The Seattle Sounders will honor former player Steve Zakuani prior to Saturday night’s home match against Chicago Fire (7:30 p.m. PT; Watch on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV, 950 KJR AM, SiriusXM FC, El Rey 1360AM | TICKETS) as part of the 50th Anniversary celebration.
The first overall pick in the 2009 SuperDraft and the Sounders’ first draftee of the MLS era, Zakuani helped establish expectations of what it means to be a Sounder.
“I think the success the club has gone on to have, it really began with those early years with the really good team we had,” said Zakuani.
Over the course of five seasons (2009-13), the former winger tallied 18 goals and 14 assists across all-MLS competitions while supporting the Rave Green to three consecutive Open Cup titles.
His career was cut short due to injury, but he feels appreciative of his experience in Major League Soccer and the Sounders organization.
“To have been the first pick in the draft, and in Sounders history, that's a lot of confidence that Adrian [Hanaeur], Sigi [Schmid], [Brian] Schmetzer and Chris Henderson and others put in me,” said Zakuani. “When I was playing here and was a part of the team, I think I excited the fans, and I had a very distinct playing style, so I definitely feel proud to have been a part of that and to have been an important player for the team.”
Prior to the draft, Zakuani recalls a conversation he had with Alexi Lalas on where he wanted to go professionally after his successful college stint at the University of Akron. He immediately knew he wanted to be in Seattle.
“Before March of 2009 ever rolled around, so many things were already in place to help the club be successful,” said Zakuani. “I was always projected to be a top five pick and I knew Seattle was number one, I think Toronto was second and LA was third, so I knew I'd be with one of those teams and I said, ‘probably Seattle’ because I'd already read that they sold almost 20,000 season tickets.”
In his final year of playing professionally, the London native played for his former college coach, Caleb Porter, with the Portland Timbers, but realized he was always meant to establish roots in Seattle post-soccer career.
“Even when I went to Portland, I kept my house [in Seattle] for a little while,” said Zakuani. “I was in [the city] quite often so I knew I was going to come back.”
Fast forward 10 years, Zakuani has remained a resident of the Emerald City and plays a vital role at the club to this day, serving as an Ambassador for the Rave Green alongside his former teammate, Brad Evans.
"I always had a pretty good connection with people within the organization,” said Zakuani. “And so, it was kind of a no-brainer that if I'm going to be living in Seattle for at least a little while, I'm going to stay close to the Sounders.”
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Whether it be discussing the latest of the team on the Sounders Pod-Cast, leading the play-by-play broadcast on Sports Radio KJR, or supporting community efforts through the RAVE Foundation and other Social Impact events, Zakuani continues to have an active presence in all things Sounders.
“It's been a good association to have for my life since I moved here in 2009,” said Zakuani. “I think it was inevitable that I'd be able to do something with the organization.”
Zakuani’s approach regarding his involvement at the club has not changed since he stopped playing. As a Sounder, you must “show up [every day], and bring your best self on and off the pitch,” according to Zakuani, and that is exactly what he does in his current positions at the club and in his community outreach ventures today.
“It was the Zach Scott’s, Roger Levesque’s, Taylor Graham’s, Brian Schmetzer’s, the guys that had been around, that taught me what it meant to be a Sounder, what it meant to be a part of the club, what it was to be a part of the soccer community, and I had a lot of people always embrace me from what went on,” said Zakuani. “So, I've been trying to come back and do the same.”
