Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez is one of the greatest soccer players right now. Some might even argue that he is one of the most beloved on the pitch. Now, Los Angeles will get a chance to watch Chicharito work his magic for the L.A. Galaxy.

Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez is joining Major League Soccer to play for the L.A. Galaxy.

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Imaginémonos cosas chingonas.

A post shared by LA Galaxy (@lagalaxy) on Jan 21, 2020 at 8:05am PST

Chicharito is the highest-paid MLS player since David Beckham was recruited into the North American soccer league. The L.A. Galaxy reportedly paid a $9.4 million fee to Sevilla to transfer Chicharito to their time and his guaranteed annual salary will be $6 million.

Fans of soccer and Chicharito are looking forward to what the star player will bring to the new team.

“Chicharito is an outstanding player,” Yon de Luisa, the president of the Mexican Football Federation, told CNN.”He’s the Mexican national team’s leading scorer historically and I am sure he is going to have an outstanding participation here in LA.”He’s going to develop a magnificent rivalry against Carlos Vela, who is his friend, and they will be playing head-to-head in this civil war in LA,” added De Luisa, referring to Hernandez’s Mexican international teammate who plays for rival Los Angeles FC.”I really think it’s going to be a good thing for the city, for MLS and for us as well to have Chicharito closer to the national team.”

The move from the European league to the North American league was not an easy decision for Chicharito.

???? Duele mucho verlo y escucharlo así ????

Chicharito reconoció entre lágrimas con su familia que NO quería irse de Europa y que sólo buscaba "jugar" en el Sevilla porque se creía aún capaz ????

???? "Se acabó, es el principio del retiro" pic.twitter.com/bvHloKZTiV

— Goal México (@goalmex) January 23, 2020

In an emotional video that is going around social media, Chicharito calls his parents and talks to them about his decision to move to MLS. During the call, the global soccer star breaks down in tears telling his parents about his journey in making the decision.

“It’s the start of the process of retiring, you know,” Chicharito said in the emotional video. When his dad pushes back, Chicharito says, “No, no, Dad, but what I want…I’m saying goodbye – and we’re saying goodbye – to a career in which we worked a lot and I know you guys feel it as well and we’re going to see the positive side and it’s going to be amazing. But if we want it or not, we’re now retiring from the European dream.”

The video is a touching and humble reminder that the superheroes we see on the field are people just like the rest of us.

We’ve all been there before. There is something so grounding and necessary about calling your parents when you need advice or are going through a hard time. We’ve all cried to our parents about different issues throughout our lives. Who doesn’t have a memory of crying to their parents over a hard decision and feeling better after the phone call?

Fans in Los Angeles couldn’t wait to welcome Chicharito to his new city and team.

And y’all thought SEC coach arrivals were crazy scenes. This is at LAX, Galaxy fans waiting to welcome new player/Mexico national team star Chicharito. pic.twitter.com/7x0f6mnnEN

— Justin Felder (@Justin_FOX5) January 23, 2020

Chicharito stans learned when he was arriving at Los Angeles International Airport so they showed up and gave him a hero’s welcome. For those of you who have ever traveled in and out of LAX you know how hard it is to get in and out of the airport with the traffic. That just goes to show how much Chicharito is truly loved by those who have followed his career.

Some fans are just happy that Chivas’s loss is their gain.

It is kind of incredible that the Mexican soccer team hasn’t tried harder to bring back one of the best players. Perhaps there isn’t enough money or Chicharito just doesn’t feel like going back just yet.

Welcome to Los Angeles, Chicharito. We are happy to have you!

Who’s excited to see Chicharito play in L.A.?

READ: Chicharito Announced In A Gender Reveal Party That He Is Having A Chicharito Of His Own

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It is no secret that the glass ceiling is an ever-present reality for women in all sorts of environments: in industry, entertainment and of course in professional sports. Sports is a male-centric environment and when it comes to professional leagues, womens’ teams and sports figures are seen as secondary to their hombre counterparts. Now, it is a fact that women are placed at a disadvantage when it comes to salaries and sponsorships in sports, but there is a particular group within the female population that is particularly vulnerable: trans women. Even public figures such as Hillary Clinton and J.K Rowling, who have championed women’s issues, have made unfortunate comments that can be judged as transphobic. The world is still dominated by CIS discourses and trans rights have a long way to go. 

Trans women suffer discrimination and lack of opportunities and any move forward is a significant win. That is why news coming out of Argentina give us hope in a more equal and inclusive future. The country could soon have its first trans woman professional soccer player, subject to the approval by the league. 

Mara Gomez would become the first trans woman to play in Argentina’s female soccer league.

Mara is now 22-years-old and, if approved by the AFA, the reigning body in Argentinian soccer, she will play for for Villa San Carlos, a lower-tier team in Argentina’s top league. Even if her team has not been particularly successful on the field, they have certainly triumphed in terms of their progressive politics.

When she was 15 she was figuring out her gender and sexuality, she felt bullied and alone. Until she kicked a ball and everything changed. As she revealed in Politica y Gestion, she wasn’t particularly good when she started playing but the joy for the game and perseverance helped her cross the line: “I was really bad, but I realized that it was helping me. I could escape a lot of things and it calmed my mind. Fútbol was like therapy. I began to devote more time to it. At 18, everything changed when I began transitioning. I tried out in Toronto City and they accepted me, as I am. They opened their doors and saw me as just one more player. I ended up at a lot of other teams until I got to Malvinas, which was where I was last and we became two-time league champions.”

She fully acknowledges the physical differences she will have with other female players.

In an interview for Politica y Gestion she fully acknowledged and dealt the issue of her trans identity con la cabeza en alto: “There are lots of other players who are much stronger and faster than me and they didn’t use to be male. People talk in these terms simply because medical science split us up into male and female, but we have to consider the human capacity to adapt.” You go, girl! 

The league has to approve her contract, but things are looking up.

Villa San Carlos has officially requested an approval for Mara’s contract. As reported by CE Noticias Financieras, things are looking up for Mara and her team due to three factors that will surely influence the league’s decision: “First is the fact that the front has all the studies that prove that their testosterone levels are within the limits that set regulations to compete in the female branch of the discipline. They then rely on the implementation of the Gender Identity Law, a regulation with which Argentina pioneered the guarantee of rights and which, among other issues, establishes the obligation that trans persons be treated according to their identity self-perceived gender.

Finally, there is a case of a trans player who plays in the First B of Argentine women’s football”. If they deny Mara the right to play professionally they would certainly be involved in a PR nightmare! Fingers crossed!  However, the fact that Mara has to present a hormonal analysis in order to be approved is far from ideal. 

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