FC Dallas loan defender Justin Che to Bayern Munich through June 2021

TRANSFER TRACKER STATUS:Loan

FC Dallas have loaned homegrown defender Justin Che to reigning Bundesliga and UEFA Champions League winners Bayern Munich until June 2021, the clubs announced Friday. He had been training with Bayern as part of the clubs’ Elite Player Development partnership. 

The 17-year-old awaits his MLS debut after signing a first-team contract in October 2020. He had one assist in 16 matches for North Texas SC in 2020, earning a spot on the USL League One All-League First Team after impressing with FCD’s reserve side. A center back who can also play out wide, Che has been called up to various US youth national camps.

Che is the second FC Dallas academy product to join Bayern Munich since the partnership was formed three years ago, joining US men’s national team defender Chris Richards. Richards, who’s now on loan at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim, has logged eight appearances for Bayern Munich across all competitions.

“With Chris Richards, we have had excellent experiences with talent from our partner club," FC Bayern academy director Jochen Sauer said in a club release. "Justin is a young central defender with a lot of potential, as he recently showed in training. We are initially planning to have him in our U19 squad, but Justin will also have the opportunity to prove himself in training with the amateurs. We are very excited to see how Justin will develop over the next few months."

Che’s move continues a busy half-year for FC Dallas defenders heading overseas, starting with right back Reggie Cannon’s transfer to Portuguese club Boavista in September 2020. As Europe's winter transfer window closed, right back Bryan Reynolds then secured a big-money move to storied Serie A side AS Roma.

This is the second FC Dallas loan of the offseason after midfielder Brandon Servania joined Austrian side SKN St. Polten earlier this week.