Playing for Whitecaps ‘a dream come true’

VANCOUVER — Alphonso Davies’ teenage years have been anything but normal.

The 17-year-old loves to play video games and frequently shares his life on Instagram, but he’s also balancing being a kid while being one of Canada’s most promising young soccer stars.

While some teens are consumed with thoughts of university applications and getting a driver’s licence, Davies is wrapping up his time with the Vancouver Whitecaps and preparing to join one of the world’s biggest soccer clubs, Bayern Munich.

“It’s easy just being a kid because you play FIFA (video games) all day, stay up all night,” he said after training this week. “I can’t really do that anymore because if you don’t sleep, it’ll show on the field.”

The young midfielder has been a key part of the Whitecaps starting lineup this season, tallying 11 assists and six goals. Davies’ blazing speed and uncanny ability to control the ball have caught world-wide attention and made him the commissioner’s pick for the MLS all-star game in August.

He’s not yet old enough to vote, but he’s already part of a Nike ad campaign, a featured player in the newest version of his favourite video game, FIFA, and the subject of the largest-ever transfer in Major League Soccer.

In July, German soccer giant Bayern Munich agreed to a record-breaking US$22 million deal that will see Davies play for the team through 2023.

Relocating to Germany won’t be the teen’s his first international move.

Davies was born in a refugee camp in Ghana after his parents fled the Liberian civil war. His family immigrated to Canada when he was five, eventually settling in Edmonton, where his parents and siblings still live.

It was there that he was discovered by the Whitecaps’ recruiting staff and invited to join the club’s residency program.

“Me leaving Edmonton at 14, I didn’t know what to expect, I didn’t know how far I’d make it. And every day I come to training, come to put in work, come here to stay here as long as possible,” Davies said, pausing to laugh as a ball sailed by.

“And now me leaving, the routine starts all over again. Going (to Germany) it’s the same thing – new area, new friends, new language. So you have to adapt quickly.”

“The last few months has been quite exciting, knowing that my final days are coming up.”