The future of the Seattle Sounders First Team is extremely bright.
It’s not exactly breaking news that Sounders Academy has improved vastly over the last few years, with increased funding and well-rounded player development infrastructure leading to a steady pipeline of exciting prospects.
That growth was recognized by the USL Championship this week, as Sounders Homegrown players Alfonso Ocampo-Chavez and Danny Leyva were named to the USL 20-Under-20 list. The annual award identifies the top talents in the USL under the age of 20.
Ocampo-Chavez, 17, was ranked No. 17 in the 2019 edition of 20-Under-20, a significant achievement considering he’s played just over 1,000 minutes for the Tacoma Defiance this season.