VANCOUVER, BC – Ryan Gauld is an MLS All-Star.
Major League Soccer announced on Monday that Vancouver’s captain has been named to the 30-man roster for the 2024 MLS All-Star Game presented by Target, as the MLS All-Stars host the best of LIGA MX on Wednesday, July 24 at Lower.com Field in Columbus, Ohio.
Gauld was selected by Columbus Crew and MLS All-Star head coach Wilfried Nancy as part of his 16 picks. The remaining selections were made through fan, player, and media voting (12 players) and a pair of selections by MLS commissioner Don Garber.
This season, Gauld has tallied a team-leading nine goals and four assists across 19 starts in MLS play. In addition, the Scotsman is tied for sixth in chances created (50), ranks sixth in key passes (53), tied for seventh in successful crosses with 34, and sits in the 93rd percentile in tackles per 90 amongst attacking midfielders/wingers in the league (2.25).
The playmaker becomes the sixth Whitecaps FC player to represent the club at the MLS All-Star Game, joining Jay DeMerit (2012), Camilo (2013), David Ousted (2015), Kendall Waston (2016), and Alphonso Davies (2018).
Since joining Vancouver in July 2021 from Portuguese side SC Farense, Gauld has scored 35 goals and added 38 assists, a club-record in the MLS era. In total, the 28-year-old has started 105 of his 117 appearances across all competitions and his 73 goal contributions are the most in the club’s MLS era.
During his time with the club, Gauld has helped Vancouver secure back-to-back Canadian Championship titles, recording three assists in the 2022 campaign to earn the George Gross Memorial Trophy as Canadian Championship MVP and scoring the game-winner in the 2023 final against CF Montréal. Gauld was also a finalist for the MLS Newcomer of the Year award in his first season with the club in 2021 and a candidate for the Landon Donovan MLS Most Valuable Player award in 2023.
Off the pitch, Gauld has had a presence in the community by supporting Covenant House Vancouver as a donor and inviting the organization along with the British Columbia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (BC SPCA) to matches at BC Place as part of the Player Ticket Initiative program.
In his career, Gauld has amassed 347 appearances at the professional club level, having played for the likes of Dundee United, Sporting CP, VÃtoria Setúbal FC, Deportivo Aves, and SC Farense after coming through the Dundee United Academy.
2024 MLS All-Star roster by position and selection mechanism:
GOALKEEPERS (3): Roman Bürki (St. Louis CITY SC / Coach’s Selection), Hugo Lloris (LAFC / Coach’s Selection), Maarten Paes (FC Dallas / Voted in)
DEFENDERS (9): Jordi Alba (Inter Miami CF / Voted In), Rudy Camacho (Columbus Crew / Coach’s Selection), Justen Glad (Real Salt Lake / Voted In), Aaron Herrera (D.C. United / Voted In), Thiago Martins (New York City FC / Coach’s Selection), Steven Moreira (Columbus Crew / Coach’s Selection), Luca Orellano (FC Cincinnati / Coach’s Selection), Miles Robinson (FC Cincinnati / Voted In), Keegan Rosenberry (Colorado Rapids / Coach’s Selection)
MIDFIELDERS (10): Luciano Acosta (FC Cincinnati / Voted In), Sergio Busquets (Inter Miami CF / Voted In), Mathieu Choinière (CF Montréal / Coach’s Selection), Evander (Portland Timbers / Coach’s Selection), Ryan Gauld (Vancouver Whitecaps FC / Coach’s Selection), Héctor Herrera (Houston Dynamo FC / Commissioner’s Pick), Robin Lod (Minnesota United FC / Coach’s Selection), Hany Mukhtar (Nashville SC / Coach’s Selection), Darlington Nagbe (Columbus Crew / Commissioner’s Pick), Riqui Puig (LA Galaxy / Voted In)
FORWARDS / WINGERS (8): Cristian ‘Chicho’ Arango (Real Salt Lake / Voted In), Christian Benteke (D.C. United / Voted In), Federico Bernardeschi (Toronto FC / Coach’s Selection), Denis Bouanga (LAFC / Coach’s Selection), Juan ‘Cucho’ Hernández (Columbus Crew / Coach’s Selection), Lionel Messi (Inter Miami CF / Voted In), Luis Suárez (Inter Miami CF / Voted In), Diego Rossi (Columbus Crew / Coach’s Selection)
