Before His Final Match, DaMarcus Beasley Relives His Career Through Famous Photos

The heartbreaking DaMarcus Beasley retirement is days away. The legendary American footballer, the only USMNT player to appear in four World Cups, will hang up his boots after the Houston Dynamo host the LA Galaxy on Sunday afternoon.

Beasley announced his plans to retire days before his 37th birthday in May, but it’s still hard to believe the iconic player will call an end to his 20-year career this week.

Beasley made 126 appearances with the USMNT and has played in some of the world’s biggest leagues, from the Eredivisie and Bundesliga to Liga MX and MLS. He’s played in Champions League semifinals and World Cup quarterfinals, the only American who can make that claim. Surprisingly, the only club for which he’s logged more than 100 appearances is his final team, the Houston Dynamo, who he joined in 2014 and with whom he won his third U.S. Open Cup.

Playing against the Galaxy in his final game will be a fitting bookend to his career after he was allocated to the LA club more than 20 years ago (though he never appeared for the Galaxy as he was quickly traded to the Chicago Fire).

Before he officially retires, the USMNT put out a video in which Beasley goes through his career in photos, from youth soccer to the 2014 World Cup.

From Ft. Wayne Sports Club to the Silver Ball in 1999, a famous photo shoot & becoming the first #USMNT player to appear in  @FIFAWorldCup's, @DaMarcusBeasley has seen it all.

Before his last game with @HoustonDynamo, #LegenDMB takes us through his career in photos.

 pic.twitter.com/s4lCaG5oes

— U.S. Soccer MNT (@USMNT) October 3, 2019

Our personal favorite photos from the whole video are the ones taken by the New York Times ahead of the 2002 World Cup. Landon Donovan gives his best sexy face while sipping from a water fountain and Beasley is as cool as the other side of the pillow while getting grass stains on his white shirt. Beasley said it was one of the worst photos Donovan has ever taken; we think it’s the best.

Other photos of note Beasley discusses are the 1999 U-17 World Cup team in which Donovan and Beasley took the Golden and Silver Balls, the Torsten Frings hand ball in the 2002 World Cup quarterfinals, Beasley’s Dos-A-Cero goal against Mexico in a 2005 World Cup qualifier and the 2013 Snowclasico, which Beasley said cemented his move to left back after having been an attacking player for most of his career.

If that’s not enough DaMarcus Beasley retirement content for you, here’s a list of the five greatest moments of his career.