CHESTER, Pa. — At 14 years old, Philadelphia Union midfielder Cavan Sullivan became the youngest player in Major League Soccer history on Wednesday night, and perhaps the youngest player to ever play in the world’s largest professional sports league.
Sullivan was 14 years and 293 days old when he came on as an 85th minute substitute in Philadelphia’s home game against the New England Revolution — roughly two weeks younger than Freddy Adu was when he made his MLS debut for D.C. United in 2004.
Sullivan made his debut shortly after his 20-year-old brother, Quinn, scored a goal to put Philadelphia up 5-1.
Cavan Sullivan, who replaced forward Ty Balibo, had a few touches on the ball in the final minutes of Union’s dominant win. He recorded the first shot on goal, firing a powerful shot at New England’s goal from outside the penalty area in the final minute of added time that was easily saved by Aljaz Ivacic.
“Huge congratulations to Cavan Sullivan on his record-breaking debut today.” Adu wrote on social media.“That’s a tough record to beat, but he’s done it. Well done, and good luck to him.”
According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Sullivan is the youngest player to play in the NBA, NHL, NFL, NWSL, WNBA or Major League Baseball since at least 1970. The record is held by Andrew Bynum, who made his debut for the Los Angeles Lakers in 2005 at the age of 18 years and 6 days.
According to FBRef.com, the youngest player to make a debut in one of the world’s top five soccer leagues since at least 1988 was Ethan Nwaneli, who joined Arsenal in 2022 at the age of 15 years and 181 days.
Sullivan’s younger brother was born in Philadelphia to soccer-playing parents and joined the Union’s youth academy four years ago. He made his professional debut in March with Philadelphia Union II, MLS’ development league.
