If you cruise around Los Angeles long enough, you're likely to run into someone or something famous. You're almost certain to bump into an iconic landmark or perhaps even some sort of celebrity if you explore. It's a city defined by its ability to be memorable. Even if you have never stepped foot anywhere near the City of Angels, you've seen something that makes you feel like you have.
And, if you walk down the iconic Venice Beach long enough, you'll see plenty of murals. You'll see bright colors and Instagrammable-backdrops nestled in among the sights that define the iconic boardwalk. You'll spot the legendary basketball courts, dozens upon dozens of shops and artistic creations honoring a cast of larger-than-life heroes like Arnold Schwarzenegger, Albert Einstein and Jim Morrison.
Tucked in the middle of it all is a mural of a Los Angeles icon in the making, Carlos Vela. It's one of the ways that Los Angeles honors the city's biggest stars. Kobe Bryant's tragic passing saw tributes sprout up all over the city. LeBron James' arrival saw artists depict the basketball star in the famous purple and gold of the Los Angeles Lakers. Vela's Mexico teammate Javier 'Chicharito' Hernandez was honored with one as well, with his LA Galaxy career truly beginning the moment he was painted in front of the club's biggest stars of yesteryear.
But Vela isn't the type of person that usually dominates Los Angeles headlines. He's a bit quieter, more reserved than the other names that have been immortalized. He's famously been criticized for his perceived lack of passion, for his love of basketball, for his carefree attitude. Throughout his career, Vela has been criticized for not truly grabbing the spotlight that comes with his talent. For years, the biggest question was what it would take to truly unlock the best Vela possible.
While he didn't move to LA looking for superstardom, Vela has surely found it and he's found a formula that has taken him to a new level on and off the field. In a recent poll conducted by Loyola Marymount, the Mexican star was named as the third most popular athlete in Los Angeles behind only Lakers superstar James and Dodgers slugger Cody Bellinger. The Lakers and Dodgers are two of America's most iconic franchises, while Vela's Los Angeles FC have existed for less than three seasons. In those three short seasons, Vela has become a defining figure in Los Angeles and American soccer as a whole.
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The reason he's been able to break through? His absolutely eye-popping numbers. He's fired 57 goals across his first 71 games for the third-year club, who signed him to be the face of the franchise ahead of the team's expansion season. His 2019 season was the most prolific in MLS history, as Vela finished with 34 goals and 15 assists, setting the record for most goals and most goal contributions in a single MLS campaign.
Plenty of soccer's biggest stars have shined in LA before. Landon Donovan is one of American soccer's icons and likely the face of the LA Galaxy. David Beckham is the biggest name to ever play stateside, while Zlatan Ibrahimovic's unique blend of confidence and showmanship made him an instant hit in Hollywood. But you could argue that none have captured the city's heart quite like Vela. He's LA's first mainstream Mexican superstar, and he may just be the most singularly dominant player in MLS history.
"You are never ready for that kind of spotlight, but when you're here and you see how sports are, how life is being in one of the biggest cities in the world, you have to be like that," Vela told Goal . "You have to take more responsibility and show something different. When you are there with the best and when you are the best, you have to be there and show how good you are and try and bring something to the people. With that part, I feel really comfortable living here and playing here. I want to be the best every day."
He added: "It's an honor to be recognized in LA. It's something really cool. It's something, you don't work for that, but when you see that you are doing your best, you are trying to do something for you, for your talent, for the city, and when the people recognize that, you feel special."
Vela says his path towards Hollywood hero didn't begin the moment he landed in LAX. It didn't even necessarily begin in his hometown of Cancun, the famous Mexican beach city more famous for producing spring break parties than footballers. In a weird way, it began in London with Vela at his lowest.
The Mexican star signed with Arsenal as a teenager, departing Chivas de Guadalajara and his native Mexico for Europe. He had broken through at the 2005 Under-17 World Championship, winning the Golden Boot with five goals for a Mexico side that topped future Real Madrid star Marcelo and Brazil in the final. However, due to England's work permit laws, Vela wasn't able to actually play for Arsenal for several years.
His early years in Europe resulted in a number of loan spells and his eventual return to Arsenal produced only 11 goals across three seasons. It was the most trying time of Vela's life, he says. The repeated loan spells were difficult and he struggled to ever adapt at Arsenal but, all these years later, he sees it as a defining period, not a decision to regret.
