CHESTER, Pa. (June 27, 2023) – Philadelphia Union today announced that midfielder Jose Martinez has been named to the gameday roster for the 2023 MLS All-Star Game presented by Target. The MLS All-Stars will face English Premier League side Arsenal FC, in a match up to take place at Audi Field in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, July 19, 2023 (8:00 p.m. ET / Apple TV).
Martinez is named to the All-Star roster for the first time in his career, becoming the third midfielder in club history to be named to an MLS All-Star team. Currently in his fourth season with the Union, the 28-year old Venezuelan international has started 79 of his 83 regular season matches and has registered 11 assists and one goal in that time. His first career goal came recently in a road game against Orlando City SC on Wednesday, June 21, 2023, with a long-range strike from outside the box to tie up the game in the 90th minute. The goal also won the MLS Goal of the Matchday 20, receiving 71.8% of the votes and came in at number four on SportsCenter Top 10. Since the start of the 2022 season, Jose has had the most recoveries per game amongst all midfielders in the league and averaging 9.5 per game he has surpassed all MLS midfielders who have played a minimum of 500 minutes.
This is the first time the MLS All-Star team will face off against Arsenal FC. MLS All-Stars were voted in by the following criteria: 12 players determined by a combined vote of fan, media and players; 12 players selected by MLS All-Star head coach Wayne Rooney; 2 players selected by MLS Commissioner Don Garber.
The complete list of all-time Union All-Stars is as follows:
2010: Sebastien Le Toux
2011: Faryd Mondragon
2012: Michael Farfan, Carlos Valdes
2013: Jack McInerney
2014: Maurice Edu
2016: Andre Blake, Keegan Rosenberry
2019: Andre Blake
2020: No All-Star Game Held
2021: Andre Blake, Kai Wagner
2022: Andre Blake, Kai Wagner, Jakob Glesnes
2023: Jose Martinez
