The Philadelphia Union prodigy may be one of the best talents the U.S. has ever produced, with considerable support on his journey
Cavan Sullivan could have cut the ball back. His brother was open, and there was another Philadelphia Union man making a run into the box. It was stoppage time, and the 14-year-old had a slither of space on the left wing in his professional debut in July 2024.
But instead of the smart, he went for the spectacular, unleashing a strike from 20 yards from a difficult angle. New England Revolution keeper Aljax Ivacic parried it into the ground. Philadelphia would win 5-1, anyway.
The whole sequence is chronicled in the Apple TV+ docuseries “Onside: Major League Soccer.” Here’s Cavan Sullivan, doing his math homework (he gets a 7/10.) There’s Cavan Sullivan, not knowing that he should eat the pasta with his pre-match chicken parmesan ("It’s the his older brother points out.)
But throughout this all, Sullivan seems a kid mature beyond his years. If there is any pressure associated with 38 minutes of television, a camera crew at his house, and the constant background chatter about just how good he is, then Sullivan doesn’t feel it.
“It’s something you’ve got to get used to, especially when they’re a documentary film crew at your crib. So yeah I did have to get used to it,” he told GOAL in an interview at Philadelphia’s training center.
And therein lies the point. Sullivan is a youngster suddenly in the pressure cooker of the American soccer world before most are ready. But where most prodigies have failed – Freddy Adu is the cautionary tale raised with every other breath – Sullivan looks mighty comfortable. There’s a confidence, perhaps, at times a cockiness. Sullivan might be the biggest talent American soccer has ever seen. And he’s entirely comfortable with it.
“I know the pressure is there,” he says. “But once I step within these white lines, it fades away.”
USA Today Images'I look up to my mom'
The story is well chronicled, at this point. Sullivan is basically a walking book of records. The fifth-youngest player ever to sign a homegrown contract in MLS. The youngest playoff goalscorer in MLS Next Pro history. The youngest player to make a matchday squad. The youngest debutant in American professional sports league (breaking Adu’s record by 13 days).
This all comes in an era – and a sport – that does not always cater well to young talents. The United States, in particular, has had a difficult relationship with top prospects. There is a line to be drawn that starts with Adu, runs through Julian Green, Christian Pulisic, Gio Reyna, and now lands at Sullivan. Not all of those stories have been successful.
But Sullivan is different. It’s not just the money, the swagger, or the pre-contract signed with Manchester City that will see him move to the Etihad Stadium upon his 18th birthday (still more than two years away.) Sullivan is protected from this all by a family that appears simultaneously meticulous and demanding, yet also immensely delicate. He is the youngest of four brothers, raised by parents who both played collegiate and professional soccer, so the people around Sullivan know how difficult this all is – and how challenging it might yet be.
“I look up to my mom off the field, the person she is, how kind she is, how respectful, and how she helps me every day. I want to be just like her, and treat people the way she does,” Sullivan said. “And in terms of on the pitch… my Dad has taught me everything I know.”
Advertisement'This could happen sooner rather than later'
Of course, some of the cliches are here. Yes, Sullivan had a soccer ball in his crib. Inevitably, he could run, catch and kick a little earlier than others. There is video proof that at 18 months old he could use both feet with a ball inside the house. It was clear, from a young age, that he was of a different level. The standard platitudes of “things that can’t be taught” very much apply.
He had always played a couple of years up. It was at the Generation Adidas Cup when his talent became apparent. The tournament routinely attracts scouts from around the world. In the 2023 iteration, he tore up Arsenal’s U15 side at just 13. Last year, Sullivan showed up in Prada boots with bleached hair, led the Union to the title, and scored an equalizing goal in the final.
At that point, it became clear that a first team debut was near.
“When I first started getting recognition in that aspect, I felt that was when I envisioned ‘This could happen sooner rather than later,’ ” he said.
But Sullivan has never been allowed to think that way. His siblings still insist they’re better than him. After Cavan’s debut, his older brother Quinn, who also plays for the Union and is a fine midfielder in his own right, walked up to the docuseries cameras and immediately criticized his younger brother’s finishing ability (Quinn curled in a lovely fifth goal for the Union in the win.)
