“Dude, stop laughing!”
Sam Bassett’s thought trails off as he’s distracted by the smirk that’s overcome his brother’s face.
In classic, hyperliteral sibling squabble fashion, Cole retorts with a shake of his head: “I’m not laughing, I'm smiling.”
The two sit together for a joint interview just days into preseason camp in Querétaro, Mexico, and Sam’s barely finished answering his first question before his brother can’t help but crack a smile at the novelty of Sam’s serious tone.
“When we were younger, he used to be really goofy but when he got to college, he became, like, very serious. I used to be really serious as a kid, and he was the goofy one.
“Seeing him be so serious is funny to me, because I know how he really is—so I just got to laugh sometimes.”
Brothers turned professional teammates, Cole and Sam Bassett are the latest sibling duo to take on Major League Soccer after Sam signed a Homegrown contract in January. They are the 20th pair of brothers to feature for the same MLS team in the league’s history, and second in club history—Chris and Sean Henderson took to the Colorado pitch together from 1996 to 1998.
The Littleton natives have never featured on the same team due to their 22-month age gap, despite both coming up through the Rapids’ academy system and following similar seasonal schedules as kids.
Sam, 21, spent the last four years as the University of Denver’s starting attacking midfielder. His career with the Pioneers saw 23 goals, 26 assists and a 2024 season worthy of being named a finalist for the 2024 MAC Hermann Trophy.
Cole, who chose to forgo a college career to go pro at 17, enters his seventh season of professional soccer and sixth in MLS. He’s accumulated 29 goals, 19 assists, and year after year tallies some of the league’s most impressive numbers for distance covered and goal contributions.
Some might assume that the decision to sign both brothers to the same team was nothing more than a carefully curated storyline by their hometown team or a shot at making the league’s history books. But former Director of Coaching for the Rapids’ Academy and longtime guiding presence of the club’s Homegrown players, Brian Crookham, put it best: “We did not sign Cole Bassett’s brother. We signed a Homegrown player in Sam Bassett, who has earned the right to be a Homegrown player.”
Like brother, like brother
The two sit side by side in the courtyard of the Rapids’ hotel in Querétaro after a morning training session and team lunch. Unknowingly, they mirror each other’s body language exactly—a confident lounge with slight hand motions when they answer a question or engage with one another.
In addition to sharing the locker room, the brothers are now also roommates, sharing an apartment in Denver. They do everything together—training, cooking dinner, golf on off days, recovery at home. Does it ever get old?
“I don't think we need space away from each other,” says Cole. “I'm never annoyed with him. We used to fight a lot when we were kids but not anymore.”
The following caveat elicits a laugh out of both, almost a forewarning of the possible fights to come: “But haven't lived with him too long. It's only been a week.”
Sam is less than a week into his first professional preseason, but, thanks to his time in the Rapids Academy—and his brother’s standing as a team veteran—he's finding the interpersonal adjustment period easier than expected. Fellow Homegrowns Oliver Larraz, Darren Yapi, Jackson Travis and Sam Vines all hold history with the Bassett family, as each has been on a team with either Sam or Cole in their childhood.
On the soccer side, the jump from the collegiate to professional level is unlike the jump from the Rapids Academy to DU’s men’s soccer program.
“College is such a different game of soccer,” he says. “I feel like I'm more mature and developed so it's easier to transition to this. With college, I didn't really know what I was getting myself into. It's honestly just like a bunch of kids who are fast and strong and don't really play soccer...that was hard, especially freshman year.
“You only have three weeks 'til your first game, and the coach already knows the starting lineup, basically. But [now] I feel like I'm finding more success, looking at the midfield group that I'm with and just seeing what they do and trying to put that into my game but still play as myself.”
For the most part, Cole is letting Sam learn the ropes himself.
“I think it's easy for him,” he says. “He's been around all these guys in the offseason before so I think he's fit in well. And I know the coaches have thought the same thing—that they like what he's done the first few days.”
Despite both rostering as midfielders the brothers feel as though their styles of play have evolved and grown to personal strengths—a product of their career paths thus far, statures and general preferences on the ball.
“Personally, I think he can strike a ball better,” says Cole. “He can definitely hit it higher, he's stronger. I prefer to dribble a lot more than I would say he does.
“I wouldn't say more attacking; we both like to score goals in that sense. But he's got a little bit more of that technique side and I like to drive to the ball, take more touches, create.”
