PORTLAND, Ore. – Major League Soccer today announced that Portland Timbers defender Marco Farfan has been named to the 20-man roster for the 2018 MLS Homegrown Game presented by Energizer®, as part of a week of festivities surrounding the MLS All-Star Game presented by Target. The announcement marks the second consecutive year that Farfan has been named to the MLS Homegrown roster.
Featuring 20 of the league’s most accomplished young players, the MLS Homegrown Team will face the Tigres UANL Under-20 team, the defending Liga MX U-20 champions, in the fifth-annual MLS Homegrown Game presented by Energizer® on Tuesday, July 31, at 5 p.m. (Pacific) at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta Training Ground in Marietta, Ga. In addition to a live national broadcast on Univision Deportes Network (UDN), the 2018 MLS Homegrown Game will also be streamed live on Twitter for the first time since the event’s inception.
The first Timbers Academy player to sign as a Homegrown Player with the club and the youngest MLS player signing for the Timbers, Farfan, 19, has made 14 appearances (9 starts) with the Timbers since signing a first-team contract prior to the start of the 2017 campaign, including eight appearances (4 starts) in Portland’s first 16 games to start the 2018 season. At the international level, Farfan has earned two caps (2 starts) for the U-19 U.S. Men’s National Team, playing 90 minutes in both of those contests.
One of the many highly anticipated events during the week of activities surrounding 2018 MLS All-Star in Atlanta, the MLS Homegrown Game provides an annual platform to showcase MLS’ burgeoning young talent and demonstrate the growth of the league’s youth development system. MLS academies continue to attract and cultivate top-flight prospects and have now produced over 170 Homegrown Players who have signed professional contracts with MLS clubs.
2018 MLS Homegrown Team Roster
Goalkeepers: JT Marcinkowski (San Jose Earthquakes), Sean Melvin (Vancouver Whitecaps FC)
Defenders: Reggie Cannon (FC Dallas), Marco Farfan (Portland Timbers), Jaylin Lindsey (Sporting Kansas City), Mark McKenzie (Philadelphia Union), Matthew Real (Philadelphia Union), James Sands (New York City FC), Auston Trusty (Philadelphia Union)
Midfielders: Efrain Alvarez (LA Galaxy), Chris Durkin (D.C. United), Anthony Fontana (Philadelphia Union), Liam Fraser (Toronto FC), Lagos Kunga (Atlanta United FC), Wan Kuzain (Sporting Kansas City), Cameron Lindley (Orlando City SC), Paxton Pomykal (FC Dallas), Sebastian Saucedo (Real Salt Lake)
Forwards: Andrew Carleton (Atlanta United FC), Ben Mines (New York Red Bulls)