And off the pitch, with the cameras turned away, there remains a competitive aspect to this all. Family 2v2s had to be canceled because of a disagreement over goalkeepers on small-sided nets. One brother was blocking a goal. Words were exchanged. Someone blasted a ball at someone else. The details are a bit fuzzy.
“It wasn't even that deep,” Cavan recalled. “He smashed the ball at us. We got into a fight, and then we just dipped after that.”
Instagram: @cavan.sull'They're used to competing up'
“You want to know what Cavan’s like?”
Dr. Nooha Ahmed-Lee is the Head of School of the YSC Academy, the Union’s educational center. She understands the question. And knows the answer isn’t simple. There is, as Ahmed-Lee says, a “360 piece” to Sullivan’s life. Start in the classroom. Sullivan had always played two years up. So, when the Union brought him into their academy in 2020, he was in sixth grade, learning eighth grade material.
That wasn’t a problem.
“He’s academically very, very astute,” Ahmed-Lee told GOAL. “He's an intellectual kind of learner.”
In a way, he doesn’t have much of a choice. Play up, and you've got to learn up. Cavan’s father, Brenden, is a history teacher at the school. All three of his older brothers have, at some point, been enrolled. But Ahmed-Lee insists that it’s Cavan himself – not the pressure from family – that drives him.
“When you have that kind of personality, that you just know that person's not going to get left behind – whether it's academically or soccer wise – they're just used to competing up,” Ahmed-Lee said.
That applies to everything. Sullivan is competitive in pretty much all things, Ahmed-Lee said. At a mock trial in school, Sullivan stood out. Even there, he wanted to be the best.
"We did a mock trial, and his role was public defender, and it was like, ‘Cavan, hey, listen, if the soccer thing doesn't work out, well, you're like a great public defender,’ ” Ahmed-Lee joked.
Fame and fortune can have corrosive effects on even the most seasoned of players, let alone a 15-year-old trying to navigate life in the spotlight on the pitch and meshing with his peers in the classroom. But Ahmed-Lee says Cavan parks the public persona at the door.
“He's the kind of person that will get along with everybody and treat everybody the same,” she says. “And so he's not stuck up, you know? He's very humble. He feels like, you know, he recognizes kids who are working hard and he applauds them.”
And there are constant reminders that Sullivan is still just 15. He still needs signatures from his parents to attend a school dance. A few years ago, when Ahmed-Lee asked him what he would do with his first paycheck, Sullivan told her he wanted to buy a car. She had to remind him that he can’t legally drive it yet. But she considers that a healthy attitude.
“The school is very aware, as I'm sure his parents are, that the best thing to do for Cavan is to treat him like everybody else in the school and keep him as a kid,” Ahmed-Lee said.
USA Today Images'I like the hunger I see in him'
It was one of Sullivan’s first training sessions with the senior team, and he was getting stuck in. Everyone there was bigger, faster, and stronger (he may yet grow but is currently listed at 5-7.) Sullivan went in for a 50/50 with an established pro, and was absolutely clattered. Cavan crumpled on the ground, rocking back and forth. No one helped – not immediately, at least.
Such is the life of a young player training with the first team. Sullivan gets tossed around by the big boys. Players twice his age are throwing an elbow, or leaving a foot in. But Sullivan gets his own in, too, breaking out flicks, nutmegs and sharp turns.
“I got some cool plays in there,” he said after training. “A meg. I'm not gonna say on who, but yeah, I've been showing my confidence a little bit more.”
But there are still some blips sprinkled in. Before his debut, Sullivan – given the No. 6 jersey – forgot that the shirts are pinned up in the dressing room in ascending numerical order. He needed help from Quinn to take his expensive watch off. His brother made fun of him for not wearing his own suit to his signing video.
In interviews, he remains confident, but also slightly cheeky. He has admitted that he wants to be in Mauricio Pochettino’s U.S. men’s national team World Cup squad next year. But 2030 might be more realistic, he said, with a grin.
Former pros can see the drive, too.
“I like the hunger that I see in him,” former USMNT and MLS star Taylor Twellman told GOAL. “I like the humility that I see in him, while also being confident in what he wants to do. There is a fine line between cocky and confident. And I say he's still hungry and confident, and he's trying to prove something.”