Mexico’s leading all-time international goalscorer (52 goals in 109 matches), Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez, was unveiled on Monday night local time as the first player signing of new USL Championship franchise Atletico Dallas, who are joining the USA’s second-tier national division for the 2027 season.
The club plans to play at the 92,000-capacity Cotton Bowl Stadium in Dallas, an almost 100-year-old venue that nowadays is most famous for the ‘Red River Rivalry’ between the college football teams of the Texas Longhorns and Oklahoma Sooners.
Atletico Dallas have appointed former Ligue 1 and La Liga mercenary Peter Luccin, who served as an assistant coach at Major League Soccer side FC Dallas, as their inaugural head coach.
Hernandez joins the side on a two-year contract with a club option for a third year, which if seen out would have the Mexican legend playing into his 40s.
His storied club career was perhaps best known for more than 100 appearances at Manchester United, where he won two Premier League titles and started up front for them in the 2010/11 UEFA Champions League final against Barcelona.
Hernandez also had stints in the Bundesliga with Bayern Munich, LaLiga with Sevilla and LA Galaxy in the USA before moving back to childhood club Chivas de Guadalajara.
Whilst there are understandably concerns about his match fitness for a 38-year-old who has not played competitively since December 2025, the plans for Chicarito are far greater than just football and include an ambassadorial-type role to grow football in greater Dallas.
Franchise chairman Matt Valentine revealed this week that Hernandez had been his number one target when he founded Atletico Dallas in 2024, albeit not one he expected to scoop up so easily.
“I never in my wildest dreams thought we could have a player of his caliber right off the bat,” Valentine told The Athletic.
“It’s a new chapter in my career (and) in my life,” Hernandez added.
“It’s a project that I’m very attracted to because it’s a long-term project. It’s starting, but it’s not that I’m going to be here just for one year and then say goodbye. I’m going to have a relationship with this club and I hope we can achieve our goals.
“Of course, we want to win championships. We want to win games. We want to be a great football club, as well – but what we want the most is to connect with the Dallas people, and they can feel represented. Atletico Dallas could become something very important for the city.
“I didn’t want to go and just play for (the sake of) playing. I’m gonna be the face of this organisation.
“I’m gonna help the league to get more connection with a lot of cities that might not have MLS teams, or they have USL teams. I’m gonna bring a lot of my expertise.“
The 2027 USL Championship season is due to begin in March, with a further four expansion franchises added to the third-tier USL League One.
There are currently no plans to run promotion-relegation involving the top-tier MLS, though the USL is working towards a three-tier pyramid of its own with promotion and relegation to begin as early as 2028.
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