Hawaii soccer trailblazer Brian Ching reflects on historic World Cup journey

News admin June 24, 2026 0 Comments

Hawaii soccer trailblazer Brian Ching reflects on historic World Cup journey

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – The drama and intensity is picking up in the 2026 World Cup as Team USA sets its sights on the knockout round.

The global event continues to captivate millions of soccer fans, and it brings back memories for Oahu’s Brian Ching — the first Hawaii native to land on a World Cup roster.

Ching retired in 2013 after a storied 12-year professional career and, to this day, remains the all-time leading scorer for the Houston Dynamo.

The father of three continues to live in Houston.

“It’s been a journey,” Ching said. “It’s dawned on me I think about a year ago, I think I’ve lived here longer than I’ve lived in Hawaii, which hurts.”

He’s represented the islands well on a national and global stage.

In 2001, he became the first Native Hawaiian selected in the Major League Soccer draft and, soon after, the first from Hawaii to be named to the United States national team and FIFA World Cup rosters.

The Kamehameha-Kapālama alum still remembers the chicken skin he felt when he took the field at the 2006 World Cup in Germany.

“For some reason in that moment, it was hearing the national anthem in that stadium,” Ching said. “It just allowed me to reflect and I was like, wow, it allowed me to kind of be like, you did a good job, you’re doing okay. For me, that was probably one of my most profound moments.”

Ching is already a Hawaiʻi Sports Hall of Famer and, this fall, he will be the first MLS player inducted into the Houston Sports Hall of Fame.

As he reflects on his pro journey, he says the lessons learned along the way resonate most.

“It’s really taught me how to work hard to achieve something,” Ching said. “I think that one of my greatest strengths is my ability to just put my head down and grind and just get things done. Soccer has given me a lot and created a lot of good habits. I attribute it to a lot of my success.”

As a trailblazer for Hawaii’s young athletes — and for those hoping to follow his path — the six-time MLS All-Star offered this advice:

“You have to work harder than 90 percent of the people out there because it’s not easy,” Ching said. “Life throws so many different things at you. Sometimes it helps you, a lot of times it’s difficult. It’s how you deal with those things that dictate if you’re gonna be successful or not.”