"It was a hard moment. At 17 years old, you move from Cancun to London, you're excited for that but it's a big change," Vela said. "When you're not mature, you have more problems, more troubles. Your head isn't ready to be at one of the biggest clubs in the world. That part was difficult for me. But, honestly, I'm proud to have Arsenal as part of my career. I had good things there.
"After that, my life changed. I was able to get more experienced, more mature. I'm a better player because of it because you have to have bad moments to improve, to work more. It makes you say, 'I don't want to be back in that bad moment'. I want to be in good moments like I am now, so I'm working to keep myself at a high level.
"Working hard, training hard, taking care of my body, those are the things that, when you are young, you don't think it is important. That part, I learned from that experience. That's why I'm the person I am now."
The person Vela is now is defined by far more than his soccer exploits. The winger famously stated that basketball is his sport of choice, drawing criticism for a perceived lack of commitment to his craft. For Vela, soccer is a job, one that he is very good at. He's able to be passionate about it and work hard to perfect it, but he's also allowed to admire those that have achieved greatness in other sports. He sees himself as no different than the millions of other people that go to work every morning and return home to find an escape in sports.
As he's found his own place in the American sports landscape, Vela has taken in all it has to offer. He's gone to Laker games and taken photos with former basketball great and current LAFC owner Magic Johnson. He recently donned his own Laker uniform and tweeted a video showing himself dunking on his own basketball hoop.
And now, Vela is becoming a peer to many of the basketball stars that he has idolized. Vela recently signed on with BODYARMOR, the sports drink company that announced a deal to sponsor MLS ahead of the 2020 season. Bryant was one of the company's largest shareholders prior to his death, and Vela's MLS exploits have seen him chosen to be one of the faces of the brand alongside NBA superstar James Harden, U.S. women's national team star Megan Rapinoe and Mike Trout, another unassuming Los Angeles star that is almost universally seen as the best player in baseball.
For years, MLS has operated outside of the mainstream, with the league looking to catch up to the big-four sports. But Vela is the latest player to break through into the national spotlight.
"When I came here, I never expected to make that big of an impact," Vela said, "but now that I'm here, I've seen things in the league, I get to be a part of BODYARMOR with a lot of good athletes, I feel that I am moving in the right direction and doing things right. It's putting more pressure on myself to work more and be a better player and a better person too."
He added: "When they called me to be part of the campaign, it was like, 'Of course I want to be part of that'. James Harden, Kobe was part of this...I'm proud to be part of this group."
But, despite the trophies, the accolades and the endorsements, Vela says his focus hasn't changed. He never came to Los Angeles to be a superstar. He didn't move to Hollywood to live the Hollywood lifestyle. Like many that live in Southern California, he did it to escape to a little bit of normality.
That's the magic of Los Angeles. Whether you're Leonardo DiCaprio, Ellen DeGeneres, Beckham or, yes, Vela, the city offers some semblance of home. There's something normal about living around others who lead lives that are abnormal, and there's a certain peace that comes with living in an area that understands the difference between stardom and real life. Living near the beach certainly sweetens the deal, too.
When MLS does eventually resume and when Vela and LAFC do take the field, they'll be among the favorites. Last year's team was among the best in league history, even if they fell short in the playoffs.
But, to truly make it, to truly transcend in LA for years and years, you have to win. Bryant isn't an icon because he was good; he's an icon because he won five NBA titles. And Vela knows that, for all his individual success over these first two years, there's still plenty left to do.
"I want to win MLS Cup. It's the most important thing for me," he said. "When you win something individually, it feels good but, in the end, football or soccer is a team sport. If I want to be in the history of MLS or the history of LAFC, I have to win titles. That's my goal."
He added: "I hope this season or next season I can be MVP again, I can win championships and be in all those places because if you are in those places, it's because you're doing the right things."
Since moving to LA, Vela has already had two major murals painted in his honor. The first was to commemorate his, and LAFC's, arrival to American soccer. The more recent was made in honor of his MVP campaign, the best MLS has ever seen.
And, if Vela keeps doing those "right things", if he can keep finding ways to stand out in a city full of stars, he may just become the latest athlete to define sports in Hollywood.
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