The signing isn't coming out of the blue. The same group that owns NYC FC also owns Manchester City, which recruited its first eSports player last year. And the reasons are almost certainly the same: eSports serves as both a promo tool and, in the long run, a source of revenue. For Major League Soccer, it's more important than usual. Soccer doesn't get nearly the same attention in the US as it does elsewhere in the world, after all. An eSports player potentially draws gamers to the league and raises awareness of the sport as a whole.