Mark-Anthony Kaye (born December 2, 1994) is a Canadian professional
soccer player who plays as a
midfielder
A midfielder is an outfield position in association football.
Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...
for
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Cana ...
club
New England Revolution
The New England Revolution is an American professional soccer club based in the Greater Boston area that competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), in the Eastern Conference of the league. It is one of the ten charter clubs of MLS, having compet ...
and the
Canada national team.
Early life
Born in
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...
,
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
to
Jamaican parents, Kaye first began playing soccer with
Wexford SC in
Scarborough. He later played with Ajax SC, winning a provincial title in 2009,
and
Glen Shields SC and Bryst FA. He attended
Elementary school
A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ed ...
at
John Ross Robinson Public School and
High School
A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
at
Lawrence Park Collegiate Institute
Lawrence Park Collegiate Institute (''Lawrence Park CI'', ''LPCI'', "LP", or ''Lawrence Park'') is a semestered, public high school institution with over 1,267 students enrolled. The school is located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It teaches grade ...
where he would play soccer, where he was twice named team MVP, as well as participating in
cross country
Cross country or cross-country may refer to:
Places
* Cross Country, Baltimore, a neighborhood in northwest Baltimore, Maryland
* Cross County Parkway, an east–west parkway in Westchester County, NY
* Cross County Shopping Center, a mall in Yo ...
, and
track and field
Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...
.
University career
Kaye played two years of
university soccer at
York University
York University (french: Université York), also known as YorkU or simply YU, is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's fourth-largest university, and it has approximately 55,700 students, 7,000 faculty and staf ...
between 2012 and 2013. During his university career he played in 29 matches and scored 18 goals. He was named
OUA
Oua is an islet on the north-east of Nukufetau atoll, Tuvalu, next to Lafanga
Lafanga or Lafaga is an islet of Nukufetau, Tuvalu. The traditional history of Nukufetau recalls that in order to protect the atoll from raiders from Tonga, Fialua, an A ...
rookie of the year after his
first year
A freshman, fresher, first year, or frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions.
Ar ...
season and selected to the
CIS all-Canadian second-team and the OUA first-team as a
second year
Second year (also known as S2 in Scotland) is the second year of schooling in secondary schools in Scotland and in the Republic of Ireland
Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Eu ...
. York would win the OUA championship during his final season.
Club career
Early career
Kaye left York and joined
TFC Academy
Toronto FC Academy, also known as TFC Academy, is the youth academy and development system of Canadian Major League Soccer club Toronto FC.
The academy has divisions from U14 to U19 and includes over 110 young players. The senior academy team is ...
, the academy side of
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Cana ...
's
Toronto FC
Toronto Football Club (commonly known as Toronto FC or TFC) is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matches at BM ...
in 2013. In 2014, he played in
League1 Ontario
League1 Ontario (L1O) is a semi-professional men's soccer league in Ontario, Canada. The league began play in 2014 and is sanctioned by the Canadian Soccer Association and the Ontario Soccer Association as a pro-am league in the Canadian ...
with the senior academy team appearing in nine matches and scoring one goal.
Kaye joined the
Wilmington Hammerheads
Wilmington Hammerheads FC was a semi-professional American soccer team based in Wilmington, North Carolina. Founded in 1996, the team last competed in the Premier Development League, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid in 2017.
Histo ...
of the
USL Pro
The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, ...
on
loan
In finance, a loan is the lending of money by one or more individuals, organizations, or other entities to other individuals, organizations, etc. The recipient (i.e., the borrower) incurs a debt and is usually liable to pay interest on that ...
from TFC Academy in August 2014 as part of an affiliation between the two clubs.
He made his professional debut on August 23, 2014, in a league match against
Orange County Blues FC
Orange County Soccer Club is an American soccer team based in the Orange County, California city of Irvine. Founded in 2010 as the Los Angeles Blues, the team currently plays in the second tier USL Championship.
The team plays its home games a ...
