LAFC’s signing of South Korean star Son Heung-min earlier this month is a major coup not just for the team. It’s also the latest in a spate of acquisitions that has brought an unprecedented level of talent and attention to MLS as the league nears the end of its 30th anniversary season.

Since Lionel Messi joined Inter Miami shortly after winning the 2022 World Cup, MLS has welcomed more than two dozen global standouts, from World Cup champions Hugo Lloris, Olivier Giroud, Rodrigo De Paul and Thomas Mueller to Germany’s Marco Reus and Uruguay’s Luis Suárez.

Some were a bit past their prime but others, including Messi, have proven to be dominant MLS players. The addition of Son, arguably the best Asian player of all time, opens a new chapter for the league and U.S. soccer as the country prepares to welcome the World Cup back next summer.

With that as a backdrop, here’s one man’s list of the 10 most important signings in MLS history: