Updated October 24, 2022
ESMIR BAJRAKTAREVIĆ AT A GLANCE:
- Signed as the ninth Homegrown Player in Revolution history on May 23, 2022 after joining the Revolution Academy in August 2021.
- First graduate of the Revolution Academy’s residency program to ascend to the first team roster.
- Made MLS debut on August 17, 2022 with a 22-minute effort in a substitute appearance.
- Earned first MLS start on August 20, 2022, playing the full 90 minutes.
- Has logged 29 professional appearances with Revolution II since August 2021, including 19 starts, notching one goal and two assists.
- Rose from the club’s youth ranks to the first team roster, by way of Revolution II, in less than one year.
- Tallied seven goals in eight MLS NEXT matches at the U-17 and U-19 levels.
PROFESSIONAL CAREER: Signed as the ninth Homegrown Player in Revolution history on May 23, 2022 after joining the Revolution Academy in August 2021…Has logged 28 professional appearances with Revolution II since last August, including 19 starts, with one goal and two assists…New England acquired his Homegrown Territorial Exclusivity rights from Minnesota United in exchange for $50,000 of General Allocation Money on March 7, 2022…Signed first professional contract with Revolution II on Nov. 18, 2021…Ascended to the MLS roster after less than one year in the program and became eligible for MLS competition in August 2022.
2022: In second season with Revolution II, appeared in 17 games, making 14 starts, notching two assists with 26 shots and 12 on target...Signed as the ninth Homegrown Player in Revolution history on May 23, 2022...(5/25) at NYC: Made first team debut in U.S. Open Cup action, starting and playing 67 minutes and registering a shot on target…(8/17) at TOR: Logged 22 minutes in substitute appearance to record MLS debut…(8/20) at MTL: Played the full 90 in his first MLS start.
2021: Joined Revolution Academy at the beginning of August and immediately began training with Revolution II…Appeared in 11 games during his debut season for Revolution II at the USL League One level, starting five times and tallying one goal…(8/21) at TRM: Made professional debut, logging 31 minutes as a substitute and registering one shot on target…(9/11) at NC: Made first career start, scoring his first professional goal just 11 minutes into a full 90-minute performance.
NATIONAL TEAM: Has received two call-ups to the United States Under-20 Men’s National Team, the first coming as an invitation to the program’s U-20 January Camp, where he was the youngest member of the roster…Rejoined the group for a domestic training camp in April 2022 ahead of the summer’s Concacaf U-20 Championship, which will serve as qualification to the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup.
REVOLUTION ACADEMY: Joined the New England Revolution Academy in August 2021 as part of the club’s residency program…Is the first player from outside the six New England states to participate in the residency program, and the first residency alum to rise to the first team roster…Has appeared in seven games, all starts, for the Revolution Under-17 side, scoring five goals across 630 minutes…Added an additional 90-minute effort for the Revolution U-19s, tallying two goals.
YOUTH: Spent the 2020-21 Academy season with SC Wave in Milwaukee, Wisc. …Previously spent a year with the Chicago Fire Academy in 2019-20…Prior to Elite Academy tenure, played club soccer for SC Waukesha in his native Wisconsin.
PERSONAL: Born in Appleton, Wisc. …Currently working towards completing high school with online classes…Has an older brother, Osman, and an older sister, Elma…Fluent in Bosnian…Parents originally from Bosnia & Herzegovina, later moved to Wisconsin.