The player of the American Soccer League USL — the second most important division in the United States — set a record by becoming the youngest player to take the field in matches of professional teams. We are talking about Sacramento Republic football player Davian Kimbrough.
The match took place last night. Sacramento hosted the Las Vegas Lights at home. By the end of the meeting, the Californian club was leading with a score of 2:0, and the coaching staff decided to release the young player Kimbrough onto the field. At the age of 13 years, 7 months and 13 days, he became the youngest footballer ever to take part in a senior professional match.
Thus, Kimbrough broke the record of his predecessor Alex Clay, who received the corresponding title in 2021. At the time of his first appearance on the field as part of the main team, Alex was 13 years, 9 months and 9 days.
The appearance of the Sacramento player at the end of the match with Las Vegas caused a heated discussion on social networks. Users noticed that the young man was born just a few months before the 2010 FIFA World Cup. According to users, this could make football fans feel old. “Born in 2010? We’re damn old, guys.“they write.
One of the discussion participants noted that at that age he could hardly imagine himself taking part in a professional football match. “At the age of 13 I played Fortnite“he noted.
Another commentator joked that the participation of a 13-year-old boy in a professional league game was a shrewd move by USL officials. “They do this to annoy us, those who were never able to become professional athletes. Can a prepubescent child be better than me? I refuse to believe it.“the user wrote.
It is noteworthy that Sacramento Republic President Todd Dunivant was present at the stadium during the match — at one time he witnessed the debut of Freddy Adu, a football player who made his debut in MLS at the age of 14. His career took off quickly as a teenager: at age 13, he was named to the U.S. Youth National Soccer Team and later became the youngest athlete ever to sign a professional contract in the United States. However, Adu ultimately disappeared from the radar: his last place of work was the Swedish 3rd division club Österlen, which terminated the contract with the player in 2021.
After the match, Todd Dunivant issued a statement, noting that he did not want to put pressure on the 13-year-old Kimbrough.