Inside The Indoor Game // Nick Perera

by Michael Lewis

There isn't much that Nick Perera hasn't done in his incredible soccer career.

Let us count the ways. Player. Coach. General manager. National team player and captain.

And at the age of 39, he is not quite done yet. Without a doubt, Nick Perera is the Renaissance man of indoor soccer.

Prior to the 2025-26 Major Arena Soccer League season, Perera took another giant step, leaving the Tacoma Stars and signing with the San Diego Sockers as a free agent. This will be his third tenure with the club.

"Coming back to the Sockers was a decision made around my family," he said. "We decided to relocate back to San Diego to be closer to my children’s grandparents. Both extended families live in San Diego, and we made a decision around that.

"On the playing side, it’s a full circle moment for me, having started my career in San Diego, and now being able to return to represent this city again."

From 2017-2025, Perera represented Tacoma and played his heart out. "I’ll miss the people I met there and the relationships I forged over eight beautiful years in that club," he said.

Perera's resume reads like a soccer player's career wish list, as he enters his 17th year of indoor soccer.

Let us count the ways, again.

He is a two-time MASL MVP (2018-19, 2022-23).

He is also one of five players in league history to have recorded more than 400 points (240 goals, 243 assists - the league's all-time leader in that category - for 483 points) and is poised to become the third player in MASL history to eclipse 500 points.

The 2022-23 campaign saw Perera soar to career highs in goals (39 and 41) and assists in 24 games. In one season with the Sockers (Professional Arena Soccer League) and three with Milwaukee Wave (Major Indoor Soccer League), Perera accrued 57 goals and 46 assists in 75 contests.

When the 6-foot-3, 200-lb. forward dons the Sockers blue and gold uniform for their season opener against the Empire Strykers at Frontwave Arena in Oceanside, Calif. on Friday, Nov. 28 (10:35 ET), Perera hoped that he would be well received during pregame introductions.

"I’m not sure what the reception will be from the Sockers fan base, having represented another club for so long," he said, “but … I’m sure they’ll respect that when I represent a team, I give myself wholly to that process."

Like his new teammates, Perera is hungry for an MASL championship. The Sockers, who have earned a record 16 indoor titles since 1981-82, last celebrated one in 2021-22. Perera has won indoor crowns with San Diego (PASL) and Wave (MISL), but never with the Sockers (MASL).

"Naturally, it’s an enormous motivation for me to be able to scratch that milestone off my list at some point," he said, "but I think it’s important to recognize that a career should not be judged exclusively by the amount of championships a player has won or has not won. Of course, it’s a discussion point, but not the entire picture.

"I want to approach the season as I always do: give everything I can to ensure I give my team the best chances of winning games."

Perera also performed with the Ontario Fury and the Syracuse Silver Knights (MASL).

With Tacoma, Perera was the main man. Now, he has plenty of stars to complement him.

"Every team has their own unique environment and responsibilities," Perera said. "I was fortunate to be a part of a very dynamic team in Tacoma for a long time. I’m now looking forward to playing with a group of players who have their own skill sets. It’s obvious the Sockers have outstanding players. I’m looking forward to working alongside them.

"I was a different person in each of the three iterations I’ve had with this organization. I’m a different player and person today than the 24-year-old rookie who had no idea what was going on, or the 28-year-old man who felt like I needed to take on the soccer world."

Perera's accomplishments have led to call-ups to the U.S. Men's Beach Soccer National Team.

"It has been an incredible honor to captain the national team, for as long as I’ve been able to do so," Perera said. "If you had told a 15-year-old me that I would represent my country at three FIFA World Cups and be able to captain the team during six of my seven Concacaf tournaments, I wouldn’t have believed you."

Perera, who has competed in the Beach Soccer World Cup three times (2013, 2019, 2021), is the team's all-time goals leader (114) and is third in appearances (94).

"Playing in a FIFA World Cup is special," he said. "It’s a moment that’s hard to explain and even harder to comprehend in the moment. Beach soccer, futsal, and outdoor soccer are the only three modalities that are FIFA-affiliated for a World Cup, so being involved in three of them is a real honor."

There is nothing like the first time. Perera called his first World Cup, in Tahiti in 2013 "incredible."

"Playing against the host nation - which we have done in all of the three World Cups I played in - was amazing," he added. "The atmosphere was electric, and the match went into extra time with plenty of drama."

Perera also has gotten much experience as a player-coach, with the Stars from 2018-21

“It’s an extremely challenging endeavor," he said. "I loved it, but the level of investment and pressure is hard to replicate elsewhere."

And if that wasn't enough, he was GM of OL Reign (National Women’s Soccer League) in 2021-22.

"Easily the most challenging and educational job I've ever had," he said. "I learned a tremendous amount during my time there and feel very proud to have been part of the staff that won an NWSL Shield.

"I’ve been very fortunate to have had playing careers and sports administration careers working simultaneously for a long time, and once my playing days wind down, I hope to continue learning, growing and opening myself up to business opportunities.”

Perera has been relatively injury-free for most of his career, although he suffered a knee injury, forcing him to miss the 2024 World Cup.

"I have been very fortunate to avoid major injuries for much of my career," he said. "Playing beach soccer and indoor in separate seasons for so many years allowed me to train year-round, which kept me injury-free

"The last two seasons have been very difficult for me, and I’m hopeful that my troubles in that department are over."

Asked if he had any retirement thoughts, Perera replied, "Until I stop enjoying it as much as I do. I don’t like to put timelines on things. There will be a day in the not-so-distant future where I’ll know it’s my time to stop."

That's when opposing defenders and goalkeepers will make a giant, collective sigh of relief.

Michael Lewis, the sixth recipient of the Clay Berling Media Career of Excellence Award in 2025, can be followed on X (formerly Twitter) and Bluesky at @Soccerwriter.