The house that Ching built

When Brian Ching glanced up from the field during the first practice session at the Houston Dynamo’s new BBVA Compass Stadium, he noticed his life-sized action likeness staring back from a central pillar.

"I’d seen some mention of it on Twitter, but had no idea what they were talking about until I got on the field last week and saw it for myself," Ching said.

The symbolism was inescapable.

The Kamehameha Schools graduate has been a pillar of the franchise to the point where some have taken to calling the new showplace of Major League Soccer the "House That Ching Built."

"In some ways that’s appropriate," said Dynamo president Chris Canetti. "He is truly a celebrity around town and one of the top-noted athletes, and that says a lot when you consider that in Houston we have an NFL team, an NBA team, a Major League Baseball team and we’re just a growing MLS team. So he’s a big, big impact player for our organization."

From a four-goal performance in the Dynamo’s 2006 debut, an MLS Cup MVP in its first championship, and his status as the franchise’s all-time leading scorer and off-the-field ambassador, Ching has built quite a legacy.

So much so that when they symbolically broke ground earlier on the 22,000-seat facility that opens Saturday with a match against D.C. United, Ching was selected to do it from the seat of a tractor. When the first ceremonial kick was made last week, it was Ching they gave the honors to. When he returned to Houston in an offseason trade, the arrival was greeted with what teammates referred to as "Ching-sanity."

In Houston, Ching is more than just the face of the franchise. He is "the face, the arms, the body, the eyes, everything, actually," corrected Lester Gretsch, a Dynamo official, lest Ching’s role there somehow be understated.

"He’s been a very, very big part of our club, the marquee player," Canetti said. "He’s been a great performer on the field and he’s also been a standout in the community. I think when you look at the contributions he has made as a player and in the community, it has really elevated him to being a household name here in Houston."

And it has helped the Dynamo find one of the MLS’ most consistent followings and attract the kind of support necessary to build what has been heralded as the league’s first soccer-specific stadium.

Seeing that stadium through was a large part, you suspect, of why Ching is back this year, closing in on his 34th birthday later this month. And part of why he elected to take a scaled-back contract to compel the trade that returned him to the Dynamo after Montreal made him its No. 1 pick in the 2011 expansion draft.

"I’ve been in the league for 11 years now and have never been in a stadium that the organization owns or controls," Ching said. "So, it is pretty special to be able to open up a stadium and call it your own."

Said Canetti, "just seeing him around the stadium and all the activities associated with it, you can tell he is very proud."

It was hardly the career first imagined by the Haleiwa native, who initially had his sights set on pursuing dreams of being a world championship surfer before finding his calling on the pitch.

"I would have never imagined anything like this growing up," Ching said. "But I can’t complain. It has been a pretty special life."

In Houston, they think it is one worth celebrating.

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@staradvertiser.com or 529-4820.