Demba Ba is the majority owner for the expansion North American Soccer League expansion team that will begin play in San Diego in spring 2018.

If you follow European soccer, you know who he is: a 32-year-old forward who has played for clubs in France, Germany, England, Turkey and currently Shanghai Shenhua of China for a reported $6.7 million per year. He is perhaps best known for his two seasons at Newcastle United, where he scored 29 goals and was voted the English Premier League’s best signing for the 2011-12 season. That success resulted in a transfer to Chelsea. He also has played 19 times for Senegal, his parents’ homeland.