Ali Ahmed (soccer)

Last updated

Ali Ahmed
Personal information
Date of birth (2000-10-10) October 10, 2000 (age 25)
Place of birth Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Position(s)
Team information
Current team
 Norwich City
Number 21
Youth career
North Toronto Nitros
2020–2022 Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2022 Whitecaps FC 2 15 (0)
2022 → Vancouver Whitecaps FC (loan) 2 (0)
2023–2026 Vancouver Whitecaps FC 66 (4)
2026– Norwich City 3 (2)
International career‡
2023– Canada 22 (1)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of January 17, 2025
‡ National team caps and goals as of November 13, 2025

Ali Ahmed (born October 10, 2000) is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a wide midfielder or winger for EFL Championship club Norwich City and the Canada national team.

Contents

Early life

Ahmed was born in Toronto to parents from Ethiopia. [1] He began playing youth soccer at age six with the North Toronto Nitros. [2] In 2018, he went on trial with the Toronto FC Academy, who were ready to sign him to join the academy, but he opted to head to Portugal to trial with the U19 side of C.F. Os Belenenses, but was unable to sign as he was under 18. [1] He then went to Spain, before returning to Toronto, before returning to Europe to trial in Portugal, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands. [1] In November 2019, he trialed with the Vancouver Whitecaps Academy and then trialed again the following year, [1] and in August 2020, he joined the Vancouver Whitecaps Academy. [3] In 2021, he played with the Vancouver Whitecaps FC U-23. [3] He attended pre-season camp with the first team in 2021 and 2022. [3]

Club career

Whitecaps FC 2

In March 2022, he signed a professional contract with Whitecaps FC 2 in MLS Next Pro. [4] He made his professional debut on March 26 against Houston Dynamo 2. [5] He led the team in assists with five in 2022. [6] He was named the 2022 WFC2 Player of the Year. [7]

Vancouver Whitecaps FC

On April 22, 2022, he joined the first team on a short-term four-day loan ahead of their MLS league match against Austin FC. [8] In the match the next day, he made his official first-team debut. [9] On August 4, he signed another short-term loan with Vancouver. [10] In November 2022, he signed a permanent contract with the first team for the 2023 season, becoming the first Whitecaps FC 2 player to sign a first-team contract. [11] On May 24, he suffered what appeared to be a serious injury in a match, where he lost consciousness and was treated on-field for seventeen minutes, [12] [13] but was released from hospital the next day with only a concussion. [14] [15] On June 7, 2023, he won the 2023 Canadian Championship with the Whitecaps, defeating CF Montreal and won the tournament's Best Young Canadian Player Award. [16]

Norwich City

On January 4, 2026, Ahmed moved to England, signing for EFL Championship side Norwich City on a three-and-a-half-year deal with an option for a further year. [17]

He made his debut for the club on 17 January 2026, starting the match and providing an assist within the opening 10 minutes against Wrexham. [18] [19] He scored his first goal for Norwich three days later in a 5–0 victory over West Bromwich Albion. [20] On 26 January 2026, he recorded a goal and an assist in a 2–1 victory against league leaders Coventry City. [21]

International career

In May 2023, Ahmed was listed on the Canada preliminary roster for the 2023 CONCACAF Nations League Finals. [22] [23] In June 2023, he was named to the final 23-man squad for the 2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup. [24] Ahmed made his debut for Canada on June 27 in their tournament opener against Guadeloupe. [25] [26]

In June 2024, Ahmed was named to Canada's squad for the 2024 Copa América. [27]

Personal life

Ahmed is a Muslim and fasts during the month of Ramadan. [28] [29]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played January 26, 2026 [30]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
ClubSeasonLeaguePlayoffsNational cup [a] ContinentalOtherTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Whitecaps FC 2 2022 MLS Next Pro 150————150
Vancouver Whitecaps FC (loan) 2022 MLS 20—00——20
Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2023 MLS22220213 [b] 01 [c] 0303
2024 2213040002 [c] 0311
2025 22051339 [b] 000394
Total66310194120301008
Norwich City 2025–26 Championship 32—00——32
Career total85410194120301199
  1. ↑ Includes U.S. Open Cup, FA Cup
  2. 1 2 Appearances in CONCACAF Champions Cup
  3. 1 2 Appearances in Leagues Cup

International

As of match played November 13, 2025 [31]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Canada 202340
202480
2025101
Total221

Scores and results list Canada's goal tally first.

