Steffen Yeates (born January 4, 2000) is a professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

for

Canadian Premier League The Canadian Premier League (CPL or CanPL; ) is a professional Association football, soccer league in Canada and the highest level of the Canadian soccer league system. The league comprises eight teams, from five of provinces and territories of ...

side

York United FC York United Football Club (formerly known as York9 FC) is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Toronto, Ontario. The club competes in the Canadian Premier League and plays its home games at York University's York Lions Stadium. History ...

. Born in Canada, he represents

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago, officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean, comprising the main islands of Trinidad and Tobago, along with several List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, smaller i ...

at international level.

Early life

Yeates began his youth career with

Vaughan SC Vaughan Azzurri is a Canadian semi-professional soccer team based in Vaughan, Ontario, that currently competes in the League1 Ontario men's and women's divisions. The semi-professional team was founded in 2014 by the Vaughan Soccer Club, which ...

. In 2013, he joined the

Toronto FC Academy Toronto FC Academy, also known as TFC Academy, is the Youth system, youth academy and development system of Canadian Major League Soccer club Toronto FC, which competes in MLS Next. The academy has divisions from U14 to U19 and includes over 110 ...

College career

In 2018, he attended the

University of Connecticut The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university system with its main campus in Storrs, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1881 as the Storrs Agricultural School, named after two benefactors. In 1893, ...

, joining the men's soccer team. He scored his first goal against the

University of Cincinnati The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati, informally Cincy) is a public university, public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1819 and had an enrollment of over 53,000 students in 2024, making it the ...

. In 2019, he transferred to

Oregon State University Oregon State University (OSU) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Corvallis, Oregon, United States. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate degree programs and a variety of graduate and doctor ...

and joined their men's soccer team. He scored his first goal on September 15 against the

UC Santa Barbara Gauchos The UC Santa Barbara Gauchos are the intercollegiate athletic teams representing the University of California, Santa Barbara. Referred to in athletic competition as ''UC Santa Barbara'' or ''UCSB'', the Gauchos participate in 19 NCAA Division I i ...

Club career

Toronto FC

While with Toronto FC Academy, he debuted with Toronto FC III in

League1 Ontario League1 Ontario (L1ON) is a semi-professional men's soccer league in Ontario, Canada. The league is sanctioned by the Canadian Soccer Association and the Ontario Soccer Association. League1 Ontario consists of three tiers – League1 Premier ...

in 2016. He scored his first goal on June 19, 2016 against Durham United FA. He made his professional debut with

Toronto FC II Toronto FC II is a Canadian professional soccer team based in Toronto, Ontario, that competes 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 we ...

in the

USL USL may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Underground Sound of Lisbon, a Portuguese dance music project * Urban Strawberry Lunch, a band from Liverpool Companies * United Spirits Limited, India * Former United States Lines shipping company C ...

on April 26, 2018 against the

Richmond Kickers Richmond Kickers is an American professional soccer club based in Richmond, Virginia. The Kickers compete as a member of USL League One (USL1). The club was established in 1993, and began play that same year as a United States Interregional S ...

, as an academy call-up. In 2019, he was close to an agreement with Danish club

FC Helsingør FC Helsingør is a Danish association football, football club from Helsingør. The club plays in the Danish 2nd Division, having been relegated after finishing 12th in the Danish 1st Division in the 2023–24 season. The club has finished their ...

, but decided against it at the last minute. In 2020, he went on trial with French club

US Boulogne Union Sportive de Boulogne-sur-Mer Côte d'Opale (commonly referred to as US Boulogne, USBCO or frequently, simply Boulogne) is a French association football club based in the commune of Boulogne-sur-Mer. The club was founded in 1898 and cur ...

. He signed his first professional contract with Toronto FC II on April 22, 2021 ahead of the 2021 season. On May 4, 2022, he signed a short-term four-day loan with the first team,

Toronto FC Toronto Football Club is a Canadian professional Association football, soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference (MLS), Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matc ...

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...

. He made his debut that same day, as a second half substitute, in their match against

FC Cincinnati Football Club Cincinnati is an American professional soccer club based in Cincinnati. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team was first announced on August 12, 2015 as a United Soccer Leag ...

. He signed an additional four-day loan on May 7.

Pacific FC

In December 2022, Yeates signed a multi-year contract with

Pacific FC Pacific Football Club is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Greater Victoria, British Columbia. The club competes in the Canadian Premier League, playing home matches at Starlight Stadium located in Langford. History On May 5, 20 ...

of the

, beginning in 2023. On September 14, 2023, he scored his first goal for the club in a 1-1 draw with

Atlético Ottawa Atlético Ottawa is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Ottawa, Ontario. The club competes in the Canadian Premier League and plays its home games at TD Place. The team was founded in 2020 by Spanish club Atlético Madrid. History F ...

York United

In January 2025, he joined

on a two-year contract with an option for an additional season, with Pacific receiving an undisclosed fee.

International career

Yeates played for the Canada U17 team at the

2017 CONCACAF U-17 Championship The 2017 CONCACAF Under-17 Championship was the 5th edition of the CONCACAF Under-17 Championship (18th edition if all eras included), the men's under-17 international association football, football tournament organized by CONCACAF. It was hosted ...

in 2017, where he started in all three of the team's matches. In 2018, he was part of the Canada U20 team at the

2018 CONCACAF U-20 Championship The 2018 CONCACAF Under-20 Championship was the 6th edition of the CONCACAF Under-20 Championship (27th edition if all eras included), the men's under-20 international football tournament organized by CONCACAF. It was hosted at United States betw ...

where he scored a goal and an assist in his single appearance against Martinique. In May 2024, he was named to a 39-man preliminary squad for the Trinidad and Tobago senior team ahead of their World Cup qualifying matches. He made his debut on June 8 in a

2026 FIFA World Cup qualification The 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification will decide the 45 teams that will join hosts Canada men's national soccer team, Canada, Mexico national football team, Mexico, and the United States men's national soccer team, United States at the 2026 FIFA ...

match against

The Bahamas The Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic and island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean. It contains 97 per cent of the archipelago's land area and 88 per cent of ...

. He scored his first international goal on March 21, 2025, netting the winning goal in a 2-1 victory

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

in a

2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup qualification 5 (five) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number, and cardinal number, following 4 and preceding 6, and is a prime number. Humans, and many other animals, have 5 digits on their limbs. Mathematics 5 is a Fermat pri ...

match.

Career statistics

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yeates, Steffen 2000 births Living people Trinidad and Tobago people of Italian descent Canadian sportspeople of Trinidad and Tobago descent Canadian people of Italian descent Soccer players from Toronto Trinidad and Tobago men's footballers Canadian men's soccer players Men's association football defenders Vaughan Azzurri players Toronto FC Academy players Toronto FC II players Toronto FC players UConn Huskies men's soccer players Oregon State Beavers men's soccer players Pacific FC players York United FC players USL League One players USL Championship players MLS Next Pro players Major League Soccer players Canadian Premier League players Canada men's youth international soccer players Trinidad and Tobago men's international footballers 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup players Canadian expatriate men's soccer players Canadian expatriate sportspeople in the United States Trinidad and Tobago expatriate men's footballers Trinidad and Tobago expatriate sportspeople in the United States Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States 21st-century Canadian sportsmen