TRANSFER TRACKER STATUS: Signing
Sporting Kansas City announced on Wednesday that University of North Carolina forward Zach Wright has signed a Homegrown Player deal with the club, a one-year contract with options for 2019, 2020 and 2021.
Wright, 22, was the leading scorer for the Sporting KC U-18 academy team during the 2013-14 U.S. Soccer Development Academy campaign before excelling at the collegiate level, scoring 15 goals and 28 assists over four seasons at UNC.
“Zach showed a lot of improvement at North Carolina after playing for the academy,” said KC’s director of player personnel Brian Bliss in a club release. “We are excited for him to start competing with the team during the preseason.”
A native of Smithville, Texas, near Austin, Wright attended Blue Valley Northwest High School as a senior after moving to Kansas City following his junior year. In college, he helped North Carolina to a 51-14-10 record from 2014-2017, highlighted by back-to-back trips to the NCAA College Cup in 2016 and 2017. In each of his final two seasons as a Tar Heel, Wright was a Second Team All-ACC selection and ranked third on the ACC assist charts.
Wright is the seventh Homegrown signing in Sporting KC history. Sporting travel to Scottsdale, Arizona, on Monday for the first phase of the club’s 2018 preseason.
