Cavan Sullivan hit the headlines last week when Premier League giants Manchester City reportedly agreed a multi-million dollar transfer for the 14-year-old.
Sullivan has been hailed as the best player in the world at his age and has reportedly signed the most lucrative MLS Homegrown Player contract in history. It’s not everyday that a player who has just made his MLS Next Pro debut signs a contract with arguably the best team in the world, Man City, before he even has his driver’s license.
Who exactly is Cavan Sullivan, who will join Man City at the age of 18?
According to a report by The athleteMan City reportedly agreed to a transfer fee of just over $2 million for Sullivan, which is a huge sum even by their standards for a player who has yet to make his first-team debut in MLS.
The deal for Sullivan could increase to up to $5 million if certain bonuses and add-ons are met, and Sullivan is scheduled to remain in Philadelphia through Sept. 28, 2027, his 18th birthday.
Sullivan came through the Philadelphia Union academy and recently made his debut for the Eastern Conference club’s second team, Philadelphia Union II, in the MLS Next Pro. Sullivan came on as a substitute in his first professional appearance on March 24 against New England Revolution II and scored an assist on the game-winning goal.
Sullivan plays primarily as an attacking midfielder and has received much praise for his ball skills and ability to create chances out of nowhere. Whenever Sullivan steps on the field, he is often the best player and draws the attention of scouts.
“We’re from the Philadelphia area so of course people are going to make comparisons to Pulisic and I put my hand up and said when I was here in the youth academy people were talking about Christian and I just said, ‘I Do not know.’ “We’ll see, he’s obviously incredibly talented and 12 years old, but there’s still a long way to go,” Philadelphia first-team head coach Jim Curtin said With hoes last year.
“I think Cavan, even more than Chrisitian, has stood out and turned even more heads. That’s perhaps the best compliment I can give to a young child who still has a lot of years ahead of him. But it’s not just me saying that. “It’s about not just in the country but around the world, so he has the potential to do great things.”
For those who may not know, NYCFC is under the ownership umbrella of City Football Group – the company that owns Man City.
In other leagues, players are not allowed to play against their parent club. But as you may have learned, MLS isn’t really like any other league in the world. We won’t know if Sullivan will be able to play against NYCFC until the deal is officially announced.
There’s no clear answer as to when Sullivan might make his first-team debut, but given he’s already broken through with Union II in the MLS Next Pro, don’t be surprised if he finds himself making appearances in the MLS Next Pro in a few years MLS receives.
With him set to fly across the pond to Man City in September 2028, he wants to gain as much first-team experience as possible before attempting to impress Pep Guardiola or whoever is in charge at the Etihad Stadium by then. The report from The athlete also explained that Man City had hoped to send Sullivan to Lommel SK in Belgium after he turned 16, but talks between the reigning Premier League champions and Philadelphia changed course so that the youngster would remain in the US.