Angel City FC signed forward Casey Phair on Thursday, the 16-year-old forward who made World Cup history during the 2023 FIFA Women's tournament.
Welcome to Los Angeles, @caseyphair_!
— Angel City FC (@weareangelcity) January 18, 2024
#AngelCityFC announced that U-18 forward and South Korea Women’s National Team player Casey Phair has signed with the club through 2026 via the NWSL’s U-18 Entry mechanism.
Phair made history last July when she took the pitch for South Korea during its 2-0 loss to Colombia. Phair became the youngest player to ever debut in a World Cup at 16 years and 26 days, breaking the previous mark of 16 years and 34 days old, set by Nigeria's Ifeanyi Chiejine in 1999.
The teenager also made history in the match by becoming the first mixed-race player of any gender to play for the East Asian country. Phair was born in the U.S. to an American father and a South Korean mother.
According to a report by Luke Bosher of The Athletic, the forward played for South Korea at the youth level and for the Players Development Academy in the United States, prior to the World Cup.
ESPN's Jeff Kassouf detailed some of Phair's accomplishments in her young life on social media Thursday, shortly after the signing was announced.
Casey Phair:
— Jeff Kassouf (@JeffKassouf) January 18, 2024
⚽️Trained w/ boys at PDA
Trialed w/Gotham, KC, Angel City post-World Cup
Looks up to Mal Swanson + watches clips of Haaland/Ibra to model her game
Cites other teens in #NWSL/LA as added comfort
Is a 9 but could be tried elsewhere
Mature + coachable https://t.co/l8spYiI3jj pic.twitter.com/7MIgjUSN92
"I played in the World Cup with and against the best players," Phair told Kassouf. "Coming back from that, I don't really see how I could play U-17 and then go to college. I wanted to keep getting better and not just peak at the World Cup, then go down and go to college and then have to get back up to a professional level."
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