Maximo Carrizo made history when he joined New York City FC on his 14th birthday to become the youngest-ever player to sign a Major League Soccer (MLS) professional contract. Now the skilful midfielder is looking to make his mark in international football as the captain of a USA team confident of going on a deep run at the FIFA U-17 World Cup Qatar 2025™.
Gonzalo Segares’ players will face Burkina Faso, Tajikistan and Czechia in the group stage of the expanded 48-team U-17 World Cup, which takes place from 3 to 27 November in Qatar. The Americans punched their ticket to the global showpiece with a dominant performance in Concacaf qualifying, which included a record 22-0 victory over the US Virgin Islands.
Having reached the Round of 16 at Indonesia 2023, USA’s best finish came in New Zealand 1999 when a team that included future USA stalwarts DaMarcus Beasley and Landon Donovan finished fourth.
One of the key players to the Stars and Stripes’ success over the past year has been Carrizo, who bagged four goals in the trouncing of the US Virgin Islands plus a crucial strike in the 2-0 victory over Cuba which sealed USA’s progress to the U-17 World Cup.
Born to Argentinian parents, he briefly played for the Argentina U-15s before switching allegiances to the United States. Argentina’s loss is the USA’s gain.
Carrizo spoke to FIFA about his Argentinian heritage, making MLS history and the prospect of leading the USA U-17s on the global stage.
Maximo Carrizo: I think it will open many doors and I’ll be able to test myself against top-level competition and really show the world what I can do.
I think in the past, the US hasn’t really been taken seriously by the rest of the world. I think this year, I truly believe that our group can put in a good showing and obviously our goal is to compete and win the whole thing.
They are there for a reason and we have to treat every game like a final and hopefully get all three points in every game and qualify for the next round.
It is something I’ve always wanted, I think I am a leader on and off the field. To be able to represent my country and lead the boys is a huge honour for me and my family.
The more teams the better, the more competition so I’m not against it!
Both my parents are born and raised in Argentina. Pretty much all my family is from Argentina. Going through the younger ages — U-15, U-16 — exploring both sides and seeing where I felt more comfortable. Those Argentina camps and experiences were very valuable and opened my eyes to South American football. But in the end, I felt more comfortable and more at-home with the US and that’s why I chose them.
It was honestly surreal. I knew I always wanted to be a professional. To be able to have completed that goal at such a young age was a pretty crazy feeling for me and my family. I was pretty emotional.
Being here since I was 10 years old, they have nurtured me as a player and as a person, and given me the opportunities to flourish as a player. They have also pushed me when I’ve needed to be pushed so I couldn’t have asked more from them.
