Antonio Freeman keeps an obituary in his backpack. It details the life of his close friend, Aaron Pinkett. He died around a year ago and, since then, something has become abundantly clear: predictions were among Pinkett’s talents. He saw all of this coming. ‘Every step that Alex has taken,’ says Freeman.
It is Monday afternoon and the former Green Bay Packers receiver is standing beside the blacked-out fences that surround the USMNT’s World Cup base outside Los Angeles. He is wearing the team’s red and white stripes, with ‘Freeman 16’ plastered across his back.
A few days have passed since the Super Bowl champion’s son, Alex, scored the USA’s second goal in their World Cup win over Australia in Seattle. His header secured America’s place in the knockout stages and capped a remarkable rise for the 21-year-old.
Heading into 2025, Alex Freeman had played just 16 minutes of senior soccer. He only received his first international call-up this time last year – up until then, one of his USMNT teammates had ‘no idea’ who he was.
Now the defender is America’s new darling. And after victory over Australia, head coach Mauricio Pochettino said he has all the tools to become one of the best right backs in the world.
Three days on, his dad’s lip quivers at the thought. His eyes glaze over. ‘I still cry when I hear that,’ the former NFL star says.
Antonio Freeman spoke to the Daily Mail about his son Alex’s remarkable journey in soccer
Alex Freeman scored as the USMNT beat Australia to reach the World Cup knockout rounds
The 21-year-old chose not to follow in the footsteps of his dad, who was an NFL wide receiver
But after all he has already achieved, who would bet against the Villarreal defender proving his manager right? Pinkett never doubted him. He predicted that Alex would play abroad. Check. He said the defender would represent his country, too. Check.
‘I fought him,’ Freeman Sr says. ‘You have to give him a chance to grow,’ he told his friend. But it turns out that Pinkett was right. No wonder Freeman is keeping that obituary close as he travels to watch every US game at this World Cup. ‘He’s on this trip with me,’ the 54-year-old says.
In January 1997, Freeman Sr scored an 81-yard touchdown as the Packers beat the New England Patriots at Super Bowl XXXI. He had announced himself to NFL fans a few months earlier, with a couple of touchdowns against the Seahawks. In Seattle. Where, three decades on, Alex wrote himself into World Cup history.
‘I knew he was good, but wow,’ Freeman says. ‘Knowing that he’s not just doing it for a team, he’s doing it for a country.’
It was a ‘full-circle’ moment for the family. ‘I had my breakout game there and then for Alex to come along 30 years later, at only 21 years old, to have his breakout game on the biggest stage of sports ever here in the United States… a very magical moment.’
The goal was only confirmed after a long VAR check for offside. ‘[That] just made it more of an epic moment,’ Freeman says. So, come on then, where does that goal rank alongside his Super Bowl win?
‘They sit side by side because it’s a father-son accomplishment,’ Freeman says. ‘One team rooted for me, he’s got the whole country behind him. And to score a goal of that magnitude, man…’
Alex grew up playing football and basketball before deciding as a teenager that his heart lay elsewhere.
At Super Bowl XXXI, Antonio Freeman scored an 81-yard touchdown for the Packers
Alex Freeman revealed that his father is now a soccer nerd who watches every big game
‘My only disappointment was that I didn’t know soccer, and I couldn’t coach him,’ Freeman Sr says. ‘All my life I had dreams of coaching my son and being a coach, teaching him how to run routes, whatever.’ But that chance never arrived. ‘Wow, now I’m useless,’ he thought.
When Alex was very young, they would play tennis together or enjoy games of H.O.R.S.E. on his father’s basketball court. They would head to the local park, too, so Alex could mingle with other kids.
‘That was pretty much it,’ Freeman says. ‘I just didn’t want to put pressure on him.’
These days, Alex is 6ft 2ins – slightly taller than his father. He has inherited his speed, too. After that goal against Australia was confirmed, teammates rushed to celebrate with the defender. There was only one issue: they all struggled to catch him.
‘The reaction from those guys just lets me know, as a parent: my kid’s is in good hands,’ Freeman says.
With all that athleticism, though, perhaps he could have made it in the NFL or NBA after all. ‘He would have had to work harder, though… he didn’t really get a growth spurt until two or three years ago,’ Freeman says.
For a long time, Alex was a small kid. ‘So I’m sure the first hit he took in football, he was probably like: “Man, you know what? I’m done with this.”’
In recent years, as his son has risen to the very top, Freeman Sr has become a soccer nerd. He is always watching games around Europe and educating the family. So does he wish he could have played growing up?
Earlier this year, the defender joined Spanish club Villarreal in a deal worth up to $6.5 million
‘No, too much running,’ he jokes. ‘After each play in football, we get at least 40 seconds to make it back to the huddle… I don’t think I would be cool with running for 90 minutes and not knowing if I was going to get a goal.’
His son now has three in 19 appearances for the USMNT. But his astonishing rise came only after a few bumpy years. As a teenager, the defender was rejected by Inter Miami’s academy before leaving home at 15 to join Orlando City. Earlier this year, he moved to Spanish side Villarreal and waited several months for his first start.
Throughout it all, his dad told him: ‘Be ready for your opportunity.’ Freeman thought his son’s career had peaked last May, when Orlando played Miami and he faced his childhood idol – Lionel Messi – for the first time.
‘Then he just continued to climb,’ Freeman says. So that replica USMNT jersey is already well-worn. The only time Freeman takes it off? When he is around his son. Alex prefers to keep everything ‘low-key.’ But who can blame his dad for showing off?
‘It’s been an amazing ride,’ Freeman says. ‘Every day is Father’s Day for me.’
