Real Salt Lake's Axel Kei Becomes Youngest Signing in MLS History at 14 Years Old
Jan 15, 2022
SALT LAKE CITY, UT - JUNE 12: Real Salt Lake's mascot Leonardo The Lion waves a flag in front of a Jet Blue plane branded with the Real Salt Lake Logo and name at the Salt Lake International Airport June 12, 2009 in Salt Lake City, Utah. Real is the first American major soccer team to have a plane branded with it's name a logo. (Photo by George Frey/MLS via Getty Images)
Real Salt Lake signed 14-year-old Axel Kei to a first-team contract on Friday, making him the youngest signing in MLS history.
“Over the last year Axel has proven to be one of the top attacking prospects in the country," RSL general manager Elliot Fall said in a release. "His propensity in front of goal is well beyond his years, and coupled with his elite athleticism, he projects to become a goal-scoring force in our league in the years to come."
Kei starred for Real Salt Lake's U15 team, scoring five goals in five games during the MLS Next Cup last year to take home the tournament's Golden Boot. He has since played for the club's U17 side, tallying six goals in six games.
Last year, he debuted with the MLS Next Pro team Real Monarchs at just 13 years old, which made him the youngest professional athlete to feature for an American sports team.
13 years, nine months, nine days.
Real Salt Lake Academy player Axel Kei appeared for the @RealMonarchs last night, becoming the youngest athlete to feature for a professional American sports team 🌟
Kei moved to California in 2017 and spent three years playing for the LA Galaxy's San Diego Youth Soccer Club before joining Real Salt Lake. He was born in the Ivory Coast and was raised in Brazil.
Heat Legend Dwyane Wade Joins Real Salt Lake's Ownership Group
Jan 6, 2022
NBA All-Star Dwyane Wade speaks during a news conference Wednesday, Oct. 13, 2021, in Salt Lake City. Apple CEO Tim Cook and Wade joined Utah leaders to announce the completion of a local advocacy group's campaign to build eight new homes for LGBTQ youth in the U.S. West. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
NBA legend Dwyane Wade announced Thursday that he will be part of the new ownership group for Real Salt Lake:
Wade purchased a stake in the Utah Jazz last April, four months after the NBA approved the sale of the team to Ryan Smith.
Smith, as well as Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils co-owner David Blitzer, have reportedly agreed to buy RSL for nearly $400 million, per Alex Vejar of the Salt Lake Tribune.
Ryan Sweeney, who owns a minority stake in the Jazz, is also on board for the RSL purchase. Sweeney and Wade are part of the Smith-led Smith Entertainment Group.
Report: J.J. Watt Interested in Buying MLS' Real Salt Lake, NWSL's Utah Royals
Sep 4, 2020
Houston Texans Defensive End J.J. Watt appears at a Super Bowl event promoting the Verizon Virtual Reality Game Winner Experience on Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, in San Francisco. Watt said he’s knows concussions are part of the risk of playing football. (AP Photo/John Carucci)
Houston Texans star J.J. Watt could become the next active NFL player to purchase a professional sports team.
The defensive end is reportedly interested in buying Utah Soccer Holdings, which operates MLS' Real Salt Lake, USL's Real Monarchs and the Utah Royals FC of the NWSL, according to Sports Business Journal'sMark J. Burns.
The entity was put on the market following multiple reports of racism and misconduct by owner Dell Loy Hansen and senior executive Andy Carroll.
Watt's interest in soccer is understandably personal. His wife, Kealia Ohai, plays for the NWSL's Chicago Red Stars and Watt told Business Insider's Barnaby Lane he's been hooked on the game since a trip to see Chelsea play at Stamford Bridge in 2012.
SBJ reports Utah Soccer Holdings is also receiving interest from both local businessman Ryan Smith and the Miller family, which owns the Utah Jazz.
Earlier this summer, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes became a minority owner of the Kansas City Royals, citing his love for baseball and his childhood watching his father pitch in Major League Baseball.
Dell Loy Hansen to Sell Real Salt Lake After MLS Probe into Racist Remarks
Aug 30, 2020
FILE - Real Salt Lake owner Dell Loy Hansen presents his vision for a new minor league soccer stadium on Sept. 10, 2014, in Salt Lake City. Hansen has come under criticism for comments he made on a radio show after RSL players decided not to take the field for a match to protest racial injustice. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File)
MLS announced Sunday that Dell Loy Hansen will sell Real Salt Lake as well as other parts of Utah Soccer Holdings that include Utah Royals FC in the NWSL and the Real Monarchs in the USL.
The decision comes after Hansen responded negatively to players sitting out Wednesday's game in response to the police shooting of Jacob Blake.
