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| Gisele Thompson, right, joins her sister Alyssa, left, on the Angel City FC team. |
A Filipino American high schooler is the youngest player signed by a professional soccer team.
Eighteen-year old Gisele Thompson is just a few months younger when her sister, Alyssa, signed with the Angel City Football Club last year. When Giselle signed with the Angel City FC Nov. 28, she was still 17, four days shy of her birthday.
It was almost a foregone conclusion that Gisele sign with the same team that signed her sister last year. The sisters, who also shared a bedroom growing up in Southern California, have practiced with each other since they were young girls, practicing with boys' teams in the L.A. area.
“I’ve trained with (Angel City) since Alyssa signed, and it’s just been a wonderful experience because everyone’s so welcoming," said Gisele, who takes part in Angel City's practices. "As time passed, they treated me like family, so I already felt like a part of their team. It was just such an amazing experience,” Gisele told FIERCE.
“I’ve trained with (Angel City) since Alyssa signed, and it’s just been a wonderful experience because everyone’s so welcoming," said Gisele, who takes part in Angel City's practices. "As time passed, they treated me like family, so I already felt like a part of their team. It was just such an amazing experience,” Gisele told FIERCE.
Angel City knew Gisele' was going go high in the draft so her early signing secured was part of strategy to prevent the possibility of her going to a rival team.
“I would not want her anywhere else,” Alyssa Thompson said. “I definitely wouldn't want to play against her. She's going to bring a level of tenacity on the field. We both trust each other in our respective positions and know that we have each other's backs.
“Alyssa and I would always talk about it in our room like, ‘This is so crazy. How is this our life right now?’ It feels so unreal.” Gisele said. “So getting that opportunity, especially together, felt so surreal at the moment. We were just so happy and so blessed to have that opportunity.”
Gisele, like her sister Alyssa, has been one of the US's most well-known youth soccer prospects. Before either of them turned pro, the sisters in 2022 became the first high school athletes to sign endorsement deals with Nike.
Head Coach Becki Tweed says that although Thompson is still a young player with huge upside, “[she has] I think everything that the modern day player has. She's well rounded. She understands the game very well. She is crazily still 18 and has international experience.”
“I would not want her anywhere else,” Alyssa Thompson said. “I definitely wouldn't want to play against her. She's going to bring a level of tenacity on the field. We both trust each other in our respective positions and know that we have each other's backs.
“Alyssa and I would always talk about it in our room like, ‘This is so crazy. How is this our life right now?’ It feels so unreal.” Gisele said. “So getting that opportunity, especially together, felt so surreal at the moment. We were just so happy and so blessed to have that opportunity.”
Gisele, like her sister Alyssa, has been one of the US's most well-known youth soccer prospects. Before either of them turned pro, the sisters in 2022 became the first high school athletes to sign endorsement deals with Nike.
Head Coach Becki Tweed says that although Thompson is still a young player with huge upside, “[she has] I think everything that the modern day player has. She's well rounded. She understands the game very well. She is crazily still 18 and has international experience.”
Having already trained with Angel City for almost a year, a contract between Gisele and Angel City feels like a natural step. “We're really excited to finally make it official,” says Tweed. “It's been a long time coming.”
EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me at Threads.net/eduardodiok, @DioknoEd on Twitter or at the blog Views From the Edge.
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