The Wisconsin native played 321 regular season matches and 37 playoff matches in 14 MLS seasons, before retiring on February 5, 2010.
Only two other players, Jaime Moreno and Steve Ralston, played the first 14 seasons in MLS history. That track record speaks volumes of their professionalism, having been able to maintain such a high level of play over that length of time.
Jesse Marsch has proven that when he arrives somewhere, he’s there for the long haul. “I’ve been a leader everywhere I’ve been,” he said.
It’s hard to doubt a man whose resumé includes three MLS Cups and four US Open Cups. With that kind of track record, it should come as no surprise that as soon as he retired, Marsch was recruited to be the assistant coach of the US national team under Bob Bradley.
In that position, he led the United States to the round of 16 at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, as well as to this summer’s Gold Cup final, where the Americans lost to their arch nemesis, Mexico.
It’s an already impressive and well-decorated career for Marsch, yet he’ll only be turning 38 in early November.
A long, peaceful river...
For as solid as Marsch’s professional career is, his personal life reminds us of the title of a popular French film from the 1980s, titled “La vie est un long fleuve tranquille”.
“My wife Kim and I have known each other since high school,” he recalled. “It’s been a long time and I can’t thank her enough for the patience she’s shown in following me around throughout the years.”
The couple has three children – Emerson (10), Maddux (8) and Lennon (4) – and lives along the Pacific coast, in Manhattan Beach, a Los Angeles suburb.
“Emerson and Maddux were born in Chicago, but don’t remember much of it because we moved to California when I was traded to Chivas USA at the end of the 2005 season,” Marsch explained. “The change will probably be toughest on them, because they’ve always known the sun, the beach and the heat of the west coast. That being said, we always told them that we might have had to move some day. They’re excited to come to Montreal.”
Marsch is excited to be on the verge of such a huge transition. Many Americans don’t take particular interest in what goes on beyond their borders, but Marsch has embraced life abroad ever since he took a five week trip around Europe at the age of 12. That curiosity eventually led to a BA in history from Princeton University.
A valuable learning experience
“As a player, I always hoped to play in Europe, but that’s not what happened,” Marsch said. “I’ve always believed that living in another country and embracing another culture is an extremely valuable learning experience. That’s one of the reasons I’m so happy to be coming to Montreal with Kim and our kids. It’ll make us better people.”
The Marsch family journey will soon begin. Back in California, the bags are packed and everything is ready for the big move to Quebec.
“We’ll have to find a house and get the kids enrolled in school by September,” said Marsch. “We’ll start by making the best arrangements for our kids, which will largely determine which neighbourhood we’ll be living in. We’ve already looked at some homes in the Town of Mount-Royal, Westmount and Côte-des-Neiges. Kim will be joining me this weekend. We want to make a decision as soon as possible, because I’d like to get a jump on preparing the team for MLS expansion next year.”
Jesse Marsch plans on building the club around the Montreal Impact’s distinct characteristics, which also means he’s promised to study French.
“I took French lessons in high school and college, but I’m pretty rusty,” he recalled. “I really want to get back into studying the language because it’s intrinsic to the history and identity of this club. The bottom line is that I will do everything possible to make Montreal proud of its team.”
Martin Smith, Impact Média
