Here's an unusual one... Fabio De Sousa, a Division III All-American last year as a sophomore at Rutgers-Newark, has forsaken his final two years of college soccer to sign with the USL's Penn FC. https://www.pennfc.com/fabio-de-sousa http://rutgersnewarkathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=2918&path=msoc Even the top D-III players are turning pro early.
Updated list. Mo Adams, Soph. MF, Syracuse (England) - Chicago Fire (Generation Adidas) Francis Atuahene, Jr. F, Michigan (Ghana) - FC Dallas (Generation Adidas) Handwalla Bwana, Soph. M, Washington (Kenya) - Seattle Sounders (homegrown contract) Fabio De Sousa, So. F, Rutgers-Newark - Penn FC (USL) Christian Enriquez, So. M, Cal Poly - Portland Timbers 2 (USL) Aaron Herrera, Jr. M/D, New Mexico - Real Salt Lake (homegrown contract) Nick Hinds, Soph. M/D, Akron - Seattle Sounders 2 (USL) Cam Lindley, Soph. M, North Carolina - Orlando City (homegrown contract) JT Marcinkoski, Jr. GK, Georgetown - San Jose Earthquakes (homegrown contract) Mark McKenzie, Fr. D, Wake Forest - Philadelphia Union (homegrown contract) Joao Mouthinho, Fr. D, Akron (Portugal) - LAFC (Generation Adidas) Edward Opoku, Jr. F, Virginia (Ghana) - Columbus Crew (Generation Adidas) Jordan Saint Louis, Fr. F, George Washington - Servette (Switzerland) Brandon Servania, Fr. M, Wake Forest - FC Dallas (homegrown contract) Sam Strong, Jr. D, Coastal Carolina - Fresno FC (USL) Mason Toye, Fr. F, Indiana - Minnesota United (Generation Adidas) Ema Twumasi, Soph. F, Wake Forest (Ghana) - FC Dallas (Generation Adidas) Alex Vedamanikam, Fr. F, New Mexico, Eintracht Braunschweig (Germany) Evan Waldrep, Jr. M, Grand Canyon - Phoenix Rising (USL) Gordon Wild, Jr. F, Maryland (Germany) - Atlanta United (Generation Adidas) Eryk Williamson, Jr. M, Maryland - Portland Timbers (homegrown contract)
What's more obscure than a player from a D-III school turning pro early? A player from a community college in Wyoming turning pro! Angel Alvarez, who was a sophomore GK at Laramie County Community College last fall, has signed with his hometown Las Vegas Lights and won't be matriculating to a four-year school.
Interesting re the DIII and CC guys going pro. If U.S. lower leagues become more abundant similar to baseball, or to Euro lower leagues, then I expect we'll see a lot more of this. Similar to baseball, I expect we'll start to see not only many college players being better than than many pro players, but we'll also start to see several top college teams that are better than many pro teams and that are funded better and have better facilities than many pro teams. All of this is good because it gives young players more options. Some will like the education/school spirit/good facilities/maybe I'll be a pro someday route, and others will want to take a shot at being a pro early. It's all good!
I interviewed Alvarez three years ago. Kinda odd situation he was in and I'm glad to see he's getting back on track https://www.everybodysoccer.com/even-the-goalkeepers-like-to/2015/3/20/angel-alvarez-interview
Is this still the current thread? I think so... UNC Wilmington men’s soccer announced that defender Hjalmar Ekdal has chosen to forgo his final three years of eligibility in favor of signing a professional contract in his native Sweden on Monday. Ekdal signed with IK Frej in the Superettan, the country’s second division of professional soccer. The 2017 CAA Rookie-of-the-Year put pen to paper on a contract lasting through 2019 per the Swedish club’s website. https://theseahawk.org/18036/sports/ekdal-inks-pro-deal-in-homeland-of-sweden/
Nice find, thanks. Honestly surprised more college players don't end up in Scandinavia, especially with all the Scandinavian kids that come here to play college soccer.
So we've apparently reached the annual Underclassmen Sign Abroad After Trialing in the Summer stage of the calendar. GK Kevin Silva, a former YNT player who played two seasons at UCLA and then transferred to Rutgers this winter but, obviously, never played for them, appears to have signed with Hearts of the Scottish Premier League. https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman....ign-trialist-goalkeeper-kevin-silva-1-4767675
I’m not surprised...we aren’t surprised when football or basketball players leave early and we shouldn’t be surprised if soccer players leave early, even if for far less money. They don’t necessarily want to be in college and the college soccer experience isn’t a country club. A guy could bob and weave through a year or two of college but eventually the courses get more difficult, gpa’s have to be met, Credit loads need to be hit and the lack of academic desire can catch up with them. College isn’t for everybody, athletes are no exception. A quick google search said 30% of college students drop out after one year.