Highlights of the 2024 MLS All-Star roster include the following:
- Leading the way with five selections is the host club and defending MLS Cup presented by Audi champion Columbus Crew, which is the most by a club since the Seattle Sounders had six in 2021.\\ Supporters’ Shield leader Inter Miami CF* ranks second with four players selected Three Columbus players will be making their All-Star debut– forward Cucho Hernández and defenders Steven Moreira and Rudy Camacho – while Diego Rossi will be making his third overall All-Star appearance (2019 and 2021 with LAFC) and first with the Crew. Darlington Nagbe, a Commissioner’s pick, will also be making his third All-Star appearance (2016 with the Portland Timbers and 2022 with the Crew)
- All four Inter Miami selections were voted into the All-Star Game in their first year on the ballot: forwards Lionel Messi and Luis Suárez, midfielder Sergio Busquets, and left back Jordi Alba
- Overall, 18 clubs are represented on this year’s All-Star Game roster: FC Cincinnati, Colorado Rapids, Columbus Crew, D.C. United, FC Dallas, Houston Dynamo FC, Inter Miami CF, LA Galaxy, LAFC, Minnesota United FC, CF Montréal, Nashville SC, New York City FC, Portland Timbers, Real Salt Lake, St. Louis CITY SC, Toronto FC, and Vancouver Whitecaps FC
- The All-Stars were born in 17 different countries: Argentina (three), Brazil (two), Canada (one), Colombia (two), Democratic Republic of the Congo (one), Finland (one), France (four), Germany (one), Italy (one), Liberia (one), Mexico (one), the Netherlands (one), Scotland (one), Spain (three), Switzerland (one), the United States (four), and Uruguay (two)
- Eighteen of the 30 players will be making their MLS All-Star Game debut, while four players - Luciano Acosta (FC Cincinnati), Hany Mukhtar (Nashville SC), Darlington Nagbe (Columbus Crew), and Diego Rossi (Columbus Crew) - will each be making their third All-Star appearance, the most of any players on the 2024 roster
- Ten club captains were named to the MLS All-Star roster: Luciano Acosta (FC Cincinnati), Chicho Arango (Real Salt Lake), Roman Bürki (St. Louis CITY SC), Ryan Gauld (Vancouver Whitecaps FC), Héctor Herrera (Houston Dynamo FC), Thiago Martins (New York City FC), Lionel Messi (Inter Miami CF), Hany Mukhtar (Nashville SC), Darlington Nagbe (Columbus Crew), and Keegan Rosenberry (Colorado Rapids)
- Eight players who have received MLS Best XI accolades feature on the roster: Luciano Acosta (three), Denis Bouanga (one), Roman Bürki (one), Cucho Hernández (one), Héctor Herrera (one), Hany Mukhtar (three), Miles Robinson (two), and Diego Rossi (one)
- Eight of the 30 players on the All-Star roster made their MLS debut in 2023 or later: Jordi Alba (Inter Miami CF), Roman Bürki (St. Louis CITY SC), Sergio Busquets (Inter Miami CF), Evander (Portland Timbers), Hugo Lloris (LAFC), Lionel Messi (Inter Miami CF), Luca Orellano (FC Cincinnati), and Luis Suárez (Inter Miami CF)
- All three Canadian MLS clubs are featured on an All-Star roster for the first time since 2018: CF Montréal (Mathieu Choinière), Toronto FC (Federico Bernardeschi), and Vancouver Whitecaps FC (Ryan Gauld)
- Three former MLS Golden Boot presented by Audi winners are included on the roster: Denis Bouanga (2023, LAFC), Hany Mukhtar (2022, Nashville SC), and Diego Rossi (2020, LAFC)
- Three World Cup champions are featured on the roster: Argentina’s Lionel Messi (Inter Miami CF), France’s Hugo Lloris (LAFC), and Spain’s Sergio Busquets (Inter Miami CF)
The MLS All-Star Game presented by Target and MLS All-Star Skills Challenge presented by AT&T at Lower.com Field will be available to watch in more than 100 countries and regions in English, Spanish, and French on MLS Season Pass on the Apple TV app. Fans can subscribe to MLS Season Pass now through the Apple TV app on Apple devices, smart TVs, streaming devices, set-top boxes, game consoles, and the web at tv.apple.com.
Tickets for the MLS All-Star Game presented by Target are on sale at MLSSoccer.com/All-Star or by clicking here.
