Dallas, TX
Son of soccer legend Pelé helps FC Dallas prospects grow their game
FRISCO, Texas – Josh Nascimento’s father is one of the greatest soccer players of all time. Now, he’s working with the best prospects in North Texas, helping them try to be a little bit like Pelé.
FOX 4’s Jeff Kolb caught up with Nascimento to talk about Pelé’s legacy ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Helping the youth
Nascimento is the Head of Performance for the FC Dallas Academy. He works with some of the best prospects in North Texas and the United States.
“I think once you teach them one thing, and then it sticks, and when it sticks you’re like, yes, you know?” Nascimento told Kolb on his favorite thing about teaching.
Josh went through academy life as a player, but unlike these kids, he used to go home to the most legendary soccer dad imaginable. His father is Ayton Arantes do Nascimento, better known to the world as Pelé.
Growing up with a famous soccer father certainly had its moments. When Josh was playing soccer in Florida as a 12-year-old, Pelé showed up to the match as only he could.
“I just see him walking, but instead of him walking and just staying where the parents were, I don’t know what he was thinking, he came to the bench, and he just stood there,” Josh remembered. “And then all the kids on the bench just looked up, and my dad was there, and even the coach was like, what? And I was in the middle of the game, I was like, what the heck is my dad doing on the bench, you know?”
Setting the standard
To this day, the Brazilian icon remains the only man ever to win three World Cup titles.
Pelé was also the first soccer superstar to bring his talent here to the United States. Long before Lionel Messi and David Beckham took Major League Soccer by storm, Pelé joined the North American Soccer League in 1975 with the New York Cosmos.
“I think he paved the way for these guys to come in. He loved to teach. He loved it, especially the young kids. And I think you found that he saw an opportunity to do that here and to grow this sport and to just create a legacy,” Nascimento told Kolb.
Josh realized at an early age he had to step out of his father’s shadow. When Josh chose to play soccer, he aspired to play for Santos F.C., the same club his father starred for.
“I remember I just went out to play like I normally did in the field that we had. I had just gotten a Santos kit that was brand new. All of a sudden, I see him coming out in a Santos kit as well to play with me, and I was just like, what? I was blown away with it. I was like, no way, my dad’s in the Santos kit,” Nascimento remembered.
Pelé helped Josh grow his game as any father would.
“We had like a corridor between our rooms, playing him the ball or him just throwing the ball for me to kick it a little bit,” Nascimento continued.
A different kind of World Cup
This summer will be the first World Cup for Josh without his dad. Pelé passed away in 2022, not long after the last World Cup.
“Yeah, just not being able to, you know, even just call and be like, hey, did you watch the game? What do you think? He embodies the World Cup in a way. It’s gonna be different,” Nascimento said of watching this year’s event without his father around.
But on the pitch in Frisco, Pelé is still impacting the next generation every time Josh gets to tell these players about his dad.
“I think that, for me, it’s also a big win because they’re like, wow, if Pelé actually went through that too, like, Wow, okay, like I can get through this.”
The Source: Information in this story came from FOX 4 reporting.
The search for the next general manager or president of basketball operations of the Dallas Mavericks has begun. They terminated Nico Harrison in November, which was about nine months too late, and gave any available candidates clear notice that they were open for business.
The plan was always to wait until after the season to start the search. While names popped up as the season reached an end, they didn’t begin turning over the staff until the Monday after the season ended. However, Dallas Mavericks fans are not going to like how the team is going about the search.
Patrick Dumont Leading Search for General Manager
NBA insider Jake Fischer reported that the Mavericks are not hiring a search firm in their hunt for a new lead executive. Instead, team governor Patrick Dumont is “acting as his own point person.”
This is an… interesting decision, to say the least. Dumont is not a basketball person whatsoever, and most organizations usually hire a search firm. The Chicago Bulls hired one as they look for their replacement for Arturas Karnisovas. Just because a firm is hired doesn’t mean a team will listen, though.
The Mavericks hired a firm in their last search for a GM. They let Donnie Nelson go in 2021 after a long tenure with the Mavs. Instead of listening to the firm, though, Mark Cuban ignored it to hire Nico Harrison, who had no previous NBA front office experience. Harrison had been an executive with Nike, which gave him connections with players like Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis, and plenty of others.
For a while, that seemed to be working out okay. While he still had some questionable transactions, such as trading for Christian Wood and letting Jalen Brunson walk in free agency, they were still able to make a run to the NBA Finals in 2024. Then, he blew it all up, trading away Luka Doncic for an older and injured Anthony Davis, and the team hasn’t been the same since.
