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Dempsey tops list of best-selling MLS jerseys

DempseySeattle (Getty)

By TATE STEINLAGE 

Clint Dempsey’s Major League Soccer form has been on the rise in 2014 — and so have his jersey sales.

The league announced Wednesday that the Seattle Sounders forward’s No. 2 jersey is the best-selling Adidas MLS jersey in 2014. Dempsey is joined in the top three by LA Galaxy forward Landon Donovan and Toronto FC midfielder Michael Bradley.

Nine of the lists’ 15 players will be in Brazil this summer at the World Cup, including eight members of the United States Men’s National Team. New York Red Bulls forward Tim Cahill will represent Australia in Group B at the tournament.

The full list of best-selling MLS jerseys in 2014 can be seen following the jump:

Rank Player Team
1 Clint Dempsey Seattle Sounders FC
2 Landon Donovan LA Galaxy
3 Michael Bradley Toronto FC
4 Thierry Henry New York Red Bulls
5 Tim Cahill New York Red Bulls
6 Robbie Keane LA Galaxy
7 Jermain Defoe Toronto FC
8 Omar Gonzalez LA Galaxy
9 Graham Zusi Sporting Kansas City
10 DeAndre Yedlin Seattle Sounders FC
11 Kyle Beckerman Real Salt Lake
12 Matt Besler Sporting Kansas City
13 Chris Wondolowski San Jose Earthquakes
14 Maurice Edu Philadelphia Union
15 Diego Fagúndez New England Revolution

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What do you make of this list? Any surprising names? Any surprising omissions?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. So I guess people actually buy these things. Maybe it’s just a Portland thing but I almost never see people wearing kits with a player’s name on them. I’ve seen a couple Nagbe jerseys, and some guy I sometimes see still has a Horst one, but 99% of Timbers fans just wear the blank kit. Is it really that different in other markets?

    Reply
    • haha, I personally think that’s for two reasons (just my opinion). #1 Hipster Portlanders don’t love the player they love the club (hey I’m all for it, I love Portland), #2 Portland doesn’t really have that huge name player like Henry or Dempsey or Bradley.

      Reply
      • But they’re just hipster enough to get jerseys with players names that nobody else in Portland has, hence why no one player sells that many jerseys. I bet they probably sell a lot of academy players jerseys so that way the hipsters can say, “you haven’t even heard of this guy”.

  2. Are there exact figures? Are they in the hundred thousands or maybe millions? Is Adidas making any money when it comes to what they invested into the league?

    Reply
  3. I’m positive Dempsey, Donovan, Bradley, Henry and Cahill all get a portion of their jersey sales.
    Not so sure about the rest.

    Reply
  4. MLS jerseys sales are interesting. Nobody in America is going to buy another team’s MLS jersey outside of their MLS team. And I don’t think casual sports fans are buying MLS jerseys like they do with the NBA or NFL. Maybe it’s just more about how big that local fan base is for that MLS team.

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    • Yup, plus mls jerseys are ugly and uncomfortable.. Terrible to play in.. Just my opinion – big fan of the league tho

      Reply
    • Ah, I’m somebody. I’ll buy a jersey on discount if it doesn’t have a dude’s name on the back (just a personal preference–doesn’t matter the sport).

      I’m a DC fan and I have a KC jersey and my kid’s got RSL and KC. As long as it isn’t a DC rival or the Galaxy, if it’s going super cheap, I’ll add it to my collection.

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    • I live in Detroit but I have a Donovan Galaxy and a Ljungberg (for real) Sounders shirt. Since we don’t have a team I don’t feel tied to particular clubs. I like the players I like. So some fans do buy jerseys without a club allegiance.

      Reply
  5. Maybe it is just me but I find it odd to wear a uniform with anyone’s name on it. I like just the uniform sans name or number.

    Girls in high school wear uniforms with their boyfriends name on the back.

    Reply
    • Get over yourself. Take that uber macho stuff somewhere else. Literally millions of fans wear jerseys with names on the back. Every NFL, NBA, NHL, and MLB jersey has a name on the back. It is not a bad thing to admire a player. Hell, I wear my Dempsey jersey and just think “damn I wish I was that guy”.

      Reply

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