Waylon Francis

{{Infobox football biography

| name = Waylon Francis

| image = Francis Waylon Columbus Crew SC Meet the Team 2017 (cropped).jpg

| caption = Francis with the Columbus Crew in 2017

| fullname = Waylon Dwayne Francis Box

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1990|9|20}}

| birth_place = Limón, Costa Rica

| height = {{height|m=1.75}}

| position = Left-back

| currentclub = Liberia

| clubnumber = 24

| years1 = 2010–2011

| clubs1 = Brujas

| caps1 = 9

| goals1 = 0

| years2 = 2011

| clubs2 = Limón

| caps2 = 18

| goals2 = 0

| years3 = 2012–2013

| clubs3 = Herediano

| caps3 = 68

| goals3 = 1

| years4 = 2014–2017

| clubs4 = Columbus Crew

| caps4 = 83

| goals4 = 0

| years5 = 2018

| clubs5 = Seattle Sounders FC

| caps5 = 11

| goals5 = 0

| years6 = 2018

| clubs6 = Seattle Sounders FC 2

| caps6 = 1

| goals6 = 0

| years7 = 2019–2021

| clubs7 = Columbus Crew

| caps7 = 44

| goals7 = 0

| years8 = 2022–2023

| clubs8 = Herediano

| caps8 = 37

| goals8 = 0

| years9 = 2024-

| clubs9 = Liberia

| caps9 = 14

| goals9 = 0

| nationalyears1 = 2013–2019

| nationalteam1 = Costa Rica

| nationalcaps1 = 6

| nationalgoals1 = 0

| club-update = 8 November 2021

| ntupdate = 23 March 2019

}}

Waylon Dwayne Francis Box ({{IPA|es|ˈwajloɱ ˈfɾansis}}; born 20 September 1990) is a Costa Rican professional footballer who plays as a left-back for Liberia.

Career

=Club career=

Waylon Francis began his career in the youth system of Deportivo Saprissa. He made his First Division debut with Brujas on January 13, 2011 in a match against Barrio México. After a brief stay with Brujas he joined Limón, remaining only for one season with the Caribbean club. In 2012, he joined Herediano. He scored the first goal of his career playing for Herediano at Estadio Rommel Fernández in Panama against Tauro FC in the 2012–13 CONCACAF Champions League. He was a high-profile subject of racist slants in a game against Cartaginés, prompting the referee to stop the game.[http://www.aldia.cr/futbol-costa-rica/herediano/Waylon_Francis-Herediano-insultos-racistas-Cartagines-estadio-Fello_Meza_0_109189088.html Waylon Francis: "Los insultos racistas siempre se dan en Cartago"] – Al Día {{in lang|es}}

His play with Herediano in the Champions League drew the attention of Major League Soccer club Columbus Crew SC who made him the club's first signing for the 2014 season.{{cite web|url=https://www.columbuscrewsc.com/post/2013/11/26/crew-re-signs-josh-williams-adds-waylon-francis-and-homegrown-player-matt-wiet|title=Crew re-signs Josh Williams; adds Waylon Francis and Homegrown Player Matt Wiet|website=columbuscrewsc.com |publisher=Columbus Crew SC|date=26 November 2013|access-date=11 May 2020}} Francis made his MLS and club debut on March 8, 2014 in a 3–0 victory over D.C. United.{{cite web|url=https://www.columbuscrewsc.com/players/waylon-francis|title=Waylon Francis (2014) |website=columbuscrewsc.com |publisher=Columbus Crew SC|access-date=11 May 2020}} In 2015, Francis was selected along with two other teammates, to participate in the MLS All-Star Game versus Tottenham Hotspur of the English Premier League.{{Cite web|url=https://lastwordonsports.com/2015/07/28/crew-scs-ethan-finlay-waylon-francis-named-mls-star-game-roster/|title=Crew SC's Ethan Finlay, Waylon Francis Named to MLS All-Star Game Roster|date=11 September 2019|website=lastwordonsports.com|publisher=Last Word On Sports|access-date=11 May 2020}} He missed the end of the 2016 season after undergoing surgery on his right shoulder in early October.{{cite web|url=https://www.columbuscrewsc.com/post/2016/10/05/francis-undergoes-successful-shoulder-surgery|title=Francis undergoes successful shoulder surgery|website=columbuscrewsc.com|publisher=Columbus Crew SC|date=5 October 2016|access-date=11 May 2020}} On December 1, 2017, Crew SC declined Francis' contract option, ending his four-year tenure with the club.{{cite web |url=https://www.columbuscrewsc.com/post/2017/12/01/options-exercised-9-players-ahead-2018-season|title=Options exercised on 9 players ahead of 2018 season|website=columbuscrewsc.com|publisher=Columbus Crew SC|date=1 December 2017|access-date=9 December 2017}}

On 14 December 2017, Francis was traded to Seattle Sounders FC for $50,000 of General Allocation Money.{{cite web|url=https://www.soundersfc.com/post/2017/12/14/sounders-fc-acquires-waylon-francis-columbus-crew-sc|title=Sounders FC acquires Waylon Francis from Columbus Crew SC|website=soundersfc.com|publisher=Seattle Sounders FC|date=14 December 2017|access-date=11 May 2020}}

