NINE MASL PLAYERS CALLED UP TO U.S. FUTSAL NATIONAL TEAM

by U.S. Soccer Federation

CHICAGO (Feb. 1, 2024) – U.S. Men’s Futsal National Team head coach Hewerton Moreira has

called up 16 players for an international training camp to be held Feb. 5-15 in Buenos Aires,

Argentina. As part of U.S. Soccer’s continued effort to develop winning teams, the Futsal MNT will

face club teams Racing Club, San Lorenzo and Ferro in the team’s last gathering before Moreira

names the final roster for April’s 2024 Concacaf Futsal Championship, where the USA will attempt to

qualify for its second-straight FIFA Futsal World Cup.

"I am extremely excited to take our players to Argentina for another important training camp,” said

U.S. Men’s Futsal National Team head coach Hewerton Moreira. “This talented group is working

tirelessly to achieve our goal of returning to the FIFA Futsal World Cup, and these three matches will

be great tests for the team as we continue our preparation for Concacaf qualifying in April.”

Since becoming head coach last September, Moreira has focused on building a core group of players

that could gel quickly leading into April’s Concacaf Futsal Championship. The February roster

demonstrates that continuity, as 14 of the 16 players return from last month’s camp in Rome, Ga, with

2021 World Cup veteran Zach Reget, as well as William Eskay earning recalls after not taking part in

January.

Reget is joined on the roster by fellow 2021 World Cup veteran and fixo Luciano Gonzalez, who was

voted 2023 U.S. Soccer Futsal Player of the Year, as well as goalkeepers Diego Moretti and Robert

Damron, alas David Ortíz and Alencar Ventura-Junior and pivo Raphael Araujo.


DETAILED ROSTER BY POSITION (Hometown):

Key: Fixo = Defender; Ala = Winger / Midfielder; Pivo = Target / Forward

GOALKEEPERS (2): Robert Damron*^ (Northville, Mich.; 4/0), Diego Moretti*^ (Ancona, Italy; 18/0)

FIXOS (3): Manuel Andrade^ (Boston, Mass.; 5/1), Luciano Gonzalez*^ (Mendoza, Argentina; 16/7),

Marcio Leite (Milwaukee, Wis.; 0/0),

ALAS (7): Nilton Andrade (Boston, Mass.; 0/0), Diego Burato^ (Dallas, Texas; 4/2), William Eskay (St.

Louis, Mo.; 4/2)^, Nicolas Lopez (Miami, Fla.; 0/0), Sebastian Mendez^ (Dallas, Texas; 6/0), David

Ortíz*^ (McKinney, Texas; 9/2), Alencar Ventura-Junior*^ (Tewksbury, Mass.; 15/1)

PIVOS (4): Raphael Araujo*^ (Bound Brook, N.J.; 17/4), Luiz Morales^ (Mesquite, Texas; 4/5), Zach

Reget*^ (Kenosha, Wis.: 15/8), Franck Tayou^ (Las Vegas, Nev.; 5/1)

*Part of 2021 FIFA Futsal World Cup roster;

^Part of 2022 UMAG Nations Cup roster


ARGENTINA SCHEDULE

February’s camp will see the U.S. Futsal MNT play friendly matches against some of Argentina’s top

futsal clubs to allow the team competitive preparation for the Concacaf Futsal Championship. The trio

of matches kicks off against Racing Club on Feb. 10, followed by a clash with Ferro on Feb. 12 and

concludes against San Lorenzo on Feb. 14.


CONCACAF QUALIFYING LOOMS

This month’s camp will see the Futsal MNT ramp up preparation for April’s Concacaf Futsal

Championship in Nicaragua, where it will aim to book its ticket to the 2024 FIFA Futsal World Cup.

Last month, the USA was drawn into Group C, where it will face Trinidad and Tobago (April 13),

Dominican Republic (April 14) and Guatemala (April 15). The top two teams in each group, along with

the two best third-place sides, will advance to the tournament’s knockout round. From there, the four

quarterfinal winners will qualify for the 2024 FIFA Futsal World Cup to be held Sept. 14-Oct. 6 in

Uzbekistan.


ROSTER NOTES:

• Fourteen of the 16 players return from January’s Futsal MNT training camp in Rome, Ga.

• The two new players this month are 2021 World Cup veteran Zach Reget and Will Eskay, who

was part of the 2022 Umag Nations Cup roster and was last called up for the February 2023

training camp.

• Luciano Gonzalez was voted 2023 U.S. Soccer Futsal Player of the Year, finishing ahead of

finalists Diego Moretti and Zach Reget.

• Seven players were part of the U.S. squad at the 2021 FIFA Futsal World Cup in Lithuania:

Raphael Araujo, Robert Damron, Luciano Gonzalez, Diego Moretti, David Ortíz, Zach Reget

and Alencar Ventura-Junior.

• Ten players helped the USA claim the 2022 Umag Nations Cup title in Croatia: Manuel

Andrade, Raphael Araujo, Diego Burato, Robert Damron, William Eskay, Luciano Gonzalez,

Sebastian Mendez, Luiz Morales, Diego Moretti, David Ortíz, Zach Reget, Franck Tayou and

Alencar Ventura-Junior.

• Nine players come from clubs in the Major Arena Soccer League: Sebastian Mendez, Luiz

Morales and David Ortíz (Texas Outlaws); Nilton de Andrade and Franck Tayou (Utica City

FC); Raphael Araujo and William Eskay (St. Louis Ambush); Marcio Leite (Milwaukee Wave);

Zach Reget (Kansas City Comets).

• With 24 goals through 13 matches this season, Luiz Morales leads the MASL in scoring. Zach

Reget (21 goals / 13 GP) sits second, followed by Sebastian Mendez (16 goals / 13 GP) who is

tied for fourth and Nilton de Andrade (13 goals / 13 GP) who sits sixth.

• Fixo Marcio Leite (14 assists / 9 GP) is second in assists across the MASL, while Franck Tayou

(12 assists / 13 GP) and Sebastian Mendez (12 assists / 13 GP) are both tied for fourth.

About the U.S. Soccer Federation

Founded in 1913, U.S. Soccer has been the official governing body of the sport in the United States

for more than 100 years. As U.S. Soccer looks toward the future amid an unprecedented moment of

opportunity, we’ve aligned our efforts around five strategic pillars: Grow the game by increasing

youth and adult participation and accessibility to the sport; Foster the best playing environments

through quality of referees and coaches, increase DEIB and participant safety; Develop winning

teams through solidified pathways and success of professional leagues; Grow the soccer economy

to fuel reinvestment by increasing membership, fandom and commercial success; and Create a

world-class organization through revitalized structure and culture, best-in-class talent, progress in

DEIB, and more. For more information, visit ussoccer.com/ourvision.





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