Further, The Athletic published a report Thursday detailing allegations Hansen has made racist comments in the past.
The owner told Salt Lake City radio station X96 that the players' strike was "like somebody stabbed you and you’re trying to figure out a way to pull the knife out and move forward," via The Athletic.
"The disrespect is profound to me personally," he added.
The team announced Friday Hansen would be taking a leave of absence amid an investigation by MLS.
The Athletic also reported a history of racism from Hansen, with former Real Salt Lake employee Andy Williams alleging the owner was a "f--king racist" who used the N-word.
Toronto FC and USMNT striker Jozy Altidore and Utah Jazz star Donovan Mitchell both called for Hansen to sell the team, with Altidore noting his interesting in buying the squad:
It appears there is now an opportunity for the group to buy the MLS club from Hansen, who purchaseda majority stake in Real Salt Lake in 2013.
Real Salt Lake Owner Dell Loy Hansen on Leave After Probe into Racist Remarks
Aug 29, 2020
FILE - Real Salt Lake owner Dell Loy Hansen presents his vision for a new minor league soccer stadium on Sept. 10, 2014, in Salt Lake City. Hansen has come under criticism for comments he made on a radio show after RSL players decided not to take the field for a match to protest racial injustice. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File)
Utah Soccer announced Friday that Dell Loy Hansen, the owner of MLS' Real Salt Lake, NWSL's Utah Royals and USL's Real Monarchs, will be taking a leave of absence from the clubs while being investigated for the alleged use of racist language.
"As MLS and NWSL commence their investigations, Utah Soccer will ensure full cooperation, including seeking to answer any questions the leagues may have about the statements made by Mr. Hansen regarding athlete boycotts and allegations in a resulting article. As an organization, our priority is our employees, our teams, our players, and our fans, and Mr. Hansen in particular cares deeply for each of these individuals who works so hard to make Utah Soccer the success that it is.
"During the pendency of these investigations, and until further notice, Mr. Hansen will be taking a leave of absence from all RSL, URFC, and Monarchs operations. The existing Soccer Executive Group at Utah Soccer will assume all management of the organization."
During an appearance on Salt Lake City radio Station X96 on Thursday (h/t The Athletic), Hansen said he was opposed to the players' protests against racial injustice that led to RSL's match Wednesday against Los Angeles FC being postponed. He said it was like "somebody stabbed you and you're trying to figure out a way to pull the knife out and move forward."
Former RSL employee Andy Williams detailed a 2016 incident when speaking to The Athletic, in which Hansen allegedly asked "when are we gonna lynch this guy?" in reference to then-FC Dallas midfielder Kellyn Acosta, a Black member of the United States men's national team. Acosta currently plays for the Colorado Rapids.
Williams, who played for the club before joining the front office as a scout following his 2011 retirement, told The Athletic the reported comments didn't come as a surprise.
"That's just how he is," Williams said. "He's a f--king racist, to be honest. I've been in situations where it's like (former Los Angeles Clippers owner) Donald Sterling. He says something, and it's like, 'Oh my God, what did he just say?' It's Donald Sterling part two. It's just unbelievable. It's crazy how he doesn't see that the stuff that he says affects people."
Williams also alleged he heard Hansen use the N-word during his tenure with the organization.
Real Salt Lake is scheduled to resume the 2020 season Saturday night when they visit Providence Park to take on the Portland Timbers.
MLS to Investigate RSL Owner Dell Loy Hansen After Allegations of Racism
Aug 27, 2020
In this photo taken on Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2014, Real Salt Lake owner Dell Loy Hansen presents his vision for a new minor league soccer stadium at the Utah State Fairpark meeting with its board, in Salt Lake City. Hansen, the owner of Utah’s Major League Soccer team is offering to build a $13-$17 million stadium at the state fairgrounds that would be home to a minor league team for Real Salt Lake and be part of a broader revitalization of the grounds. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
Major League Soccer will reportedly investigate Real Salt Lake owner Dell Loy Hansen following a story from Christopher Kamrani, Sam Stejskal, Paul Tenorio and Meg Linehan of The Athletic that detailed Hansen's history of racism.
The Major League Soccer Players Association released a statement saying, "The allegations in tonight's Athletic story concerning RSL owner Dell Loy Hansen are sickening. The MLSPA calls upon MLS to immediately suspend Hansen and conduct a thorough investigation. If the allegations are substantiated, he must be forced to sell the team."
The Athletic story shared MLS' statement that read, "We are deeply concerned about the allegations made in a report published this evening concerning language used by and the conduct of Real Salt Lake owner Dell Loy Hansen. Major League Soccer has zero tolerance for this type of language or conduct and will immediately commence an investigation."