. The next day, Kaye tallied his first professional goal and assist as Wilmington drew 3–3 with
LA Galaxy II
LA Galaxy II is an American professional soccer team based in the Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most p ...
.
In total, Kaye appeared in 7 matches and tallied 2 goals and 2 assists during his loan with the Hammerheads.
Toronto FC II
2015 season
On March 12, 2015, Kaye and seven other players were signed by
USL side
Toronto FC II
Toronto FC II is a Canadian professional soccer team based in Toronto, Ontario, who play in MLS Next Pro, a third tier league of the United States soccer league system. It is the reserve team and minor league affiliate of Toronto FC as well as ...
ahead of their inaugural season. He made his debut against the
Charleston Battery
The Charleston Battery are an American professional association football, soccer club based in Charleston, South Carolina, and member of the USL Championship. Founded in 1993, the Battery are one of the oldest continuously operating professiona ...
on March 21 and would appear in 22 matches without a goal.
Louisville City
2016 season
On January 13, 2016, Kaye would sign with
USL side
Louisville City FC
Louisville City Football Club is an American professional soccer club based in Louisville, Kentucky. The team plays in the USL Championship, known through the 2018 season as the United Soccer League (USL), which is currently the second tier of th ...
and he would make his season debut in the opening match on March 26 against
Charlotte
Charlotte ( ) is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont (United States), Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, Meckl ...
. He would go on to play in 24 of Louisville's 28 regular season matches scoring one goal with three assists.
He also played in two of Louisville's three
USL Cup
The USL Championship Final is the post-season championship match of the USL Championship, the second tier of professional men's soccer in the United States. The winner is crowned champion in the same manner as in other North American sports lea ...
matches going goalless. He did, however, score in the
penalty shootout
The penalty shootout is a method of determining a winner in sports matches that would have otherwise been drawn or tied. The rules for penalty shootouts vary between sports and even different competitions; however, the usual form is similar to pe ...
in the Eastern Conference Finals match against
New York Red Bulls II
New York Red Bulls II is an American professional soccer team based in Montclair, New Jersey. They are the reserve team of the New York Red Bulls and play in MLS Next Pro, the third tier in the American soccer pyramid.
History
Red Bull New Y ...
. A match New York would go on to win.
2017 season
Kaye would miss the first two matches of the 2017 season while on international duty and would make his season debut on April 8 against
Richmond
Richmond most often refers to:
* Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States
* Richmond, London, a part of London
* Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England
* Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada
* Richmond, California, a ...
. He would on to play in 19 of Louisville's 32 regular season matches scoring four goals.
He also played in both of Louisville's
U.S. Open Cup
The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, commonly known as the U.S. Open Cup (USOC), is a knockout cup competition in men's soccer in the United States of America. It is the oldest ongoing national soccer competition in that country.
The 2023 U.S. O ...
matches; scoring once against the Tartan Devils. In the USL Cup playoffs Kaye would start all four matches as he and Louisville would go on to win the USL Cup Final against
Swope Park
Swope Park is a city park in Kansas City, Missouri. At , it is the 51st-largest municipal park in the United States, and the largest park in Kansas City. It is named in honor of Colonel Thomas H. Swope, a philanthropist who donated the land to t ...
.
Los Angeles FC
After two seasons in Louisville, Kaye would be transferred to
MLS
Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Cana ...
side
Los Angeles FC
Los Angeles Football Club, commonly referred to as LAFC, is an American professional Association football team based in Los Angeles. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The club ...
for their inaugural season. He would make his LAFC debut against the
Seattle Sounders during the 2018 season opener. On July 26, 2018, Kaye suffered a fractured foot in the
El Tráfico
El Tráfico, also known as the Los Angeles Derby, is a soccer rivalry between the two Major League Soccer (MLS) clubs based in the Greater Los Angeles area, LA Galaxy and Los Angeles FC. The rivalry is one of two crosstown derbies in MLS, along ...
rivalry game against the
LA Galaxy
LA Galaxy, also known as the Los Angeles Galaxy, are an American professional soccer club based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Galaxy competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), as a member of the Western Conference. The club began pla ...
