All it took was one busy offseason for Sporting Kansas City to become one of the youngest teams in Major League Soccer.
With an average age of 25.74, Sporting KC is currently the league’s fifth-youngest club. Manager Peter Vermes has the second youngest roster in the Western Conference behind only FC Dallas, which tops the chart below at 24.31 years.
Less than a year ago, Sporting Kansas City’s average age was 27.20, making it the league’s ninth-oldest team.
It’s easy to see how Sporting KC has become more youthful over the last several months. Consider the following two facts:
- Nine of the team’s 10 newcomers this year are 26 or younger
- Since the end of the 2016 season, the club has parted ways with six players who were in their 30s
Vermes will hope his youth movement pays dividends in the coming weeks and months as Sporting Kansas City competes for a seventh straight berth in the MLS Cup Playoffs. The club kicks off the 2017 campaign Saturday at D.C. United, with kickoff set for 6 p.m. CT on FOX Sports Kansas City, FOX Sports Midwest and Sports Radio 810 WHB.
Average age per MLS team
<strong>CLUB</strong> |
<strong>AVG. AGE</strong> |
FC Dallas |
24.31 |
Columbus Crew SC |
25.16 |
Atlanta United FC |
25.17 |
New York Red Bulls |
25.48 |
<strong>Sporting Kansas City</strong> |
<strong>25.74</strong> |
New York City FC |
25.77 |
Vancouver Whitecaps FC |
25.82 |
Orlando City SC |
25.93 |
Chicago Fire |
26.16 |
Portland Timbers |
26.22 |
LA Galaxy |
26.63 |
Seattle Sounders FC |
26.64 |
D.C. United |
26.64 |
Toronto FC |
26.64 |
Philadelphia Union |
26.70 |
San Jose Earthquakes |
26.71 |
Colorado Rapids |
26.91 |
Real Salt Lake |
27.01 |
Montreal Impact |
27.06 |
New England Revolution |
27.07 |
Minnesota United FC |
27.66 |
Houston Dynamo |
27.84 |
