Carlos Vela, Ilie Sanchez & Diego Palacios Selected To 2022 MLS All-Star Game Presented By Target

LAFC and Major League Soccer today announced that Carlos Vela, Ilie Sánchez, and Diego Palacios were among the 26 players honored as Major League Soccer unveiled the complete roster for the 2022 MLS All-star Game presented by Target. 

LAFC holds the best record in MLS and is leading the race for the Supporters’ Shield, and along with NYCFC boasts a league-high three players on the 2022 All-Star roster.

For the second consecutive season, the MLS All-Stars will take on the best of LIGA MX on August 10 at 8:30 p.m. ET at Allianz Filed in Minnesota and will be broadcast live on ESPN and Univision in the U.S., TSN and TVA Sports in Canada, on ESPN throughout Mexico and Latin America, and in more than 190 countries around the world. Tickets are available at MLSsoccer.com/All-Star or by clicking here.

This is the fourth MLS All-Star selection for Vela, who has six goals and eight assists in 17 games this season. Vela recently became the third fastest player in the league to reach 100 combined goals (62) and assists (48) in 98 appearances. The 2019 MLS MVP, Vela is the fastest player to reach 20 goals in a season and is the highest scoring Mexican player in MLS history. 

The Mexican international owns the MLS single-season scoring record, scoring 34 goals and registering 15 assists in 2019. Vela has scored 64 goals and provided 37 assists for LAFC across all competitions. In his two MLS All-Star Game appearances, Vela captained the side against 2017-18 Serie A champions Juventus and Atletico Madrid in 2019.

Ilie Sánchez will be making his second appearance in the MLS All-Star Game, after receiving the honor in 2018 with Sporting Kansas city. Sánchez has been in instrumental in leading LAFC to the best record in the league, and leads LAFC in minutes (1,587), completed passes (797) and interceptions (31). The Barcelona, Spain native has helped lead LAFC to the best goal differential (+17) in MLS.  

This season, Sánchez has made 19 appearances, registering one goal earning MLS Team of The Week honors for weeks 1, 3, and 5. 

Diego Palacios is making his first MLS All-Star appearance. The 23 -year-old has been an essential part of LAFC back line since joining the Club in 2019.  

This season, Palacios has scored one goal and made three assists and leads LAFC defenders in interceptions (27), and key passes (16). He scored his first MLS goal on June 26 and earned MLS Team of the Week honors for Weeks 9 and 16.