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Mckenna Whitham

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Not to be confused with Mae Whitman.

Mckenna Whitham
Personal information
Date of birth (2010-07-27) July 27, 2010 (age 14)[1]
Position(s) Forward
Team information
Current team
 NJ/NY Gotham FC
Number 31
Youth career
–2023 MVLA Soccer Club
2023– Slammers FC HB Køge
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2024– NJ/NY Gotham FC 0 (0)
International career
2024– United States U15 4 (4)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Mckenna "Mak" Whitham (born July 27, 2010) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a forward for NJ/NY Gotham FC of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). She signed with Gotham at the age of 13 in 2024, becoming the youngest player in NWSL history.[2]

Early life

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Whitham grew up homeschooled in San Francisco, California.[3] Her father, Josh, was an alternate for the United States Ski Team at the 1998 Winter Olympics while in high school.[4] Whitham played club soccer for MVLA Soccer Club and then Slammers FC HB Køge of the Elite Clubs National League (ECNL).[5][6] She led MVLA to the under-13 national final in July 2023, where they finished runners-up to the Slammers.[7][8] She signed a name, image, and likeness contract with Nike in February 2024 at age 13, becoming the youngest athlete in any sport to sign with the company.[9]

Club career

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Whitham was announced as a non-roster invitee for Gotham FC in the 2024 preseason on February 13.[10] She had also trained with the Kansas City Current, the Washington Spirit and MLS Next's Los Angeles FC academy team; the previous month she signed with the semi-professional club Santa Clarita Blue Heat of United Women's Soccer (UWS).[1][11] She appeared in a preseason exhibition game in Colombia on February 28, 2024, and scored a last-minute winning goal against Deportivo Cali, becoming the youngest person to play or score for an NWSL team.[3][12] Gotham general manager Yael Averbuch West said Whitham "is clearly very ready, not just to handle this level, but to excel in our sessions".[1]

Gotham announced on July 26, 2024, that they had signed Whitham to an under-18 contract lasting from the start of 2025 to 2028 in addition to a short-term national team replacement contract during the ongoing Paris Olympics. She was signed one day before her 14th birthday, becoming the youngest player in NWSL history.[4] She debuted for the team two days later as an 80th-minute substitute for Katie Stengel in a Summer Cup group stage match against the Washington Spirit on July 28, logging 17 minutes.[13]

International career

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Whitham was called into camp with the United States national under-15 team at the end of 2023.[14] The next year, she helped the team win the 2024 CONCACAF Girls' U-15 Championship, scoring their second goal in a 3–0 win over Mexico in the final.[15]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Anzidei, Melanie (April 11, 2024). "Gotham FC's 13-year-old trainee Mak Whitham is scoring goals and readying to go pro". The Athletic. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  2. ^ Diamond, Drew (August 5, 2024). "How young is too young? The ethical dilemma of child athletes in pro sports". Her Football Hub. Retrieved September 20, 2024.
  3. ^ a b Ingemi, Marisa (March 11, 2024). "13 years old with a Nike deal and NWSL goal: S.F. teen's fast track to pro soccer". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on March 11, 2024.
  4. ^ a b Kassouf, Jeff (July 26, 2024). "Gotham signs Whitham, 13, youngest in NWSL". ESPN. Retrieved July 26, 2024.
  5. ^ "ECNL Girls Announces Conference Cup Rosters". Elite Clubs National League. July 20, 2023. Retrieved April 11, 2024 – via TopDrawerSoccer.
  6. ^ "USYNT ID Center – Girls 09 Norco". United States Soccer Federation. September 26, 2023. Retrieved April 11, 2024 – via TopDrawerSoccer.
  7. ^ "Game-by-Game Recaps from the 2023 ECNL Girls Finals". SoccerWire. July 20, 2023. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  8. ^ Olorunfemi, Victor (December 27, 2023). "23 Female Players That Dominated 2023". TopDrawerSoccer. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  9. ^ Gibson, Charlotte (February 16, 2024). "U.S. soccer phenom Whitham, 13, youngest to ink Nike NIL deal". ESPN. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  10. ^ "Gotham FC Adds Ten Players for Preseason Training". NJ/NY Gotham FC. February 13, 2024. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  11. ^ Baxter, Kevin (February 20, 2024). "Olivia Moultrie's fight for the right to play kicked off a U.S. soccer youth movement". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on March 7, 2024. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
    Santa Clarita Blue Heat [@scblueheatfc] (January 3, 2024). "Let me introduce ..." Retrieved April 11, 2024 – via Instagram.
  12. ^ Gibson, Charlotte (February 28, 2024). "Whitham, 13, scores preseason game winner for NJ/NY Gotham". ESPN. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  13. ^ Anzidei, Melanie (July 28, 2024). "McKenna Whitham, 14, becomes youngest to appear in top-level American soccer with NWSL debut". The Athletic. Retrieved July 31, 2024.
  14. ^ "U.S. Under-15 Women's Youth National Team Heads to Training Camp in Portland, Ore". United States Soccer Federation. October 6, 2023. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  15. ^ "U.S. U15 GNT Wins Concacaf Championship". TopDrawerSoccer. August 13, 2024. Retrieved November 5, 2024.
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