I probably care more about 13-year-old boys club soccer than most folks. That’s because I have a 13-year-old boy who plays club soccer, and I watch a lot of games. So I can tell you way too much about which clubs in New Jersey have a strong center fullback or striker or who likes to advance the ball from the back and which teams have a Dunkin Donuts near their home pitch. But even those outside of this particular parent trap will take note of one 13-year-old soccer player, and it’s not my son Elliot. The player I’m speaking of is named Da'vian Kimbrough, and he’s not like the kids you watch on Saturday mornings. He’s 5’11”, and lives in Sacramento and recently helped the Red Bulls U13 squad win an international tournament against top European squads. And, as of Tuesday, he’s the youngest person to become a professional soccer player in the US. That’s because the Sacramento Republic of the USL – our second-tier soccer league behind the MLS – just signed him to a contract, lowering the previous record when a 14-year-old signed on his birthday. According to the Republic, Da’vian will play something of a modified training schedule, which will include time for his education. And it’s possible he’ll get his pro debut this Saturday against Birmingham, a game that until yesterday hardly anyone in the world cared about.
There’s nothing entirely new about adolescents competing as adults. It’s happened far more in individual sports, and specifically women’s individual sports – or at least it used to. That included Jennifer Capriati, the Williams sisters, and a bunch of other tennis players who navigated early adulthood and athletics with varying success. There’s been a bunch of male soccer players in the US, notably starting with Freddie Adu in 1989 who signed an MLS contract at 14 and was named the future of American soccer, a title that felt like an albatross throughout serviceable but never outstanding professional career. And of course, there is a long and at times troubling history of young female gymnasts competing at the highest level, a condition that has helped enable far too many abuses and led to age restrictions in senior international competition.
In some sports – say, football – it’s physically impossible for someone that young to play professionally without getting seriously hurt. And there’s a strong economic guardrail that keeps young athletes in a system that inevitably feeds into and benefits the professional leagues – namely college football, and to a slightly lesser extent, college basketball. That funnel doesn’t exist the same way in American soccer, and it’s less likely 5’11” Da’vian is going to get seriously hurt Saturday night – although he may have his ego bruised. So from that perspective, there’s not the same risk of him signing nor reward for staying away.
But really, that’s the question here. It’s not whether Da’vian can get a contract and even get some shots on the older folks – and mind you, USL teams are pretty young. It’s whether signing a pro contract and giving up the trajectory of an adolescent life might come at a far greater cost than the contract is worth. And whether it helps his soccer career anyway. There is no question that Da’vian is exceptional, certainly compared to other 13-year-olds. But it doesn’t inherently mean that he’ll automatically be better at 17 or 18 or 25. Which means that this head start could be for naught once everyone goes through puberty, much less high school. And what is he giving up for the opportunity? There is something to allowing a 13-year-old to experience life as a 13-year-old, not an 18-year-old. There’s plenty of examples of how child stardom can backfire, especially when pro soccer will still be there at the old age of 16. And of course, there’s the money. Why not get paid when you’re playing soccer anyway? Which makes sense when we’re talking about significant money that you can never earn back – say, an 18-year-old wanting to go to the NBA instead of UCLA. But no one gets rich in second tier American soccer. So if you’re signing for the money, it’s probably not the best investment strategy.
Of course, we won’t know if it was a good idea or not for some time – both personally and professionally. And even that assessment will be speculative at best. For now, Da'vian Kimbrough will simply be another 13-year-old soccer player I’ll keep my eye on.
Keith Strudler is the director of the School of Communication and Media at Montclair State University. You can follow him on twitter at @KeithStrudler
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