19-year-old Homegrown player named to 25-player roster for final training camp before Paris 2024 Summer Olympics
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – New England Revolution Homegrown forward/midfielder Esmir Bajraktarević has been named to the United States Men’s Olympic Team for its upcoming training camp in Kansas City, Kan. from June 3-11. After the Revolution take on Nashville SC this Saturday, June 1, Bajraktarević will join the U.S. Men’s Olympic Team for a friendly against Japan on June 11 at Children’s Mercy Park, the team’s last match before the final Olympic roster is selected. The match will be streamed, with platforms to be confirmed.
Now in his third season with New England’s first team, Bajraktarević has appeared in 11 of the team’s first 13 league matches, with a career-high seven starts, and one assist. His career totals now stand at 27 MLS appearances and 13 starts. In the 2024 Concacaf Champions Cup campaign, the product of the Revolution’s pro pathway made six appearances, recording one goal and a setting the club record for most assists in the continental tournament with a team-high four helpers.
Players born on or after Jan. 1, 2001 are U-23 age-eligible for the 2024 Olympics. Bajraktarević is one of two players selected by Head Coach Marko Mitrović born in 2005, making him also eligible for the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. At the senior level, the Wisconsin native has been capped once by the United States, impressing in his debut against Slovenia on Jan. 20, 2024, after participating in Gregg Berhalter’s January training camp. With the U.S. Olympic squad, Bajraktarević has made six appearances with one goal scored, coming in a 2-1 win against Mexico on Oct. 12, 2023. Most recently, he played twice in March 2024 matches against Guinea and France.
The Revolution will visit Nashville SC at GEODIS Park this Saturday, June 1 for an 8:30 p.m. ET kickoff, available to watch on MLS Season Pass on the Apple TV app. Listen on the radio at 98.5 The Sports Hub (WBZ-FM), with Portuguese commentary available on 1260 AM Nossa Radio.
U.S. MEN’S OLYMPIC SOCCER TEAM – JUNE TRAINING CAMP – KANSAS CITY
GOALKEEPERS (2): Patrick Schulte (Columbus Crew; St. Charles, Mo.), Gaga Slonina
(Chelsea/ENG; Addison, Ill.)
DEFENDERS (7): Nathan Harriel (Philadelphia Union; Oldsmar, Fla.), Jalen Neal (LA Galaxy; Lakewood, Calif.), Bryan Reynolds (KVC Westerlo/BEL; Fort Worth, Texas), John Tolkin (New York Red Bulls; Chatham, N.J.), Jonathan Tomkinson (Norwich City/ENG; Plano, Texas), Caleb Wiley (Atlanta United FC; Atlanta, Ga.), Walker Zimmerman (Nashville SC; Lawrenceville, Ga.)
MIDFIELDERS (7): Cole Bassett (Colorado Rapids; Littleton, Colo.), Gianluca Busio (Venezia/ITA; Greensboro, N.C.), Benjamin Cremaschi (Inter Miami CF; Key Biscayne, Fla.), Jack McGlynn (Philadelphia Union; Queens, N.Y.), Aidan Morris (Columbus Crew; Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.), Rokas Pukstas (Hajduk Split/CRO; Stillwater, Okla.), Tanner Tessmann (Venezia/ITA; Birmingham, Ala.)
FORWARDS (9): Paxten Aaronson (Eintracht Frankfurt/GER; Medford, N.J.), Esmir Bajraktarevic (New England Revolution; Appleton, Wisc.), Taylor Booth (Utrecht/NED; Eden, Utah), Cade Cowell (Guadalajara/MEX; Ceres, Calif.), Damion Downs (Köln/GER; Schwebenried, Germany), Johan Gomez (Eintracht Braunschweig/GER; Keller, Texas), Duncan McGuire (Orlando City SC; Omaha, Neb.), Kevin Paredes (Wolfsburg/GER; South Riding, Va.), Griffin Yow (KVC Westerlo/BEL; Clifton, Va.)