Cavan Sullivan made his United States debut on Saturday at the age of 16 years and 363 days, becoming the fourth youngest player ever to represent the USA. The Philadelphia Union midfielder started in a 4-1 friendly victory over Peru.
The appearance was the latest step in a career that has carried unusual expectation for a young American player. Manchester City moved to secure the future signing of Sullivan back in 2024, when he was just 14, and he is now a little over a year away from being able to join the club officially. That City were willing to wait for that potential to be realised at senior level has fuelled much of the intrigue around him.
His MLS club have been patient too, introducing him to senior football gradually. Sullivan’s first run of regular starts for the Union came as the 2026 MLS season resumed after the World Cup, and his first international call-up followed soon after.
There is one complication surrounding his international debut. It came the day after Manchester City were found guilty of breaking the majority of the 115 financial rules they were accused of breaching. The club are expected to appeal.
On the pitch, Sullivan’s output since the World Cup has placed him alongside the league’s leading individual performers, including Lionel Messi, Antoine Griezmann and Luis Suarez. He has seven goals and five assists in MLS this season, with six of those goals and four of those assists arriving during August and September. He has scored six goals in his past six games, and has been named in the league’s Team of the Matchday on seven occasions, including for the past three consecutive matchdays.
Those numbers reflect a player who has taken on a key role in his team’s climb up the league table and who combines meaningful minutes with a genuine threat in front of goal.
As the expectation grows, though, caution is warranted for a player who only turns 17 this month. Jonathan Tannenwald, chief soccer correspondent for the Philadelphia Inquirer, told the BBC that Americans are drawn to stars in sports and that the country hopes for a men’s soccer star to match the many it has had in women’s soccer. He was careful not to declare Sullivan that player. “It’s too early to know for certain, and I’ve seen plenty of names not make the grade,” Tannenwald said, citing Freddy Adu, Gedion Zelalem at Arsenal and Gio Reyna as examples, and noting that Christian Pulisic has come closest but is not quite there and had a worse World Cup than hoped for. What Tannenwald would say is that Sullivan “has the work ethic to go with the talent”. His current manager at the Union, Ryan Richter, has said his outstanding quality is his mentality and the way he approaches every game and every day.
Sullivan’s full-time introduction to the Philadelphia Union side has coincided with a turnaround in their season under interim coach Richter, who took over before this post-World Cup run-in. The Union are unbeaten in 11 games, winning nine of them – a stark contrast to the start of the campaign, when they won only one of 15. Sullivan has played a key part in that improvement.
During this run he has been operating in a right-sided attacking midfield role, with the freedom to drift inside as a central number 10 would and to cut in on his stronger left foot. He offers a good all-round game and good strength relative to his age. He is not quite at the level an emerging Wayne Rooney reached as a teenager at Everton, but his physicality means he can more than hold his own in a robust league such as MLS.
Rather than struggle under the weight of expectation, his performances have improved as the spotlight on him has brightened. It appears he is already outgrowing the North American league, although it may be wise to let him continue at this level, in his hometown and with his family around him, for a little while longer – regardless of the other options open to him before his City move. His brother Quinn, 22, also plays for the Union.
Tannenwald added that he finds Sullivan is handling the pressure of everything pretty well, and that after talking with him long enough it is clear he is still a teenager finding his way with some things as any teen would. He can come across as cocky, Tannenwald said, but he is well grounded – not only by Richter, but by having his oldest brother in the locker room with him. Away from the stadium, Sullivan has a strong family at home: both of his parents, Brendan and Heike, played soccer, and his grandfather Larry went from being a player in the 1960s to one of the most famous coaches in the Philadelphia region. They all help keep Cavan grounded, even as they know he is the best of all of them.