USL Championship side Sacramento Republic signed 13-year-old Da’vian Kimbrough on Tuesday and made U.S. soccer history in the process.
At 13 years, 5 months and 13 days old, Kimbrough is the youngest player to become a soccer professional in the U.S. and is believed to be the youngest professional in team sports across the major leagues in North America, including the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL and WNBA.
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The record most recently belonged to Maximo Carrizo, who signed with New York City FC’s senior squad on his 14th birthday in February 2022.
Kimbrough, a forward who joined Sacramento’s youth academy in 2021, gained notoriety in June after playing in the Bassevelde U13 Cup — a tournament featuring youth teams from some of Europe’s top clubs — as a guest player for the New York Red Bulls. He helped the Red Bulls become the first MLS team to win the tournament and was named MVP.
The 𝙣𝙚𝙬 youngest professional athlete in American team sports 🙌@SacRepublicFC has signed 13-year-old forward Da’vian Kimbrough! ✍️#ReadyToShine🌟
— USL Championship (@USLChampionship) August 8, 2023
“Da’vian’s journey with Republic FC is just beginning,” Sacramento president and general manager Todd Dunivant said in a statement. “He is a…
