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Five-a-side football has always had a draw. It's unique in the way that it requires a skillset different from the competitive 11v11 game we see played professionally around the world. Often, 5v5 is a game of technical skill, and when you play it on the street, it adds a whole new layer.
Steve Nash’s Showdown is just that, and it made its long-awaited return, ending a six-year hiatus that left fans eager for its comeback. The 13th edition of the NBA Hall of Famer’s 5-a-side competition lit up Sara D. Roosevelt Park in Manhattan’s Lower East Side, drawing global stars, celebrities, and former pros. It marked the first time since 2019 that Nash brought together friends, ex-NBA players, and soccer legends for a night of streetball - and for fans, it was worth the wait.
American soccer icons like Midge Purce, Ali Krieger, Sacha Kljestan, Bradley Wright-Phillips, and Charlie Davies participated, while world-renowned Dutch footballer Edgar Davids also took part in the festivities. Previous editions have seen stars from the NBA and global soccer go head to head, including Javier Zanetti, Tony Parker, Giuseppe Rossi, Grant Hill, Patrick Vieira, and Chris Bosh.
"We always wanted to, we always had the kind of desire to bring it back, and we just kind of got our ducks in a row this year," Nash told GOAL. “We've got some exciting couple of summers here in the United States for soccer with the FIFA club World Cup, and then the World Cup next summer, so we thought we'd better get on it and get things going. And we're excited to be back."
Showdown took some of the best high school soccer players around the NYC area and gave them a platform to showcase their skills. For Kyle Martino, it was a memorable opportunity to partner with his longtime friend, but more importantly, he was thrilled to see Showdown return - a competition that he has fond memories of from nearly 20 years ago, on a hot, sunny day in Manhattan in 2008.
"I'll never forget," Martino told GOAL. "I was walking around in Manhattan, and one of my buddies called me and was like, 'I think that Steve Nash and Claudio Reyna – because he knew I was friends with these guys – are playing like a pickup soccer game in Chinatown with, like, Thierry Henry and Jason Kidd' And I was like, Dude, you're f*cking with me! And so when he told me that the game had already kicked off, I jumped in a cab, got there, and I couldn't even see the game through the wall of kids and adults, and everyone that had scaled the fence to get a view of the spectacle."
Nash, an eight-time NBA All-Star and two-time NBA MVP, is a massive soccer fan. On top of Showdown, the 51-year-old Canadian is a massive supporter of the men's and women's national teams of his country, while his passion for the game has also extended into ownership.
The former Phoenix Suns star is a co-owner of La Liga side RCD Mallorca alongside former U.S. international Stu Holden and Golden State Warriors manager Steve Kerr. Domestically, Nash is also part of the ownership group of MLS side Vancouver Whitecaps, though he won't be for much longer, as he confirmed to GOAL that plans announced to sell the club in 2024 are still in the works.
One year out from the start of the FIFA World Cup Nash discussed the return of Showdown, his admiration for Jesse Marsch, Les Rouges road to the World Cup and the current state of the Whitecaps in the latest GOAL Convo, a Q&A with central figures in the American soccer scene.
NOTE: This interview has been lightly edited for brevity and clarity.
