Los Angeles FC officially signs French center forward Olivier Giroud

Current runner-up in the North American League (MLS), Los Angeles FC officially announced, this Tuesday, the signing of veteran French striker Olivier Giroud, from whom its directors expect a huge impact on and off the field.

In an interview with AFPgeneral manager John Thorrington detailed that Giroud will join Los Angeles FC (LAFC) after the European Championship (June 14 to July 14), with a contract that extends until the end of the 2025 season.

The 37-year-old striker arrives free after ending a successful three-season spell at Milan and with the status of the French national team’s all-time top scorer.

Giroud, who last Monday announced his departure from Italian football, will share the locker room in Los Angeles with goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, his teammate in France’s second world championship at the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

After the first 12 rounds, the Californian team has 18 points, which puts it in ninth place overall in MLS, whose leader is Inter Miami, owned by Argentine star Lionel Messi.

Giroud joins a franchise that had already signed other big names in world football in the final stretch of their careers, such as Gareth Bale and Giorgio Chiellini, who contributed to the first league title in its history, in 2022.

“What we saw in Olivier was a rare combination of skills in his ability to get out of the box, give fluidity to the game and finish”, summarized Thorrington. “The system he plays in with France and Milan is similar to ours, so we thought he would fit in perfectly.”

Thorrington is confident that Giroud will strengthen an attack weakened after the recent departure of Mexican Carlos Vela, the team’s leader since moving to MLS in 2018, but highlights that his qualities off the field were another important motivation for closing the deal.

“I jokingly say that there are some players I would sign even if they didn’t take the field,” said the coach. “Just because of what they bring to the dressing room and the example they set, because of their professionalism and their desire, despite having won everything they have achieved. It’s a real achievement for us as a club.”

Olivier Giroud is Black & Gold.

📝 Olivier Giroud joins #LAFC as a Designated Player through 2025 with an option for 2026.#LAFC | @Remitly

— LAFC (@LAFC) May 14, 2024

Downstream of Lloris

Regarding the origin of the conversations, Thorrington revealed that he became aware of Giroud’s interest in MLS when they were finalizing the arrival of Lloris from Tottenham, last December.

Lloris “gave us a kind of wink” about a message he received from Giroud, in which he expressed his desire to play in MLS, he explained.

The goalkeeper’s approval was essential for the Los Angeles team to start investing in the striker, who has scored 38 goals since arriving at Milan in 2021, 14 of them this season.

“This allowed us to make a well-informed decision,” Thorrington highlighted. “I didn’t need Hugo to tell me what he’s like as a player, but when Hugo’s first words are ‘He’s fantastic for a team,’ it’s an affirmation of what we want.”

The director announced that Giroud’s debut could be postponed until the end of July, depending on France’s course in the European Championship in Germany.

“For us it is incredible to know that we will have a great player from one of the favorite teams at the European Championship”, celebrated Horrington. “Once he is rested and fit, he will be in a position to join the team and, we believe, contribute immediately.”

LAFC will therefore be able to count on Giroud for the Leagues Cup (July 26th to August 25th), the joint tournament with the Mexican league and the closing of the MLS regular phase, which ends on October 19th, to begin to the playoffs.

Before Milan, with which he won the Italian title in 2022, Giroud also played for the English Chelsea (2018-21) and Arsenal (2012-18) and for the French Montpellier (2010-12).