorado and ruining our culture! Especially all the ones who move to Boulder and turned it into what Golden doesn’t want to be!
I kid. Balboa came to Colorado in part because of a lifestyle choice. Age and bad knees be damned, he was going to find a Colorado outdoorsy hobby in retirement. One day, he drove to Pueblo to adopt a dog, and now he’s a typical old dude in Boulder who lives up against the foothills and hikes most days.
“Life’s short bro. I just need a little bit of peace. That’s what I did when I got Koda (his dog). I’ve always been looking for someone to go with me in the mountains. He makes the hikes better. It’s Me Time.”
He’s a Colorado convert. It makes him even more relatable.
Loyalty as a former Rapids player:
As touched on above, a lot of Rapids legends have unsquashed beef with the club. Part of why Balboa’s endured despite having retired 23 years ago is that he’s been front, center, and positive. He’s been constructively critical of the club as someone on the inside and a public facing member of the media.
Just like the captain who stood with signs and flags on Federal Blvd to sell tickets in 1996, he’s advocated for the club achieving its potential in 2025. He’s done right by the fans and validated them. Many other players have made decisions because of other factors in a way that makes the fan base feel left out or like they were a part of the problem. That couldn’t be further from the truth for Celo.
“I’m a big fan of loyalty to a club. I get the money, but loyalty is huge for me. I got traded. When you’re in a good place, enjoy it.”
“All we want as players is the approval of the fans and the club. I hope I did them proud. I left my heart and soil on the field. I hope that’s something they will remember.”
Respecting Pablo Mastroeni and the next generation of USMNT stars:
Pablo Mastroeni’s #25 was retired in 2021. Balboa is just the fifth player in MLS to have their number retired. For as much as Rapids fans have forsaken the MLS Cup winning captain for his transgressions with RSL, Balboa showed respect to his fellow Gallery of Honor member:
“I chose not to do it (the jersey retirement) earlier, out of respect for Pablo. Pablo just retired his (#25) jersey. Pablo deserved the recognition for everything he’s done for this club. I didn’t want it landing on the back of his induction.”
“I waited a few years. When they came to me this year, it finally felt right.”
Classy and loyal in the biggest of moments off the field and on. That’s Marcelo Balboa. #17 forever.
Photo Credit: Colorado Rapids
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Spencer Baldwin 