The Philadelphia Union’s success in recent Major League Soccer seasons, including earning the 2020 and 2025 Supporters’ Shield with the league’s best record, results from a fertile youth development system.
That’s also reflected on the United States’ World Cup roster.
The U.S team includes four homegrown players who came up through the Union’s youth academy before excelling in MLS, with three of them then moving to European clubs.
They head this alphabetical list of former and present Union players who are on teams in the upcoming World Cup:
Aaronsen, 25, is an attacking midfielder from Medford, New Jersey, and came up through the Union Academy. He first played on U.S. under-15 teams and starred for the Union in 2019 and 2020. He was runner-up in the 2019 MLS Rookie of the Year voting after exhibiting precocious playmaking and finishing skills. That led to a 2020 season in which he made the prestigious MLS Best XI. That earned him a move to Europe and Aaronsen has since played at Red Bull Salzburg in Austria, Leeds United in the English Premier League, Union Berlin in Germany and now back with Leeds United. He has nine goals and seven assists in 57 U.S. senior team appearances.
Freese, 27 and from Wayne. Pennsylvania, is the likely starter at goalkeeper for the U.S. He is the homegrown player who found his opportunities elsewhere after backing up Andre Blake, the Jamaican international who has been entrenched as the Union starter since 2016. Freese, who also played two years at Harvard, has seen his career blossom since moving to New York City FC in 2023. He didn’t make his senior U.S. team debut until 2025 but has seemed to move ahead of 2012 World Cup starter Matt Turner as the preferred shot-stopper.
Jacques, 26, is a midfielder now in his third season with the Union who is a key player for Haiti. He started his pro career in Haiti before moving to a French team, Metz. He then moved to the Union, where he has scored three goals in 44 career games. Jacques has played for Haiti teams going back to his under-17 years. He has been with its senior team since 2023 and has scored six goals in 29 games.
Makhanya is the other present Union player who could see 2026 World Cup duty, as he was named to South Africa’s preliminary 32-man roster, which will be cut to 26. Just 22, Makhanya is a defender who signed with the Union in 2023 after a promising start to his pro career back home. He played for Union II his first two years here but has been a Union regular the past two years, making 36 starts.
McKenzie’s family moved from New York City to Delaware when he was 5, and he has proceeded to become the state’s most accomplished soccer player in history. The defender came up through the Union youth system and was signed to the first team in 2018. McKenzie started for three years for the Union, making Major League Soccer’s Best XI in 2020 when he was also runner-up in its Defender of the Year voting. In 2021 he signed with Belgian First Division club Genk and in 2024 moved to Toulouse in France’s Ligue One. McKenzie played on the U.S. under-20 side before making his senior team debut in 2020. He has appeared in 27 games for the United States.
Monteiro plays for Cape Verde, an island nation off the west coast of Africa. The 32-year-old midfielder has played a key role in his national team’s ascent, having scored five goals in 49 games in 10 years. Monteiro, who was born in the Netherlands to parents who were from Cape Verde, played for the Union from 2019-21, getting nine goals in 75 games. He now plays for PEC Zwolle in the Eredivisie, the top league in the Netherlands.
Trusty is a central defender from Media, Pennsylvania, and also came up through the Union youth ranks. He made his Union debut in 2017 and played in 56 games over three seasons before a trade to MLS’ Colorado Rapids. He moved overseas in 2022 and has played with Birmingham City and Sheffield United in the English Championship and is now with Scottish giant Celtic. Trusty, 27, played on various U.S. youth teams and has now made six senior team appearances since 2023.
Contact Kevin Tresolini at ktresolini@delawareonline.com and follow on Twitter @kevintresolini. Support local journalism by subscribing to delawareonline.com and our DE Game Day newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Players with Philadelphia Union ties dot World Cup soccer rosters
