by JAKE NUTTING
One of Aaron Guillen’s earliest sports memories from his childhood isn’t playing soccer. Guillen, the youngest of four boys, instead followed in the footsteps of his brothers and gave baseball a shot.
Fortunately for Rowdies fans, baseball did not turn out to be Guillen’s calling.
“I tried… but playing baseball wasn’t very exciting for me,” recalls Guillen. “I guess I was looking for something more active. No one in my family had played soccer, but we used to watch soccer as a family at home all the time. I have a lot of memories of watching the Mexican league matches together as a family. For whatever reason, I thought soccer looked a lot more fun to me.”
It shouldn’t have been much of a surprise for Guillen’s parents to see their son show an interest in soccer. The family emigrated from Mexico to the United States when Guillen was three years old, settling in El Paso, Texas. There were several cultural similarities between their life in Mexico and the Texas border town, which had a budding youth soccer scene.
“It felt like soccer was always around when I was a kid,” says Guillen. “Any park you would go to, you would see kids playing soccer that you could play with. Sports seemed like a big thing in El Paso in general, but soccer always felt like the most popular sport in the community. That’s really how my love of the game started, just going out there and playing with other kids.”
From early in his youth soccer career, Guillen knew he wanted nothing more than to be a professional soccer player. His parents were supportive from the start, ensuring their son was able to attend every practice, every tryout, every tournament somehow, someway. Youth soccer can be a costly venture, especially the higher up the ranks you progress.
“Since I started playing soccer, my parents always gave me the support to play in all the tournaments that I was invited to,” says Guillen. “It’s not cheap to play club soccer in the United States. Honestly, to this day I don’t know how my parents did what they did, raising all four of us and supporting my dream. It was a family of six with just one income. It was tough. But I always felt like I had exactly what I needed thanks to them. I can’t say enough how lucky I am to have had my parents guiding me.”
Guillen was a standout for the Coronado High School soccer team in El Paso, earning All-City Defensive Player of the Year honors from the El Paso Times. Even with a solid resume from high school, the path ahead was uncertain for Guillen. There were no invites from colleges waiting in the mailbox.
The opportunity Guillen was hoping for came his way unexpectedly, though. Through a random encounter at their local bank, Guillen’s mother learned FC Dallas’s U-18 academy team was looking to fill out their squad for an upcoming friendly.
“I honestly thought my career was done,” says Guillen. “It was only complete luck that my mom ran into someone at the bank who told her these tryouts were happening. Once they found out about these tryouts, my parents did everything they could to make sure I was there and able to take that chance.”
Guillen only went to the tryouts with the hope of getting spotted by some college scouts attending. However, the young defender was so impressive that he earned an invitation to join the academy full-time. It didn’t take long for Guillen to become a regular starter for the FC Dallas’ U-18 squad, which went on to win the 2012 U.S. Soccer Development Academy National Championship in his lone season with the academy.
A year after having zero options to play professionally or in college, Guillen now had several exciting opportunities to choose from thanks to the profile boost from his standout season with the FC Dallas academy. After fielding offers from Mexico and college programs around the country, Guillen committed to Florida Gulf Coast University.
“I had opportunities after FC Dallas to go play in Mexico with some U-20 teams, but I knew how much it would mean to my parents for me to get a college degree,” says Guillen. “I know that is something my mom really wanted for me. That was a dream she had for me, so that’s what I decided to do. It ended up being an easy decision for me. To make my parents proud is just the best feeling in the world.”
Following four outstanding seasons as a starter for the FGCU Eagles, Guillen was ready to finally join the professional ranks. In 2016, Guillen signed a Homegrown Player contract with FC Dallas, allowing him to live out his professional dream somewhat close to home.
Several years later, Guillen finally had the chance to play his first game as a professional in his hometown when the Rowdies faced their first-ever road fixture against El Paso Locomotive FC on June 17, 2023. That night, Guillen’s personal cheering section of family and friends may have rivaled El Paso’s supporters’ groups.
“The guys on the team definitely made fun of me for how many tickets I requested that night,” jokes Guillen. “There were so many people there to support me. That was a dream that you always had growing up, getting to play in your hometown in front of your family, especially my parents who supported me throughout the journey.”
Guillen’s parents still live in El Paso. That hasn’t stopped them from following their son’s career every step of the way. Whether they’re able to catch a game in person at Al Lang Stadium or follow along at home, Guillen knows his parents will be watching no matter what.
“For me, any success in my career is because of them,” he says. “Every time I play, I’m trying to pay them back for the sacrifices they made for me and the support they’ve given me. It makes me so proud to see how happy they look when they get to see me play. Whenever I’m playing, they don’t miss it. They turn down parties and family events, just to stay home and watch my games. They don’t miss a game. Ever.”
