Former Elmhurst University men's soccer player Matt McNamara is currently in his second year of playing professional soccer. He is now playing for his second professional club and adapting to his new lifestyle in the Dominican Republic.

Following his graduation in 2018, McNamara wasn't ready to close the book on his soccer career and was willing to do what it took to be able to compete at the professional level.

After his final soccer games in a Bluejay uniform in the fall of 2017, McNamara trained over the winter months before attending a pro combine with the Futbico Sports Agency in Indiana in the spring of 2018. Following the tryout, McNamara was one 23 players invited to compete in a European showcase in Poland. At the showcase, McNamara competed in games against professional clubs hoping to having the possibility of being offered a pro contract. McNamara was set one of three players selected to sign a contract with the club team that was hosting the showcase, but due to unfortunate circumstances, the deals fell apart and McNamara left in September without a contract.

During the holiday season of 2019, McNamara received a call from a scout that he had connected with during his time in Poland. The scout put him in contact with a club in Turina, Albania that was interested in signing him.  McNamara quickly signed his first professional contract with KF Turbina and moved to play professional soccer overseas.

McNamara explained the difficult times to playing overseas and the everyday challenges he was faced with.

"Moving overseas is very challenging for many reasons but the hardest for me was the fact that I went from seeing family and friends every day to living with strangers who don't even speak the same language," he said. "As a soccer player, or really any professional moving abroad for work, you are faced with two options. You can try to adapt quickly and embrace the challenge of accepting a new culture or stay in your comfort zone. If a player chooses to stay in that comfort zone one will struggle with day-to-day tasks because they refuse to adjust."

McNamara committed to the work and accepted the challenges at hand. Even though he had been playing soccer his entire life, trying to communicate with his teammates turned out to be the biggest obstacle he had to overcome.

"In Albania it was extremely difficult because as a center back a huge part of the job is communicating and organizing the midfield and defense in front of you," said McNamara. "Without being able to speak the language, it makes my job 10 times more difficult. Since being in the Dominican Republic it's been easier because I have learned a bit of Spanish over the years, so communicating has been much easier while playing for Jarabacoa."

McNamara was just starting to settle into his routine in Albania when the COVID-19 pandemic forced him to return home in March. McNamara trained on his own until his agency (Futbico) notified him about an opportunity to join Jarabacoa, a professional club in the Dominican Republic. Due to COVID-19, he had to continue to train at home until he was able to join the team towards the end of September.

McNamara is enjoying his time playing overseas and continues to push himself to becoming a better player every day. He talked in depth on his passion for the game and the kind of mindset a professional one must have.

"When playing any sport professionally there is a lot of uncertainty in the near and distant future of one's career," he said. "Opportunities come and go; you have to stay physically and mentally prepared to take an opportunity when it comes. I have loved this game for as long as I can remember. I have invested so much into the game and it has given me so much more in return. I try to always remember everything I've done and the people who have helped me along the way. My family, friends, former and current coaches, especially Coach Di Tomasso and the Elmhurst staff have played a huge part in my journey. Knowing I have people in my corner supporting me and wanting to see my success, makes it so much easier to put my head down and work hard every day, doing what I love to do."

Elmhurst Head Coach Dave Di Tomasso highlighted McNamara's work ethic and how that worked to help him achieve his goal of playing professional soccer. 

"Elmhurst Men's Soccer place's a strong emphasis on becoming a multi-dimensional, smart, intense, and creative player while residing in our program," said Di Tomasso. "Matt McNamara began growing from day one and never looked back. He embraced structure, winning, and demanded excellence from his fellow players. Matt always had dreams of playing professionally and it was my job to try and help him achieve that goal. It is so exciting to see a player playing at the highest level as a professional!  We will always promote our person first mentality along with academic excellence first and foremost. However, Elmhurst men's soccer will also continue to push all of our players to become professionals if they so desire. I'm extremely proud of Matt and I know he'll achieve great things as a pro."