- Jason Davis

Among the various things the new New York Cosmos have going for them, their ability to bring in world famous soccer names to boost their image is tops on the list. The Cosmos might not yet have a team to field, but they do have a slew of legends out spreading the word that the Cosmos are, for lack of a better term, "back." There's Giorgio Chinaglia and Carlos Alberto plus names not previously connected to the team like USMNT and MSL great Cobi Jones. Then there are the show stoppers, a tag team of Olympian heroes, more forces of nature than mere mortals, two ex-players fronting the Cosmos with all the panache, eccentricity, and intoxicating temerity that, despite being exactly what we expect, never fails to awe us with its aching lack of irony: Edson Arantes do Nascimento, the man we know as Pelé, and Eric Cantona, a man who earned the nickname "King Eric" during his own storied career.