MLS Young Player of the Year Award

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The MLS Young Player of the Year Award (known as the Rookie of the Year Award from 1996 to 2019) is an annual award given to the top player in Major League Soccer under the age of 22.

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The award was initially awarded to a rookie, or a player who no prior professional experience, usually to players that had previously played in MLS youth team academies or played college soccer. This practice is fairly common in other American sports leagues, such as the MLB Rookie of the Year (baseball), NASCAR Rookie of the Year (motorsports), NFL Rookie of the Year Award (American football), the Eddie Gottlieb Trophy (basketball), and the Calder Memorial Trophy (ice hockey).

In 2020, MLS replaced the Rookie of the Year Award with the MLS Young Player of the Year Award, given to the best player in the league aged 22 and under, regardless of prior professional playing experience. [1]

Winners

Rookie of the Year Award (1996–2019)

SeasonPlayerPositionTeamDraft
Pick
Draft ClassCollege
1996 Flag of the United States.svg Steve Ralston Midfielder Tampa Bay Mutiny 18 1996 MLS College Draft Florida International
1997 Flag of the United States.svg Mike Duhaney Defender Tampa Bay Mutiny 87 1996 MLS Inaugural Draft UNLV
1998 Flag of the United States.svg Ben Olsen Midfielder D.C. United N/A Project-40 Virginia
1999 Flag of the United States.svg Jay Heaps Defender Miami Fusion 2 1999 MLS College Draft Duke
2000 Flag of the United States.svg Carlos Bocanegra Defender Chicago Fire 4 2000 MLS SuperDraft UCLA
2001 Flag of Brazil.svg Rodrigo Faria Forward MetroStars 13 2001 MLS SuperDraft Concordia College
2002 Flag of the United States.svg Kyle Martino Midfielder Columbus Crew 8 2002 MLS SuperDraft Virginia
2003 Flag of Jamaica.svg Damani Ralph Forward Chicago Fire 18 2003 MLS SuperDraft Connecticut
2004 Flag of the United States.svg Clint Dempsey Midfielder New England Revolution 8 2004 MLS SuperDraft Furman
2005 Flag of the United States.svg Michael Parkhurst Defender New England Revolution 9 2005 MLS SuperDraft Wake Forest
2006 Flag of the United States.svg Jonathan Bornstein Defender Chivas USA 37 2006 MLS SuperDraft UCLA
2007 Flag of the United States.svg Maurice Edu Midfielder Toronto FC 1 2007 MLS SuperDraft Maryland
2008 Flag of the United States.svg Sean Franklin Defender LA Galaxy 4 2008 MLS SuperDraft Cal State Northridge
2009 Flag of the United States.svg Omar Gonzalez Defender LA Galaxy 3 2009 MLS SuperDraft Maryland
2010 Flag of Honduras.svg Andy Najar Midfielder D.C. United N/A Homegrown Player N/A
2011 Flag of the United States.svg C. J. Sapong Forward Sporting Kansas City 10 2011 MLS SuperDraft James Madison
2012 Flag of the United States.svg Austin Berry Defender Chicago Fire 9 2012 MLS SuperDraft Louisville
2013 Flag of the United States.svg Dillon Powers Midfielder Colorado Rapids 11 2013 MLS SuperDraft Notre Dame
2014 Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Tesho Akindele Forward FC Dallas 6 2014 MLS SuperDraft Colorado School of Mines
2015 Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Cyle Larin Forward Orlando City SC 1 2015 MLS SuperDraft Connecticut
2016 Flag of the United States.svg Jordan Morris Forward Seattle Sounders FC N/A Homegrown Player Stanford
2017 Flag of Germany.svg Julian Gressel Midfielder Atlanta United FC 8 2017 MLS SuperDraft Providence College
2018 Flag of the United States.svg Corey Baird Forward Real Salt Lake N/A Homegrown Player Stanford
2019 Flag of Brazil.svg Andre Shinyashiki Forward Colorado Rapids 5 2019 MLS SuperDraft Denver

Young Player of the Year Award (2020–present)

SeasonPlayerPositionTeamAge
2020 Flag of Uruguay.svg Diego Rossi Forward Los Angeles FC 22
2021 Flag of the United States.svg Ricardo Pepi Forward FC Dallas 18
2022 Flag of the United States.svg Jesús Ferreira Forward21
2023 Flag of Argentina.svg Thiago Almada Midfielder Atlanta United FC 22

Wins by playing position

PositionNumber of
winners
Defender8
Forward9
Midfielder9
Goalkeeper0

Wins by nationality

NationalityNumber of
winners
Flag of the United States (23px).png  United States 18
Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada 2
Flag of Brazil.svg  Brazil 2
Flag of Germany.svg  Germany 1
Flag of Honduras.svg  Honduras 1
Flag of Jamaica.svg  Jamaica 1
Flag of Uruguay.svg  Uruguay 1
Flag of Argentina.svg  Argentina 1

Wins by team

TeamNumber of
winners
Chicago Fire3
FC Dallas3
Colorado Rapids2
D.C. United2
Los Angeles Galaxy2
New England Revolution2
Tampa Bay Mutiny2
Atlanta United FC2
Chivas USA1
Columbus Crew1
MetroStars1
Miami Fusion1
Orlando City SC1
Seattle Sounders FC1
Sporting Kansas City1
Toronto FC1
Real Salt Lake1
Los Angeles FC1

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References

  1. "MLS Unveils AT&T Young Player of the Year Award; 2020 Awards Nominees Announced". Major League Soccer. October 28, 2020. Retrieved October 28, 2020.