It can’t be that Edgar Castillo?
A common name, sure, but Azteca FC’s left-back in the 2026 U.S. Open Cup Amateur Qualifying Rounds oozes an uncommon amount of class. That touch. The vision, honed by years in the top pro tiers. Finally, the birthdate confirms it: October 8th, 1986.
“I met up with Don Andy [Andy de la Rosa, who runs amateur side Azteca FC of the Colorado Premier League] when I was playing with the Colorado Rapids in 2018,” said Castillo about how he, 18 times capped for the U.S. Men’s National Team and formerly of Mexican giants Club América, ended up on a high school soccer field near Denver with a local men’s league team.
“He always wanted me to come and play and, when he mentioned the team was going after a place in the U.S. Open Cup, I figured why not?” Castillo added during last year’s Qualifying campaign which ended in a loss to local rivals Harpos in the Final Round.
“There’s some really good young players in the Azteca FC team too,” added Castillo, now 39, but who once shared the field, during a 15-year professional career, with Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Lionel Messi and Brazilian legend Ronaldinho. “You’d be surprised at the level of these amateur leagues.”
Castillo, born and raised in Las Cruces, New Mexico, was just 16 when he got the chance – along with 400 other kids – to try out for Liga MX club Santos Laguna in the Mexican city of Torreon. “It’s my mom and dad’s favorite team and out of those hundreds of kids, it was only me and my brother who got picked.
“Everything changed that day,” admitted Castillo.
