Photo by Kory Brinton
Just like the rest of his teammates, Sporting Kansas City midfielder Julio Cesar sipped on a celebratory Budweiser in the team’s locker room. Sporting KC had just secured the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference after finishing their regular season schedule and, like after so many other games during the 2012 season, the post-game environment was electric.
Cesar laughed and talked with his teammates. He wore a contagious smile with the same sweaty jersey he had just played ninety-something minutes in and, sitting in front of Cesar’s locker was his son, 12-year-old Julio Cesar II, ready to celebrate alongside his dad.
Julio II swiveled in the big leather chair, he hung out and high-fived the players surrounding him. He cracked a joke with defender Aurelien Collin, whose locker is located right next to Cesar’s.
It’s not the first time Julio II has hung out with the team, and it won’t be the last.
That’s because Cesar is a family man, and he said Kansas City has provided him the right atmosphere to raise his three children.
“I am very comfortable here,” Cesar said about living in Kansas City. “The town is small, and I think it’s perfect for my family, my kids. They are pretty happy, they go to school, have their friends. Their life here is very comfortable.”
Cesar began his career with Sporting Kansas City during the 2011 season, after sixteen years of moving from country to country playing for various teams. The Brazil native began his career when he was 17-years-old and starred with C.D. Marathon in Honduras for a year before heading to the Spanish Real Valladolid, where he was noticed by Real Madrid. After a year with Real Madrid he was lent to A.C. Milan, then headed back to Spain and back to La Liga to play with Real Sociedad.
The list of teams grew from there for Cesar: Benfica, Austria Wien, Valladolid, and Bolton Wanderers. In 2005 he decided to switch continents and head to North America where he played for the Mexican Club, Tigres. Cesar spent one season in Mexico before heading back to Europe, this time he went to Greece and played for the Olympiacos. He played in Romania, he played in Turkey and he played in Portugal – his last stop before heading out west to Kansas City.
“It’s different, it’s totally different,” Cesar said about playing in MLS. “The United States has a very young league. I have been here two years and in that two years, we’ve worked really hard to be what we are. We’re one of the best teams in the United States. But compared to other teams in the world, it’s another kind of life.”
Teammates Kei Kamara and Jimmy Nielsen both said the experience Cesar brings to the field has made a tremendous impact on the team’s success.
“He’s a guy that’s been to a lot of places,” Kamara said. “He’s been in a lot of situations and when you can have players like that on the team, it’s really good.”
Nielsen, who in many ways is similar to Cesar as he is in his 30’s and also raising a family in Kansas City, said Cesar is the kind of guy you can count on to be in the right place at the right time.
“He’s a solid player,” Nielsen said, “you know what you’re going to get from him week after week, and he’s always in the right position. He’s a very, very important player and doing an awesome job at holding the midfield for the team.”
Along with a successful career on the soccer field, Cesar’s life off the pitch has been enjoyable as well.
“I like to hang out with friends, have a cup of coffee, play with my kids,” Cesar said. “Family stuff.”
Cesar waved his son over and the two began to chat about their favorite thing, soccer.
“He plays striker,” Cesar said proudly pointing to Julio II, trying to get his son to talk a little bit about himself.
Julio II, who shied away from talking at first, smiled when asked if he was “pretty good at soccer.”
“Yeah, well, I score in almost every game,” he smiled. Julio II plays soccer for Brookside Soccer Club in Kansas City and said playing soccer is something he enjoys, just like his dad.
This season, Cesar has played in 27 regular season games with 25 starts. He’s anchored the team’s midfield with his presence on the field and he has found a certain comfort being in Kansas City.
“I am very happy to be in this project,” Cesar said about Sporting Kansas City’s growth. “We started from zero, and now we have two years in the row where we’re in the best condition. We have a great stadium. We have some of the best fans. I am very happy, really happy.”