It’s imperative that the Mavericks get this hire correct. The interim Co-GM setup with Matt Riccardi and Michael Finley has performed admirably, but the 2026 NBA Draft is important for the Mavs to get right. It’s their best chance to pair Cooper Flagg with another young star, as they don’t own their first-round pick again until 2031 after this.
Hiring the right GM could help bring in more draft capital by bringing in bad contracts or flipping veterans into picks.
Dumont was able to convince Rick Welts, a Hall of Famer, to come out of retirement to be the CEO and lead the charge for a new arena. Maybe Dumont pulls another rabbit out of his hat for the GM.
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For a moment, it looked like FC Dallas was on its way to another statement win at home tonight.
Petar Musa scored two first half goals, to extend his Golden Boot leading tally to nine goals. But after Dallas grabbed control, the Galaxy found a way back before halftime with goals from Lucas Sanabria and Joseph Paintsil.
The second half brought more chances and more frustration for Dallas, which finished the night with 13 shots to LA’s nine. In the end, the point stretched Dallas’ unbeaten run to five games, though just like last week, it felt like another match where Dallas left points on the table.
Key Moments
7’ – GOAL! After a poor pass back by a LA defender, Petar Musa was free to go one-on-one with the LA goalkeeper. After a touch to get ahead of a defender, Musa slotted home his eighth goal of the season from outside the penalty box.
21’ – Offside! Joaquin Valiente sent a floating ball over the Galaxy defense, where Musa was able to get behind the defense and make an easy play for what appeared to be his second goal of the night. The play was called offside despite a fairly lengthy review period.
38’ – GOAL! This one counts! Musa gets his second of the night off a great ball from Chris Cappis. Logan Farrington picked off the ball in the midfield. He then played Cappis wide to the left of the penalty area. Cappis immediately played a ball back across the goal for Musa to slide in and finish for his ninth of the season.
43’ – Goal LA. Lucas Sanabria got the ball near the top of the penalty area. He took a couple of touches to get outside the penalty box before firing a shot that beat Michael Collodi at the near post.
45+4’ – Goal LA. Gabriel Pec got the ball near the top of the penalty area. He pulled the ball back a bit, which caught a pair of Dallas defenders. This allowed Joseph Painstil to get free behind the Dallas defense as Pec played him through inside the penalty area. Pec immediately smashed home a shot above Collodi to tie the game.
75’ – Another offside goal. This time on a corner kick for Dallas, after a scrum in the penalty box, Kaick hammered home what looked to be the go-ahead goal. But after a few seconds the flag was raised due to a deflection on Osaze Urhoghide, who was in an offside position.
Instant Reaction
Yeah, this is another disappointing result for this team. In a real way, it felt like the first half against Houston from last month. Dallas grabbed the lead, looked in control, but some defensive miscues opened the game up for the visitors to climb back.
With a double-game week coming up, this will certainly be another game where Dallas will wonder ‘what if’ more than anything else…especially when you factor in the two goals called off for offside.
About the Subs
Eric Quill went to his bench for the first time in the 66th minute, as he brought on Santiago Moreno for Logan Farrington. Quill went to his bench again 81st minute with Ran Binyamin and Nolan Norris coming on for Sebastien Ibeagha and Deedson. The final sub came during stoppage time with Herman Johansson and Joaquin Valiente coming off for Sam Sarver and rookie Nick Simmonds, who made his MLS debut.
Man of the Match
No question about it tonight, it has to be Musa.
Where does this fit into the season
As of this writing, the draw puts Dallas into a three-way tie for 5th place with Real Salt Lake and Seattle. Both are in action right now and look firmly in control of their games. I’d expect Dallas to be in 7th place by the end of the night.
What’s next for FC Dallas
Dallas wraps up a three-game homestand next Wednesday night as they host Minnesota United.
Dallas, TX
Akheem Mesidor selected by Cowboys by Blogging The Boys in SB Nation’s community mock draft
Akheem Mesidor, Edge, Miami
Pass rush has been an issue since the Micah Parsons trade. The Rashan Gary trade helped, but Dallas still needs an injection of talent. Akheem Mesidor fits here because his body size allows for some versatility inside and out, something DC Christian Parker utilizes. Mesidor is also a high-motor player with a deep bag of pass rush moves.
His last season at Miami was full of disruption in the offensive backfield and he shows an all-around game, not just a bend-around-the-edge pass rusher. Yes, he’s a little older than you’d like in a rookie (25), but his motor, pass rush toolbox, and ability to play the run matches up with a need and makes him a quality pick at number 20.
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