Philadelphia Union midfielder Cavan Sullivan has become a regular for the United States national team, and at 16 years old, he is drawing comparisons to some of the game’s biggest names. The 24-year-old is now being discussed alongside Lionel Messi, Antoine Griezmann and Luis Suarez, three players who have dominated European football for years.
At 16 years and 363 days, Sullivan became the fourth youngest player to represent the USA, starting Saturday’s 4-1 friendly win over Peru. His first international call-up came just weeks after Manchester City secured his signature as a 14-year-old back in 2024.
From Union to the National Team
The road to the senior team started with Sullivan earning a run of regular starts for the Philadelphia Union. The sequence began when the 2026 MLS season came back after the World Cup, and his first call-up to the national side arrived not long after.
The moment came at an unfortunate time. His appearance arrived on the very next day after City were discovered guilty of violating most of the 115 financial rules they had been charged with breaking. The club intend to challenge the verdict.
Numbers That Speak For Themselves
Since the World Cup, Sullivan’s goal contributions put him up there with the MLS’s top individual stars. Few players beyond Messi, Griezmann and Suarez can match his goal contribution rate in MLS.
The numbers are simple:
- Seven goals and five assists in MLS this season
- Six of those goals and four of those assists came in August and September
- Six goals in his last six games
- Named in the league’s Team of the Matchday seven times, including the past three consecutive matchdays
The climb up the league table has featured Sullivan as a central figure, and the goals he has scored reflect the amount of time he has spent on the pitch.
What The Experts Are Saying
The Philadelphia Inquirer’s chief soccer correspondent, Jonathan Tannenwald, spoke with the BBC about how the nation has long wanted a male star to rival the women’s game.
“It’s well known that Americans are drawn to stars in sports, and as the World Cup showed, that applies to soccer too,” Tannenwald said. “So it’s no surprise that the country hopes for a star in men’s soccer to match the many it has had in women’s soccer.”
He urged restraint before drawing any conclusions. “I’m not going to say today that Cavan Sullivan is going to be that player. It’s too early to know for certain, and I’ve seen plenty of names not make the grade.”
Tannenwald pointed to the failures of the past as context. “Freddy Adu is among the infamous, but there are others, such as Gedion Zelalem at Arsenal. Christian Pulisic has come closest, but isn’t really there and had a worse World Cup than hoped for. Gio Reyna has never measured up to his talent.”
He was bullish on Sullivan’s work ethic. “What I will say about Sullivan is he has the work ethic to go with the talent. As his current manager at the Philadelphia Union, Ryan Richter, said recently, external: ‘, citing his outstanding quality as the mentality he brings to every game and every day, and that’s what pushes him to get better and better.’.
The Turnaround Under Richter
Ryan Richter became interim coach ahead of the post-World Cup run-in, and since then Sullivan’s full-time arrival at the club has matched a turnaround in the team’s season.
The team have gone unbeaten across 11 matches, with nine wins to their name. This stands in sharp contrast to how the season began, when they managed just one win in 15.
This progress has come thanks largely to Sullivan’s contribution. A right-sided attacking midfielder by position, he enjoys the latitude to move into the centre like a number 10 would and take up positions where he can drive forward from his stronger left side.
His game is solid across the board, and his strength stands up well against players his age. He does not reach the heights an emerging Wayne Rooney did as a teenager at Everton, but his physical presence allows him to compete effectively in a rough league like MLS.
Handling The Pressure
As the pressure mounted around him, Sullivan’s performances have actually gotten better rather than suffering under it.
“I find him to be handling the pressure of everything pretty well,” Tannenwald said. “Talk with him for long enough, and you’ll know he’s still a teenager, still finding his way with some things as any teen would.”
“He can come across as cocky, but he’s well grounded, not just by Richter, but by having his oldest brother there in the locker room with him.”
Sullivan’s family keeps him grounded away from the stadium. His father Brendan and mother Heike both played soccer, and his grandfather Larry moved up from being a player in the 1960s into one of the most famous coaches in the Philadelphia region.
“They all keep Cavan grounded too, even as they know he is the best of all of them,” Tannenwald said.
The Road To Manchester
Manchester City’s wait for Sullivan to become available is just over a year long. His eventual move will depend on which team he ends up with first, and the situation surrounding his next club keeps changing.
Sullivan’s recent run of form makes a compelling case for him being the standout player in the league right now. He has put up seven goals and five assists in MLS this season, with six of those goals and four of those assists arriving in August and September.
Across his last six fixtures, he has found the net six times, and has also earned selection into the league’s Team of the Matchday on seven occasions, with the most recent run spanning the past three consecutive matchdays.
The United States has long been desperate for a breakout soccer star, and he is about to become a big part of that conversation.
Source material: “USA's new breakout star? Sullivan living up to Premier League promise,” the BBC.
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