Sam is quick to agree: “Yeah, I'd rather just pick out a longer pass than dribble as much; he's a little bit quicker.”
Just days after, the pair exhibited those styles on the pitch together during the Rapids’ preseason scrimmage against Celaya F.C. They both subbed on to start the second half in the team’s first competitive minutes of 2025 after just five days since arriving to the preseason camp.
After a quick one-two with Rafael Navarro in the attacking half, Cole drove into the right side of Celaya’s box and laid the ball back to the top of the 18-yard box right into Sam’s run. The younger brother’s aim was pinpoint to secure the Rapids’ second goal of the scrimmage and mark his first in a Rapids’ kit.
“I know that Cole always knows that I'm running to the top of the box, and I know that he's gonna cut it back right to my right foot, so once he cut it back, I knew it was pretty easy from there just to tuck it away,” he said after the match.
Football and fashion
Fast forward to less than a month later, Sam made his club debut on a freezing cold night fitting for a Colorado Homegrown. Despite a kickoff temperature of zero degrees at DICK’S Sporting Goods Park, the Concacaf Champions Cup clash with LAFC was one for the Rapids and Bassett history books.
Cole started the match in Head Coach Chris Armas’ midfield and was joined by his brother in the 71st minute—coincidentally, the same minute Cole subbed on to make his debut against the Portland Timbers seven years ago.
Sam's first touch was a pass to none other than his older brother.
“If my number was called, I knew from the preparation before in preseason that I was ready to go,” he said postgame. “Being in a position that I played at DU was kind of similar tonight, so I felt pretty comfortable, and trusting the guys behind me and to my right and left was pretty easy.”
The Bassett brothers weren’t exactly born with the soccer gene—their father played for just a year in grade school and mother hadn’t ventured into the sport at all herself.
"I don't know, we both just loved it,” says Cole. "I think it was between each other that we had that relationship or bond over something that we could develop in together and kind of learn as we grew up, there was always something to do outside.
“We were kind of that last generation that didn't have phones until we were 13 or 14, so we had a goal in our backyard, and we'd always just go out there together, mess around and have fun.”
Their younger sister, Maya, played as well when she was younger but quit in middle school. Having a pair of older brothers that constantly have something to talk about can sometimes feel exclusionary, but the three connect on a more creative topic—fashion. Maya is the artist of the family, says Sam and Cole, and one day they want to collaborate on their own clothing brand.
They take inspiration from popular streetwear brands like about:blank, social media accounts like FootballerFits and from teammates and friends. Former Rapids midfielder Kellyn Acosta influenced Cole in his own unique way, sorting through his own items at the end of each year and setting aside the pieces he could part with for friends to come “shop” through for $20 each.
They talk about taking their personal fashion preferences into account for the potential brand. Cole is big into knitwear; Sam likes anything that’s comfy and oversized. But neither seem to care what others think of their style—they like what they like and they’ll wear it.
“I would always hear about it in college, the pants I would wear, everyone would always give me s--- for it,” says Sam. “My coaches are like, ‘what are you wearing?’”
“It was just what I liked. I want to be a little bit different. Definitely have some work to do but now I have a little bit more money to work with,” he jokes.
Think crazy, dream big
While life is not completely about competition, having a sibling—not to mention one that plays the same sport as you—will ensure you that it is.
At the beginning of 2024 Cole and Sam stacked the odds on who would record more goal contributions. Sam won with nine goals and 13 assists compared to Cole’s nine and seven, but blame the NCAA’s tendency to give out hockey assists, says Cole.
This year, they won’t focus on the inter-sibling competition so much but more so their individual goals for the season.
Sam’s written his down: start five games and earn two goals and two assists in as many appearances as he can break into with a deep midfield like Colorado’s.
“That sounds like a pretty good rookie year, especially with the midfielders that are already in--it's pretty hard to take Cole’s and Djordje’s and all their spots. I don't want to take [Cole] off the field. Obviously, I want to play with him,” he says.
Cole is quick to assure him that he shouldn't have any hangups about setting his goals for his rookie season, whether it means bumping him off the pitch or not:
“When you're young, you got to dream big, be crazy,” he says. “Like this, if anybody says you put me against Messi, like, who you taking? Obviously, everybody's gonna take Messi, but I don't ever really care, right?
“It just doesn't matter who you're playing against. Just go out there and try to be the better one on the field and take their spot. You only got one career, so might as well dream a bit big. Think crazy, because you might have regrets when you're done.”