Charlotte FC sign 14-year-old Nimfasha Berchimas to homegrown contract
By Chris Smith
Charlotte FC have signed 14-year-old academy prospect Nimfasha Berchimas to a professional homegrown contract, the club announced Thursday.
Berchimas' deal keeps him at Bank of America Stadium through the 2026 MLS season with an option for 2027.
Signing the deal at just 14 years and 268 days old, Berchimas becomes the sixth-youngest signing in MLS history behind Christian McFarlane (NYCFC), Emmanuel Ochoa (San Jose Earthquakes), Freddy Adu (DC United), Axel Kei (Real Salt Lake), and Maximo Carrizo (NYCFC).
“I’m very excited to sign a homegrown contract with Charlotte FC. It’s been a dream of mine to become a professional footballer,” Berchimas said. “I can’t wait for next season to begin, and I look forward to playing for the Crown.”
Berchimas originally joined Charlotte in 2020 and follows Brian Romero in becoming the club's second homegrown signing. The teenager's performances at academy level even attracted the attention of Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich, who invited him to train with their academy last summer.
Burundi-born, Berchimas is also making waves for the United States, picking up four caps at U-15 level while also earning a call-up to the U-16s earlier this week.
The expectation is that Berchimas will now regularly turn out for Charlotte FC's MLS NEXT Pro team during their debut 2023 season.
“Nimfasha is a young player who has continued to impress across the academy and youth national team levels for the past year, and we’re excited to sign him as the club’s second homegrown,” Charlotte sporting director Zoran Krneta said in a club press release.
“Like any player his age, he has a significant amount of development ahead of him and everyone at the club is aligned to maximize his progress on the appropriate timeline.
"As we continue to grow as a club, graduation from the academy to the professional level is vitally important to building a sustainable football club, and we’re delighted to promote two players from our youth teams in our inaugural season.”
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