List of international goals scored by Ali Ahmed
No.DateVenueCapOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1September 5, 2025 Arena Națională, Bucharest, Romania18Flag of Romania.svg  Romania 2–03–0 International Friendly

Honours

Vancouver Whitecaps

Individual

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Adams, J.J. (April 27, 2022). "The road less travelled for Whitecaps prospect Ali Ahmed". The Province .
  2. ↑ Ali Ahmed at Canada Soccer
  3. 1 2 3 McColl, Michael (March 19, 2022). "Whitecaps FC 2 are back – Get to know the new squad (Part Two)". Away from the Numbers.
  4. ↑ "WFC2 sign two Canadians and four 2022 MLS SuperDraft picks". Vancouver Whitecaps FC . March 18, 2022.
  5. ↑ Fossey, Maxim (March 26, 2022). "WFC2 open inaugural MLS NEXT Pro season with narrow 1-0 loss against Houston Dynamo 2". Vancouver Whitecaps FC .
  6. ↑ Durec, Nathan (October 19, 2022). "Terminal City Thoughts: A look at a few Whitecaps 2 players". Area 51 Sports Network.
  7. ↑ "Whitecaps FC announce winners for 2022 Player Awards". Vancouver Whitecaps FC . October 28, 2022.
  8. ↑ "Whitecaps FC sign WFC2 wingback Ali Ahmed and midfielder Vasco Fry to MLS short-term agreements". Vancouver Whitecaps FC . April 22, 2022.
  9. ↑ Vancouver Whitecaps FC [@WhitecapsFC] (April 24, 2022). "Ali Ahmed's MLS Debut @aliahmed51_ #VWFC #ATXvVAN" (Tweet). Retrieved November 1, 2022– via Twitter.
  10. ↑ "Whitecaps FC sign wingback Ali Ahmed and striker Simon Becher to MLS short-term agreements". Vancouver Whitecaps FC . August 4, 2022.
  11. ↑ "Whitecaps FC sign MLS NEXT Pro wingback Ali Ahmed to an MLS contract through 2025". Vancouver Whitecaps FC . November 16, 2022.
  12. ↑ "Ali Ahmed posts thank you message, insists he'll be back on the pitch with Vancouver Whitecaps soon". Canadian Soccer Daily. May 26, 2023.
  13. ↑ Bahl, Andrew (May 25, 2023). "Scary Ali Ahmed injury overshadows Whitecaps' Canadian Championship win". The Third Sub.
  14. ↑ Jacques, John (May 25, 2023). "Ali Ahmed Cleared By Hospital, Returns To Team". Northern Tribune.
  15. ↑ "Whitecaps' Ali Ahmed cleared to travel with team after leaving hospital". Sportsnet . May 24, 2023.
  16. 1 2 3 "Gressel and Ahmed win awards at 2023 Canadian Championship". Canadian Soccer Association . June 8, 2023.
  17. ↑ "Norwich City complete signing of Ali Ahmed". Norwich City. January 4, 2026. Retrieved January 5, 2026.
  18. ↑ Que, Brandon (January 17, 2026). "WATCH: Ali Ahmed assists Norwich opener in English Championship debut against Wrexham". Canadian Soccer Daily. Retrieved January 18, 2026.
  19. ↑ "STARTING XIs: Ahmed City debut against Wrexham; Slimane start". The Pink Un. January 17, 2026. Retrieved January 18, 2026.
  20. ↑ "Norwich thrash West Brom to move out of drop zone". BBC Sport. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  21. ↑ "Norwich City Football Club". Norwich City Football Club. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  22. ↑ "CONCACAF drops stacked Canada preliminary Nations League roster with some surprise names". Canada Soccer Daily. May 19, 2023. Retrieved May 19, 2023.
  23. ↑ Adams, J.J. (May 24, 2023). "Scary injury to Ali Ahmed casts pall over Vancouver Whitecaps victory". The Province .
  24. ↑ "Ali Ahmed called up to Canada MNT for Concacaf Gold Cup". Vancouver Whitecaps FC . June 19, 2023.
  25. ↑ Steiner, Ben (June 28, 2023). "MLS rookies Amhed, Bombito inspire in Canada's Gold Cup opener". Major League Soccer .
  26. ↑ Nightingale, Tom (June 28, 2023). "'Fearless' Ali Ahmed's Canada debut marks latest high point for breakout Vancouver Whitecaps star". Canadian Soccer Daily.
  27. ↑ "CANMNT ANNOUNCE 2024 COPA AMÉRICA ROSTER". Canadian Soccer Association . June 15, 2024.
  28. ↑ "Ramadan a 'shower for the soul' but a mental test for pro athletes". theprovince.com. March 22, 2024.
  29. ↑ "Ramadan Mubarak to all my brothers and sisters!". Instagram.
  30. ↑ Ali Ahmed at Soccerway
  31. ↑ Ali Ahmed at National-Football-Teams.com OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
  32. ↑ "Three-peat! Vancouver Whitecaps top Toronto FC to win Canadian Championship". Major League Soccer. September 26, 2024. Retrieved September 26, 2024.
  33. ↑ "FOUR-PEAT: Vancouver Whitecaps retain Canadian Championship title". Major League Soccer. October 2, 2025. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  34. ↑ "'More to come': Ahmed, Gauld react to Whitecaps' CanChamp four-peat". OneSoccer. October 2, 2025. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
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