The LA Galaxy made history Monday by making 15-year old goalkeeper Eric Lopez the youngest player ever to sign a contract with a USL-PRO team.
Lopez - who has featured at every level of the LA Galaxy Academy and has trained at times with the first team - will join the Galaxy's USL PRO side LA Galaxy II as the second academy player on the Los Dos roster. Midfielder Jaime Villarreal, 19, signed with the club in July.
Lopez hails from the Los Angeles suburb of Westminster and has previously been named to various U.S. Soccer Academy rosters, most recently earning his first call-up to a U-17 US national team camp in January
“Eric is a young goalkeeper with a lot of potential to grow into a top player,” LA Galaxy II head coach Curt Onalfo said in a statement. “We look forward to developing him as both a player and a person.”
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Los Dos reached the USL-PRO semifinals earlier this year, where they lost to eventual league champions Sacramento Republic FC. Lopez is the third goalkeeper on their current roster.
“Eric is another example of the fully-realized player developmental system that the Galaxy have implemented,” LA Galaxy Technical Director Jovan Kirovski said in a statement. “We are excited to complete this deal and keep talented prospects like Eric within the Galaxy organization as their careers progress.”
