It has been exactly a week since Didier Drogba announced that he is joining the United States' United Soccer League (Division 2) franchise Phoenix (Arizona) Rising FC on a two year playing contract—as well as in the rather unique position as Player-Owner—with the same organization that is trying to land an MLS expansion franchise, as the top professional league in the United States and Canada looks to expand from their current 24 teams to 28 over the next few years, having added Atlanta and Minneapolis/St. Paul for the 2017 season.

Tribal Football.com talked to club Governor Berke Bakay as well as to Didier Drogba on Sunday, April 23, when Drogba was introduced to the fans and media at Phoenix Rising's home match versus Swope Park (Missouri) Rangers—an affiliate of MLS side Sporting Kansas City. Phoenix won an exciting match 4-3, though it was a white knuckle finish as the home side surrendered a 4-0 lead late to the 2016 USL Championship Finalists, who had not lost a regular season game since last September, scoring three goals in the final 11 minutes of regulation time with Phoenix a man down through a red card. Many football fans in the States and overseas want to know why Drogba—after years of success with his native Ivory Coast National Team, Chelsea, Montreal in MLS and Galatasaray in Turkey, as well as a short spell in China with Shanghai Shenhua—came to buy into and play for a minor league side in the middle of the desert, where temperatures routinely stay above 35 Degrees Centigrade for months.

One key element in Drogba's decision is that Phoenix Rising F.C is one of 12 bidding groups for a MLS expansion franchise over the next few years, which includes:

Charlotte
Cincinnati
Detroit
Indianapolis
Nashville
Raleigh
Sacramento
St. Louis
San Antonio
San Diego
Tampa St. Petersburg

Typically Phoenix would be at the bottom of the list for most handicappers of the bidders as the city has had a number of failed professional and semiprofessional soccer teams in the past half century, and has struggled to bring in fans in 5 years in the USL—averaging less than 1,500 fans a game last season. (Even Mexican and South American clubs have drawn disappointing crowds for exhibitions; Boca Juniors of Argentina once drew less than 2,000 to a mid-summer tournament match. Only the Mexican National Team will sell out the NFL Arizona Cardinals 65,000-plus seat domed stadium.) Of course it hasn't helped that the USL club has played in 6 different stadiums (three in their first year as the Phoenix Wolves when they stopped paying their landlord Arizona State University for use of their women's soccer stadium) and then rebranded as Arizona United, they set up shop in two different baseball stadiums (the Valley has 15 that are used by Major League Baseball teams for spring training in baseball—but particularly in the northwest suburb of Peoria where they were for two years—configurations in ballparks typically result in “Every seat being a bad seat for football.")

A native of Turkey, Berke Bakay, who is CEO of popular chain restaurant Kona Grill, led a group which purchased the club in September 2016 and has since galvanized the Valley of the Sun by building a purpose-built grass soccer stadium at the junction of two major freeways in south Scottsdale—as central as you can be in a Valley that stretches diagonally for almost three hours by car—and only 10 minutes from Sky Harbor international airport. The stadium, seating approximately 6,000, was constructed in less than two months on what had previously been desert scrubland, includes a grass training field and locker rooms in a pre-fabricated building on tribal land, without public funds being needed. Bakay explained last night that: “MLS looks at 3 criteria [for expansion]. Make sure the city is right, [that the] right ownership group and right stadium. Phoenix is a large media market and drives franchise values; other MLS owners want their value to go up. (In addition, Phoenix is the 12th largest metropolitan area for population in the country and largest among the 12 bidders, and 12th media market, just behind Tampa/St. Petersburg and 9th overall for Hispanic households). Fantastic ownership and Didier is part of the MLS expansion owner group, giving us worldwide credibility and puts Phoenix on map around the world. MLS wants to be a global league and not just a local league so [Drogba's signing] is increasing that awareness that none of the other competitive cities have. It's a game changer…. It is a big deal; [we have received] overwhelming interesting around the world in dozens of countries asking if they can watch games, buy jerseys and even come here [for a game].

Drogba, when asked by this reporter if he would have made a different decision if the club wasn't trying to get into MLS, if it was just a second division side, he replied:

“It's an interesting question because my friend introduced him to Berke and we get along very well; even if there wasn't this opportunity to go to MLS, I would still be here to try to help the club and the city to get to MLS...The easy decision would have been to go back to work for Chelsea or sign with any other team. I could have gone back to Chelsea and worked at the club or joined some teams in the Premier League in China or MLS. I believe in this project. Phoenix has the potential to be one of the MLS teams within the next three or four years. This one is a big challenge, a great challenge and I am really proud to be part of it."

I then asked Drogba about his different approach to continuing his involvement in football, that a lot of players—when they get to the end of their career—pursue a coaching career but he went into ownership. Drogba laughed and said: “It's a choice. There are many options in football, be a manager, get all your coaching badges, be a board member, a director. I choose this way because it's new, challenging and I want to learn; I want to be successful in what I am doing and that is why I am here."

Bakay discussed the process of bringing Drogba to Arizona. He first reached out to Drogba through a friend last fall—when the USL was still a Division 3 club: “Nine months ago we had a mutual friend and Drogba visited Phoenix in January. It was a slow sell and I presented our vision and he loved it, when it [the stadium] was a dirt field and could not believe that we actually got it done in 52 days. He said 'if you can do that in that short of a time, we should be a number one candidate for expansion.'"

When Drogba was asked about the reception he received from a team record crowd of 7,162 including standing room—when he was introduced at halftime surrounded by children playing with the local Sereno side which has an alliance with Chelsea, he said. “Amazing. It was a great feeling to be here with the team and have a win."

The club should be a force on the field this season—never having made the playoffs in their four previous seasons. They brought in Omar Bravo, former Mexican international midfielder, who played for years with Chivas and in MLS with Sporting Kansas City. There is a strong British influence on the side as well including:

Defender Peter Ramage, who played at Newcastle United, QPR, Crystal Palace, Birmingham City, Barnsley and Indian side Kerala Blasters FC before joining Phoenix late last season.

Midfielder Matt Watson, who grew up in England but went to college at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County and has played in the USL, the NASL with the Carolina Railhawks and with the Vancouver Whitecaps and Chicago Fire of MLS since 2006.

Forward Jordan Stewart has played at Leicester City, Watford, Derby, Sheffield United, Millway, Notts County, Coventry City and 4 years with San Jose Earthquakes in MLS as well as a short time in Greece with Skoda Xanthi.

Forward Luke Rooney, who leads the team with 3 goals including one from the penalty spot again Swope Park, played at Crawley Town, Luton Town, Swindon Town and Gillingham before joining Phoenix last season

Forward Shaun Wright-Phillips, a former English international who played with Red Bulls in New York in MLS, Manchester City and Chelsea—with Drogba. Drogba explained joining his former teammate in Phoenix: “He was calling me every week to say, 'When are you coming?'. It's good to have him here because obviously I played with him when I was at Chelsea but we are also friends."

There is a new bird soaring in the Southwest and Phoenix Rising—with Didier Drogba on the field and in the board room—could just land in Major League Soccer in a few years.

As a post script, the morning after the game, head coach Frank Yallop resigned, wanting to spend more time with his family based in California. The former Ipswich defender and Canadian international defender won an MLS title with San Jose Earthquakes, coached his country and was David Beckham's first coach at Los Angeles Galaxy. Phoenix Rising announced that they are conducting an international search for a new head coach.

Tim Grainey is a contributor to Tribalfootball. His latest book is Beyond Bend it Like Beckham on the global game of women's football. Get your copy today.

Follow Tim on Twitter: @TimGrainey