Obed Vargas, the midfielder of the Tacoma Defiance, a second division league team, holds dual citizenship, Mexican and American, and seeks to go after his dream, to succeed as a professional soccer player at an international level.
He celebrated his 16th birthday on August 5 and is the son of Mexican parents. Obed was raised in Alaska and began his career at 13 when he joined the Sounders FC Academy. To pursue his dream, he had to separate from his family and move to Seattle.
Obed’s mother, Marisol Vargas, points out “my son is extremely excited to be fulfilling his dream, however, he knows that it won’t be an easy path and he himself has pointed out that there is a lot of work to be done, his first goal is to be selected to play with the Seattle Sounders FC team.”
Every day Obed gets up early and trains with his team in Tacoma, Washington, to continue improving his technique and skills and to offer spectators ninety minutes of pure adrenaline, but most importantly, to continue adding experience to his football career.
Vargas talks about the process that has followed Obed’s career “it is a joy to see him achieve the goals he has worked so hard for, to know that he is the first Hispanic to leave Alaska to play professionally. However, it was very difficult to see him leave and even harder to not have him around with the rest of his siblings.”
His passion for football began when he started walking, as his whole family shares a taste for the sport. His father has coached him from the beginning.
Currently, his sisters Marisol and Frida Vargas, also play football.Marisol is the recipient of a scholarship from Centralia College and plays as their goalkeeper.His younger brother, Abad, who is 13, wants to follow the path of his older brother and become a professional soccer player too.
As part of his professional career, Obed became the third-youngest player in history to appear in a Major League soccer game during the 2021 season. In addition, he has played as a guest with the Seattle Sounders FC, a first division league team, with whom he played for 77 minutes in a match held in Austin, Texas. For soccer fans, Obed Vargas is a player to keep their eyes on in the current and future seasons because we know he will definitely go far in his career.
