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Panayotis Alexander (Alexi) Lalas didn’t become an American soccer icon by accident. Alexi Lalas simply seized the moment. He continues to do that everyday of his life.

“Carpe diem, I always say, although I should probably look it up and see what it means,” the playful Lalas said from his Los Angeles home. “It's been a long, strange and wonderful trip.”

Lalas, who is slated to give the keynote address on player development at the NSCAA Summer Symposium in August, knew exactly what he was doing he when he let his beard and red-mopped hair break out in the early 90s.

“Timing is important,” Lalas said. “Exactly at the same time I was selected to be a part of the U.S. Soccer player pool, we qualify for the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona and the World Cup is coming to our country just two years later.

“I always looked at myself as an entertainer. I enjoy the theater of sports and the characters that make it interesting. The way you look, talk and act is all part of the performance. But in no way does that mean you can't be competitive, passionate and authentic. Yes, the hair, goatee, guitar … it was a cultivated persona, but it was easy and comfortable because it was ultimately an accurate reflection of who I was. The '94 World Cup changed my life and the rest is history.”

Lalas shouldn’t and doesn’t apologize for any of it. He would sing the national anthem before full-international matches and his teammates would follow him after games for impromptu concerts at local bars and clubs.

“I had a coach who believed in me and who believed in letting players express themself,” Lalas reflected. “(1994 U.S. World Cup coach) Bora (Milutinovic) seemed to like me from the beginning. He would put me in for key moments of games, gradually increasing my time. And, before you knew it, I was a regular with Marcelo Balboa in the back and I was playing every game, 90 minutes a game right through the World Cup. But Bora always reminded me that the playing part of the equation was essential and if I didn't play well, my appearance and personality would simply be viewed as shtick."

A career trajectory can often hinge on the ability of a player to capitalize on moments and opportunities. One of those early moments was an unbelievable goal against England in Foxborough, Mass., as part of the 1992 U.S. Cup competition.

“Again, it doesn¹t hurt to be a little lucky,” Lalas said with his trademark confidence and humor. “I come into the game and within minutes, I find myself running onto a corner from Tab Ramos and knocking it in.  I am not even sure how it happened, but I scored against England and I went crazy.  Everything seemed to take off from there.”

Lalas would go on to play 96 international matches for the U.S. National Team. He was a member of two U.S. World Cup teams (1994 and 1998) and two U.S. Olympic teams (1992 and 1996). He would also play the better part of eight seasons for several Major League Soccer teams, including the New England Revolution, the MetroStars (the precursor to the New York Red Bulls), the Kansas City Wizards (now Sporting KC) and the Los Angeles Galaxy.

And, Lalas would again make history in 1995, when he became the first U.S.-born player to play in the Italian Serie A, signing with Padova.

“Who says 'no' to that opportunity?” Lalas quips. “Was I the most skillful player to ever wear a pair of soccer shoes in this country? Absolutely not. But I made sure I put in the work and when great opportunities came like the one with Padova, I took it and I loved every minute of it.”

Lalas pauses to admit that one of the reasons he is always willing to be a part of and participate in any NSCAA function is because he completely understands the power of coaching.

“Like I said, I had a coach in Bora ­ in fact, I have had a lot of coaches, who believed in me,” Lalas pointed out, while also listing Bob Reasso, his coach at Rutgers where Lalas won the Hermann Award in 1991. “Coaching plays such a key role in the development and confidence of a player. Again, I am living proof of that.

“So when you see what the National Soccer Coaches Association of America does to prepare our coaches to be able to effectively communicate and teach the game to our young players, I am always eager to join in.

“The NSCAA Symposium in Orlando will allow me to also share my experiences and it gives me a forum to have a conversation about player development to a room full of people who do it every day. You see, it’s another opportunity for me to seize the moment and I can¹t wait to see all of the coaches down in Orlando. I'm hoping to learn as much from them as they may learn from me.”

Lalas, who also has plenty of soccer management experience having served as the general manager for Major League Soccer¹s San Jose, New York and Los Angeles franchises, remains in the spotlight as ABC Sports and ESPN's soccer expert.

“ESPN and ABC have been so great to me,” Lalas said. “I get to talk about the sport I love and work with some of the most talented and creative people you could ever imagine working with. I love what I do and I love where the future of soccer is headed in this country. That’s why we are doing what we are doing ­ we want to see the U.S. team win a World Cup. I would love to be there when it happens and if there is anything I can do to help make it happen, I plan to do it.

“I lived the dream of what a World Cup can do for an individual,” Lalas continued.  

“Why would I not want to help others live that same dream? It changed my life forever, it’s probably the reason I am talking to you and working with the NSCAA right now. Why not share that message … that passion … in any way possible?”

Lalas believes that a key part of building on the momentum U.S. Soccer and Major League Soccer has produced in recent years, is by having the World Cup return to the United States.

“The World Cup needs to and will come back here at some point,” Lalas said. “Because of what happened that summer of '94, we know we can do it much bigger and much better if given the opportunity. We have so many talented people working in soccer today because of that last World Cup. Many of them, like (NSCAA CEO) Joe Cummings, we will see in Orlando.”

And, we will see Alexi Lalas. 

If you haven’t registered yet for the NSCAA Summer Symposium, it’s your chance to seize the moment, too. Registration prices go up after Saturday, June 1 so to save $50, register online now.

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