, with coach
Bob Bradley
Robert Frank Bradley (born March 3, 1958) is an American soccer coach who is the head coach and sporting director of Toronto FC.
A native of New Jersey and graduate of Princeton University, Bradley coached in the American college game and Ma ...
saying he'd need surgery, with LAFC setting no timetable for his return; ''
NBC Sports
NBC Sports is an American programming division of the broadcast network NBC, owned and operated by NBC Sports Group division of NBCUniversal and subsidiary of Comcast. The division is responsible for sports broadcasts on the network, and it ...
'' reported that the injury would sideline the player for "4–6 months".
Colorado Rapids
On July 27, 2021, Kaye was traded, alongside a first-round pick in the
2022 MLS SuperDraft
The 2022 MLS SuperDraft was the 23rd edition of the SuperDraft conducted by Major League Soccer. The SuperDraft is held every January prior to the start of the MLS season and has been conducted via conference calls since 2020. Previously, the Sup ...
to the
Colorado Rapids
The Colorado Rapids are an American professional soccer club based in the Denver metropolitan area. The Rapids compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. Founded in 1995, as part of the Anschutz Corporation, ...
in exchange for $1 million in General Allocation Money and a 2022 international roster slot. He made his debut for the Rapids on August 7 against
Sporting Kansas City
Sporting Kansas City, often shortened to Sporting KC, is an American men's professional soccer club based in the Kansas City metropolitan area. The administrative offices are located in Downtown Kansas City, Missouri, and the team clubhouse an ...
. On August 21 Kaye scored his first goal for the Rapids, netting the game-winner in a 2–1 comeback win over
Rocky Mountain Cup rivals
Real Salt Lake
Real Salt Lake, often shortened to RSL, is an American professional soccer franchise based in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area. The club competes as a member club of Major League Soccer (MLS) in the Western Conference. RSL began play in ...
. At the end of the season Colorado announced they had exercised Kaye's contract option, keeping him at the club through the
2022 season. Before the start of the 2022 season Colorado would announce Kaye would sign a 4-year contract extension, through the end of the 2025 season, with an option for 2026.
Toronto FC
In July 2022,
Toronto FC
Toronto Football Club (commonly known as Toronto FC or TFC) is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matches at BM ...
announced they had traded
Ralph Priso, General Allocation Money, a first round pick in the 2023
MLS SuperDraft
The MLS SuperDraft is an annual college draft for teams of Major League Soccer in the United States and Canada. It takes place in January and is used by teams to select players who have graduated from college or otherwise been signed by the le ...
and an international roster slot for Kaye. The move returned Kaye to Toronto after six years away and also reunited him with his coach at LAFC, Bob Bradley. He made his debut on July 13, starting against the
Chicago Fire and going 63 minutes in a 2–0 defeat. Kaye scored his first goal for Toronto FC in their first match of the
2023 season
3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious or cultural significance in many societie ...
, netting Toronto's second goal in an eventual 3–2 defeat to
D.C. United
D.C. United is a professional soccer club based in Washington, D.C. that competes in the Eastern Conference of Major League Soccer, the top tier of American soccer. Domestically, the club has won four MLS Cups (league championships), four Su ...
on February 25, 2023.
New England Revolution
On July 13, 2023, Kaye was traded to the
New England Revolution
The New England Revolution is an American professional soccer club based in the Greater Boston area that competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), in the Eastern Conference of the league. It is one of the ten charter clubs of MLS, having compet ...
in return for
Latif Blessing and a 2023 international roster slot.
International career
Youth
In May 2016, Kaye was called to
Canada's U23 national team for a pair of friendlies against
Guyana and
Grenada. He saw action in both matches. In March 2017 Kaye was called up again to the U23 side for the Aspire Tournament which also featured the hosts
Qatar
Qatar (, ; ar, قطر, Qaṭar ; local vernacular pronunciation: ), officially the State of Qatar,) is a country in Western Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it ...
and
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked co ...
