Seattle signs former US goalkeeper Keller

Former U.S. goalkeeper Kasey Keller will fulfill a lifelong dream of finishing his football career in his home country and near his hometown.

Keller signed a two-year contract with the Seattle Sounders on Thursday, who will debut in Major League Soccer in 2009. Keller, from the Olympia area about 60 miles (100 kilometers) south, has played all but one year of his professional career in some of Europe's top leagues.

"There were different times where I was close to coming back to MLS," said the 38-year-old Keller, who played most recently with Fulham of the English Premier League. "But Washington D.C.? That isn't home. That's a four- or five-hour plane ride. Florida? I might as well stay in Europe.

"Now the idea of coming home is official," Keller said.

Keller was in four U.S. World Cup squads and earned 102 caps. He captained the 1996 U.S. Olympic team, and was the MVP of the 1998 CONCACAF Gold Cup, in which he helped beat Brazil 1-0.

But most of the time he was in Europe, playing with teams in the English Premier League, Bundesliga and Spain's La Liga.

"There are four pro leagues in the world that every professional player wants to play in, and I've been fortunate enough to play in three of them," Keller said. "Hopefully, in 20 or 30 years, MLS will be on par with those. It's only been around for (13) years. I've played for teams that started in 1885."