Hansen also owns the USL's Real Monarchs and NWSL's Utah Royals, and the NWSL released a statement saying it will also investigate and calling the allegations "shocking."
The Athletic story noted Hansen did not speak with RSL players as they decided to sit out Wednesday's game against LAFC as part of the league's protest against police brutality and systemic racism following the police shooting of Jacob Blake.
However, he appeared on Salt Lake City radio station X96 and said the players not taking the field was "like somebody stabbed you and you're trying to figure out a way to pull the knife out and move forward. … The disrespect is profound to me personally."
He also said the players sitting out "took the wind out of" his sails in terms of a desire to invest more money in the team in the future.
The comments drew plenty of criticism, including some from Toronto FC and U.S. men's national team forward Jozy Altidore and Utah Jazz star Donovan Mitchell:
The Athletic story also detailed a number of times Hansen was allegedly racist.
Andy Williams, who joined RSL in 2005 as a player and was a scout from 2011 until he was furloughed in April, chronicled times when Hansen used the N-word. He also compared Hansen to former Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling, who was ousted from the NBA for his own racism.
"That's just how he is," Williams, who is Black, said. "He's a f---ing racist, to be honest. I've been in situations where it's like (former LA Clippers owner) Donald Sterling. He says something, and it's like, 'Oh my God, what did he just say?' It's Donald Sterling part two. It's just unbelievable. It's crazy how he doesn't see that the stuff that he says affects people."
Williams described one particular incident when he and other members of the team's front office traveled to Dallas in 2016. They came across Kellyn Acosta, a Black FC Dallas player who had scored a goal against RSL, and Williams noted Hansen said the following:
"Waibel said, 'Hey, Dell Loy, this is Kellyn Acosta, one of the guys who scored against us last night.' Kellyn said hello, and the first comment that Dell Loy made was something like, 'Hey Craig, when are we gonna lynch this guy?' Kellyn was right there, he said this right in front of him. I just turned around and walked away, and left the conversation … I just walked away. I couldn't even deal with it."
Acosta's agent at the time, Daren Flitcroft, confirmed the story.
Elsewhere, Aaron Maund, who is Black and a former RSL defender, recalled an incident when he was injured and put his hood up when he was in an elevator with fans as to not be recognized before Hansen came aboard and was racist:
"I scooted onto the elevator, my family is with me and it was a public elevator, a lot of the fans were piling in so I threw my hood on to be a little bit incognito. So I'm kind of standing in the back and Dell Loy came onto the elevator, so I took my hood off and said hello. And he looked back at me and said, 'Oh my God, I thought you were a thug.' And my whole family just whipped their heads around and looked at him, and I just kind of gave them the eyes like, 'He doesn't even know.' It's not even worth having that kind of conversation, because those kinds of things I had seen, those kinds of microaggressions, I had seen 1,000 times from him."
The Athletic story noted Hansen apologized during a second interview on ESPN 700.
It also pointed out the MLS constitution allows the league to remove an owner "on its own initiative if, by a two-thirds majority vote of the board, an operator/investor is determined to have failed to act in the best interests of the league. If so, it must still pay such operator/investor fair market value for its operating rights and ownership interest."
Real Salt Lake Owner Dell Loy Hansen: I Felt 'Disrespected' by MLS Player Strike
Aug 27, 2020
The Real Salt Lake scoreboard is shown after the scheduled game between Real Salt Lake and Los Angeles FC was postponed Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2020, in Sandy, Utah. Major League Soccer players boycotted five games Wednesday night in a collective statement against racial injustice. The players' action came after all three NBA playoff games were called off in a protest over the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Wisconsin on Sunday night. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
Toronto FC star Jozy Altidore and Utah Jazz star Donovan Mitchell called upon Real Salt Lake owner Dell Loy Hansen to sell the team after he criticized the decision of players to protest Wednesday night's MLS games.
MLS postponed five matches on Wednesday once it became clear players would decline to take the field following the shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin on Sunday.
During an interview on X96 in Salt Lake City, Hansen was critical of the protests.
"It's a moment of sadness," he said (via Matt Montgomery of RSL Soapbox). "It's like somebody stabbed you and you're trying to figure out a way to pull the knife out and move forward. That's what it feels like. The disrespect is profound to me personally."
Hansen then implied the protests would impact the extent to which he'd invest in the club: "It's taken a lot of wind out of my sails, what effort I want to put into recruiting players and building a great team. It just seems that's not a very good path to take."
RSL legend Nick Rimando quickly condemned the comments:
Hansen owned a minority stake in the club before purchasing a controlling stake in Real Salt Lake in January 2013. He also owns Utah Royals FC of the National Women's Soccer League.