On 5 February 2019, Francis was traded to Columbus Crew SC for $50,000 of General Allocation Money.{{cite web|title=Sounders FC acquires $50,000 in General Allocation Money from Columbus Crew SC in exchange for defender Waylon Francis|url=https://www.soundersfc.com/post/2019/02/05/sounders-fc-acquires-50000-general-allocation-money-columbus-crew-sc-exchange|website=soundersfc.com|publisher=Seattle Sounders FC|date=5 February 2019|access-date=5 February 2019}}

Columbus declined their contract option on Francis following their 2020 season.{{cite web|url=https://www.columbuscrewsc.com/post/2020/12/14/release-core-2020-mls-cup-winning-columbus-crew-sc-roster-return-2021|title=Release – Core of 2020 MLS Cup-winning Columbus Crew SC roster to return in 2021|website=columbuscrewsc.com|publisher=Columbus Crew SC|date=14 December 2020|access-date=31 May 2021}} He re-signed with the club on 6 January 2021.{{cite web|url=https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2021/01/06/waylon-francis-re-signs-columbus-crew-sc-adds-left-back-depth|title=Waylon Francis re-signs with Columbus Crew SC, adds to left back depth|website=mlssoccer.com|publisher=Major League Soccer|date=6 January 2021|access-date=31 May 2021}} Following the 2021 season, Columbus opted to decline their contract option on Francis.{{Cite web|url=https://www.columbuscrew.com/news/columbus-crew-announces-end-of-2021-roster-decisions|title=Columbus Crew Announces End-of-2021 Roster Decisions | Columbus Crew|website=ColumbusCrew.com}}

On 3 February 2022, it was announced that Francis had signed a three-year deal with Herediano to return to his native Costa Rica.{{Cite web |title=Waylon Francis: "En Herediano siempre hay competencia por eso es el campeón" |url=https://futbolcentroamerica.com/costarica/Waylon-Francis-En-Herediano-siempre-hay-competencia-por-eso-es-el-campeon-20220203-0027.html |access-date=2022-04-30 |website=Fútbol Centroamérica |language=es-ES}}

=International career=

Waylon Francis was part of Costa Rica's Under-23 side. Francis was a part of the team that won the 2013 Copa Centroamericana, in which he made his debut against Nicaragua.{{cite news |title=Johan Venegas vs. Waylon Francis, duelo de ticos en Montreal Impact vs. Columbus Crew |url=https://www.tudn.com/futbol/mls/johan-venegas-vs-waylon-francis-duelo-de-ticos-en-montreal-impact-vs-columbus-crew |access-date=24 December 2020 |work=Univision |date=5 November 2015 |language=es}}

Francis was also a part of the team that reached the quarterfinals at the 2014 FIFA World Cup.{{cite web|url=https://www.fifa.com/worldcup/players/player=379974/profile-detail.html|title=2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil - Waylon Francis - Player Profile |website=FIFA.com|publisher=Fédération Internationale de Football Association|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140620033328/https://www.fifa.com/worldcup/players/player=379974/profile-detail.html|archive-date=20 June 2014}} Although he did not play, he is famously known for yelling "¡Llore conmigo, papi!" ("Cry with me, daddy!") during an effusive celebration with a sobbing José Miguel Cubero after qualifying to the quarterfinals.{{cite news |last1=Erickson |first1=Andrew |title=Crew Cuts: Francis' famous World Cup line parodied in Costa Rican commercial |url=https://www.dispatch.com/sports/20170601/crew-cuts-francis-famous-world-cup-line-parodied-in-costa-rican-commercial |access-date=24 December 2020 |work=The Columbus Dispatch |date=1 June 2017 |language=en}}

Career statistics

=International=

National team	Year	Apps
class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"
rowspan="4" valign="center"\|Costa Rica \| 2013	1	0
2015	2	0
2016	1	0
2019	2	0
colspan="2" \| Total	6	0

Honours

Herediano

Liga FPD: Clausura 2012, Clausura 2013

Columbus Crew

MLS Cup: 2020
Campeones Cup: 2021

Costa Rica

Copa Centroamericana: 2013

Personal life

Francis was married to Stephanie Gonzales Dávila, but they were divorced in 2016.{{cite web|url=https://www.columbuscrewsc.com/players/waylon-francis|title=Waylon Francis - Columbus Crew SC|website=columbuscrewsc.com|publisher=Columbus Crew SC|access-date=11 May 2020}}{{cite web|url=http://courtfiles.org/WAYLON-D-FRANCIS-VS-STEPHANIE-P-GONZALEZ-DAVILA-16-DR-000781-UID-96f9-/59544601d5d9ad11a8fe050a |title=Waylon D Francis vs Stephanie P Gonzalez Davila Court Case Record |website=courtfiles.org|date=26 February 2016|access-date=13 August 2018}}

Francis earned his U.S. green card in June 2016.{{cite news |url=https://www.dispatch.com/sports/20170127/crew-cuts-mohammed-abu-adapts-to-new-team |title=Crew Cuts: Mohammed Abu adapts to new team |author=Andrew Erickson |date=27 January 2017|website=dispatch.com| publisher=The Columbus Dispatch |access-date=11 January 2018}} This status also qualifies him as a domestic player for MLS roster purposes.