.
Senior
Kaye made his debut for the
senior team against
Curaçao
Curaçao ( ; ; pap, Kòrsou, ), officially the Country of Curaçao ( nl, Land Curaçao; pap, Pais Kòrsou), is a Lesser Antilles island country in the southern Caribbean Sea and the Dutch Caribbean region, about north of the Venezuela coas ...
in a friendly on June 13, 2017. On June 27, he was named to
Canada's squad for the
2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup
The 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the 14th edition of the CONCACAF Gold Cup, the biennial international men's soccer championship of the North, Central American and Caribbean region organized by CONCACAF, and 24th CONCACAF regional championship ov ...
. He was named to the squad for the
2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup
The 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the 15th edition of the CONCACAF Gold Cup, the biennial international men's soccer championship of the North, Central American, and Caribbean region organized by CONCACAF. The tournament was primarily hosted in th ...
on May 20, 2019. Kaye scored his first goals for Canada on March 29, 2021, netting a brace in a 11–0 victory over the
Cayman Islands. In July 2021 Kaye would join Canada for his third Gold Cup tournament, being named to the squad for the
2021 edition of the competition.
In November 2022, Kaye was called up to Canada's squad for the
2022 FIFA World Cup
The 2022 FIFA World Cup is an international football tournament contested by the men's national teams of FIFA's member associations. The 22nd FIFA World Cup is taking place in Qatar from 20 November to 18 December 2022; it is the first Wo ...
.
Style of play
During his time at Louisville, Kaye played as an "
attacking midfielder
A midfielder is an outfield position in association football.
Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...
and
winger", however following his ascension into MLS, he assumed a "
box-to-box
A midfielder is an outfield position in association football.
Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...
central midfield role, one that he's thriving in"; he also performed this role on international duty with Canada.
LAFC coach Bob Bradley said of Kaye: "He brings a little bit more range, a little bit more ability to get around the ball, a little bit of an ability to close down, win some balls in air, get into the box in both sides. All those things make him a little bit different".
Career statistics
Club
International
:''Scores and results list Canada's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Kaye goal''.
Honours
Toronto FC III
*
League1 Ontario
League1 Ontario (L1O) is a semi-professional men's soccer league in Ontario, Canada. The league began play in 2014 and is sanctioned by the Canadian Soccer Association and the Ontario Soccer Association as a pro-am league in the Canadian ...
League Champions:
2014
File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...
*
L1O/
PLSQ Inter-Provincial Cup Champions:
2014
File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...
Louisville City
*
USL Cup
The USL Championship Final is the post-season championship match of the USL Championship, the second tier of professional men's soccer in the United States. The winner is crowned champion in the same manner as in other North American sports lea ...
:
2017
File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...
Los Angeles FC
*
Supporters' Shield
The Supporters' Shield is an annual award given to the Major League Soccer team with the best regular season record, as determined by the MLS points system. The Supporters' Shield has been annually awarded at the MLS Supporters' Summit since 19 ...
:
2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
Individual
*
MLS All-Star:
2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
References
External links
*
*
*
League 1 Ontario profileYork Lions profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kaye, Mark-Anthony
1994 births
Living people
Canadian men's soccer players
Canadian expatriate men's soccer players
York Lions men's soccer players
Toronto FC players
Wilmington Hammerheads FC players
Toronto FC II players
Louisville City FC players
Los Angeles FC players
Colorado Rapids players
Soccer players from Toronto
Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States
League1 Ontario players
USL Championship players
Major League Soccer players
Black Canadian men's soccer players
Canada men's under-23 international soccer players
Canada men's international soccer players
2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup players
2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup players
2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup players
Men's association football midfielders
2022 FIFA World Cup players
Canadian sportspeople of Jamaican descent
New England Revolution players