And another one... Elvir Ibisevic, an American of Bosnian descent who played the past 2 seasons at Nebraska-Omaha, signed a pro deal with a club in Slovenia. Ibisevic is the cousin of former SLU star and current Bosnian national teamer Vedad Ibisevic, debuted for Slovenia against the U.S. in a friendly last January. Super excited to announce that I’ve signed my first professional contract with NK Celje in the 1st Division in Slovenia! I want to thank everyone that was a part of this journey and this is only the beginning. #GremoCelje pic.twitter.com/j5iulKzOWD— Elvir Ibisevic (@ElvirIbi9) July 18, 2018
Updated list. It's getting pretty long. Mo Adams, Soph. MF, Syracuse (England) - Chicago Fire (Generation Adidas) Angel Alvarez, So. GK, Laramie County JC - Las Vegas Lights (USL) Francis Atuahene, Jr. F, Michigan (Ghana) - FC Dallas (Generation Adidas) Handwalla Bwana, Soph. M, Washington (Kenya) - Seattle Sounders (homegrown contract) Fabio De Sousa, So. F, Rutgers-Newark - Penn FC (USL) Christian Enriquez, So. M, Cal Poly - Portland Timbers 2 (USL) Hjalmar Ekdal, Fr. D, UNC-Wilmington (Sweden) - IK Frej (Sweden) Aaron Herrera, Jr. M/D, New Mexico - Real Salt Lake (homegrown contract) Nick Hinds, Soph. M/D, Akron - Seattle Sounders 2 (USL) Elvir Ibisevic, F, Nebraska-Omaha (plays for Bosnia) - NK Selje (Slovenia) Cam Lindley, Soph. M, North Carolina - Orlando City (homegrown contract) JT Marcinkoski, Jr. GK, Georgetown - San Jose Earthquakes (homegrown contract) Mark McKenzie, Fr. D, Wake Forest - Philadelphia Union (homegrown contract) Joao Mouthinho, Fr. D, Akron (Portugal) - LAFC (Generation Adidas) Edward Opoku, Jr. F, Virginia (Ghana) - Columbus Crew (Generation Adidas) Jordan Saint Louis, Fr. F, George Washington - Servette (Switzerland) Brandon Servania, Fr. M, Wake Forest - FC Dallas (homegrown contract) Kevin Silva, So. GK, UCLA (had transferred to Rutgers) - Hearts (Scotland) Sam Strong, Jr. D, Coastal Carolina - Fresno FC (USL) Mason Toye, Fr. F, Indiana - Minnesota United (Generation Adidas) Ema Twumasi, Soph. F, Wake Forest (Ghana) - FC Dallas (Generation Adidas) Alex Vedamanikam, Fr. F, New Mexico, Eintracht Braunschweig (Germany) Evan Waldrep, Jr. M, Grand Canyon - Phoenix Rising (USL) Gordon Wild, Jr. F, Maryland (Germany) - Atlanta United (Generation Adidas) Eryk Williamson, Jr. M, Maryland - Portland Timbers (homegrown contract)
And another one is Euro-bound. (Though we don't know where). Midfielder Jean-Christophe Koffi, who was All ACC and an All-American as a junior last year at Virginia, has signed with an agent and is pursuing opportunities abroad. Former @DCUyouth standout Jean-Christophe Koffi (@jean_liljerk9) has left @UVAMenSoccer, will sign with an agent and look for pro opportunities overseas!#RepDMV | #DMVBred Highlight Tape: https://t.co/1YUulj1id1More on Koffi: https://t.co/a1MgzJ6lR4 pic.twitter.com/qFxBLF0mqc— DMV Soccer (@DMVSoccer96) July 28, 2018 That's a key loss for the Cavs, but honestly, I'm surprised it took this long to announce he wasn't coming back. Koffi played for the DC United academy and I'd have thought a homegrown contract was in the offing.
How does it work if he played academy...does a European team have to pay DC or is he a free agent if they don’t make an offer?
Free as a bird. Often time the European clubs are prepared to pay compensation even though the players aren't under contract - so called solidarity payments that FIFA wants to go to youth clubs that helped develop a player - but MLS, US Soccer and, supposedly, the players association don't want to implement that so they pass on that money.
Hopefully with the Alphonso Davies situation, we start seeing that Solidarity Payment/Training Compensation really looked at. It could really blow up the youth development system if that started playing a role in US player pick-ups.
I'd also like to express how surprised I am that it took so long for Koffi to leave. He was the best defensive mid in the league last year and athleticism is unmatched. The timing is a little weird here seeing as most European clubs are already in preseason. Will make it harder to get playing time with a club over there.
Timing is just fine. The window is open from now until the end of August. Teams are signing players left and right currently, and it will continue until the window closes. Also, just because I know from personal experience, some countries have changed the signing periods of amateur players to pro contracts too. At one time, amateurs use to be able to be signed immediately and play. Now, amateurs have to be signed during a transfer window in order to play immediately.
If I recall correctly, didn't UVA lose several players during the offseason last year as well? Great that they are getting several opportunities to play in Europe. Worrisome that so many players are jumping as soon as they get a chance.
it's only worrisome if the uva staff didn't expect it. if you build your team with the expectation that you're going to have major turnover before they graduate, it's not an issue. it's like the one-and-dones in basketball. they know what they're getting when they sign the kids.
The only reason I say "worrisome" is that it feels very much like Maryland or UCLA over the past two years, where the team underachieves and it feels like players give up on the program or the coach to pursue other opportunities. To me it feels more like a referendum on the college's ability to develop the player more than the amazing Professional opportunity that has been driving these decisions. (With the exception of Koffi, he should be in the pro game)
I think we need to consider why they went there in the first place...many have no interest in a degree and this is a little bit of ego and a little bit of “well, it is basically free”. Not to suggest full rides were given but I presume families aren’t forking out $30k for a year or two so junior can quit and go play for $30k a year
Snip: NEW YORK – Former Columbia University midfielder Haris Stamboulidis will forego his senior season for the men’s soccer team after signing with Aris Thessaloniki F.C. of Super League Greece. https://www.frontrowsoccer.com/2018...boulidis-to-forego-senior-season-at-columbia/ He's Australian (and Greek). Here's a profile from last fall. https://www.columbiaspectator.com/s...-haris-stamboulidis-worldly-path-to-columbia/
I realized I never posted on this thread when Faris Abdi, who was a freshman at UVa last year, turned pro in the late spring. He signed with a lower division team in Switzerland. A former US YNT player, he had a strong start to the season and even earned a call-up to the full Saudi Arabian national team (his parents are Saudi) but got hurt and didn't play much down the stretch.