Taylor Graham’s Puerto Rican adventure

Talyor Graham at work for the Sounders FC, or is he at play? Seen here with Xander Bailey, of the Seattle Sounders FC 2014

By Steven Agen

Remember that time Taylor Graham played for the Puerto Rican National Team? Yes, the same Taylor Graham who wrote himself into Sounders lore with his play at the centerback position before transitioning into a front office role. Now the Senior Director of Business Operations, the Stanford graduate’s story highlights how the rules of our region are still evolving in the soccer world. Speaking exclusively with Radio Cascadia this week, Graham shed some light on his story:

“Do I not look Puerto Rican? It’s actually kind of a fun story. I’m not of Puerto Rican descent. I do speak Spanish, which was an asset when I did play there. When the Sounders would battle against the USL franchise, the Puerto Rico Islanders, the head coach at the time, Colin Clarke, had been named the national team coach for Puerto Rico. And he understood, his goal was to qualify for the Gold Cup. And when he called me to see if I was interested in playing for the Puerto Rican national team, I kind of laughed him off, too, because I’m not Puerto Rican. But what he proceeded to tell me is that as a territory of the United States, Americans, at that time, could kind of forgo their right to play for the US and play with Puerto Rico. And, to be candid, he called me because I was on the list of players that would never really, most likely would never get a chance to play at the international level with the United States.

And it was a conundrum for me, because I’m American. I’m patriotic, and I felt like maybe I was gonna be Benedict Arnold and, you know, go and play for somebody else when my allegiance truly is with the United States. It was with a conversation with [Sounders USL manager] Brian Schmetzer when I told him about this opportunity. It was in the offseason so it wasn’t going to take away from anything USL or Sounders my career related. And he said it was an amazing life and soccer experience, and that he suggested that I do it. And I did.”

A struggling side at the time, making the Gold Cup would take a truly Herculean effort from El Huracan Azul. Despite only playing three matches for Puerto Rico, Graham saw success at the national team level. They didn’t qualify for the Gold Cup, but the American did help them to their first win in 14 years.

“And so I went and played with Puerto Rico. We played Bermuda twice and Trinidad and Tobago once. Two wins and a draw. And [it]kinda made some waves in CONCACAF as a region, and I think [it]forced CONCACAF to come up with a policy to see who is and is not eligible to play for Puerto Rico. At that time, they clarified the rules and said that to be eligible to play you either needed to be of Puerto Rican descent or you need to have lived on the island for two years. I didn’t fit either of those categories therefore I was not able to continue.”

His humorous story reminds us of the challenges we still face as a confederation to catch up with the rest of the world, even as we see players of tremendous pedigree (see also: Diego Costa) given the opportunity to pick their allegiance. Surely, no one can blame Graham for wanting a taste of international soccer, nor Puerto Rico for trying to assemble the strongest squad possible.

Hear Graham’s full 20 minute interview on Episode 30 of Radio Cascadia, releasing on Prost Amerika this Friday.