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Former USL Championship star Diego Luna voted MLS Young Player of the Year

By NICHOLAS MURRAY - nicholas.murray@uslsoccer.com, 11/07/24, 12:16PM EST

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21-year-old playmaker was nominated for Championship’s Young Player of the Year award in 2021 with El Paso Locomotive


Former USL Championship star Diego Luna has been voted Major League Soccer's Young Player of the Year after an outstanding season for Real Salt Lake. | Photo courtesy Real Salt Lake

Former El Paso Locomotive FC star Diego Luna was on Thursday announced as Major League Soccer’s Young Player of the Year after a remarkable season with Real Salt Lake that saw the 21-year-old continue his ascent in the professional ranks after launching his career in the USL Championship.

Luna recorded eight goals and 12 assists in 31 appearances for RSL in the 2024 MLS regular season to claim the award with 35.7 percent of the vote ahead of Inter Miami CF’s Diego Gómez. He is the second player in MLS history to record at least 20 goal contributions in a single season before turning 21, joining Diego Rossi (21 in 2018).

A native of Sunnyvale, Calif., Luna turned professional as a 17-year-old with Locomotive from the Barca Residency Academy prior to the 2021 season and quickly made his mark in the Championship. Over his first pro campaign he recorded nine goals and five assists in 32 appearances for Locomotive to earn USL Championship All-League Second Team honors and nomination for USL Championship Young Player of the Year.

Luna finished second in the voting that year to fellow future United States international Jonathan Gomez, then of Louisville City FC, but his performances saw him called up to the United States U-20 Men’s National Team and then feature for the side as it first won the 2022 Concacaf U-20 Championship and then reach the Quarterfinals of the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup.

His talents also saw Real Salt Lake come calling, and midway through the 2022 season RSL acquired Luna via transfer from Locomotive. He has since progressed to become a key figure in Head Coach Pablo Mastroeni’s lineup and this year saw him earn his first United States Men’s National Team call-up.


Competing for El Paso Locomotive FC, Diego Luna was voted to the 2021 USL Championship All-League Team and nominated for the USL Championship Young Player of the Year award. | Photo courtesy Ivan Pierre Aguirre / El Paso Locomotive FC

Despite his move to Utah, however, Luna still retains an appreciation for El Paso and Locomotive in his journey to this point.

“I couldn't have asked for a better start to my career,” Luna told USLChampionship.com earlier this year. “From the staff, from the teammates that I had, and from the fans and the environment that it brought to me, how they took me in as one of their own and made me feel at home, it really did become a second home for me.

“I've lived all over, but I come back, and I feel welcomed. It’s somewhere where I feel like I belong.”

Luna is the second player to claim MLS’s Young Player of the Year award since it replaced the Rookie of the Year award in 2020 that launched their career in the USL’s professional ranks following Ricardo Pepi, who earned the award in 2021 having previously been voted to the USL League One All-League Team as he won the league title with North Texas SC in 2019.

Luna’s path, meanwhile, is one that is becoming more frequently followed by young and established players in the USL Championship in Major League Soccer and overseas.

This calendar year has seen 13 players move via transfer agreements to clubs in MLS or Europe. Among them, 2023 Championship Young Player of the Year Fidel Barajas first joined Real Salt Lake from the Charleston Battery before a mid-summer transfer to Chivas de Guadalajara of LigaMX.

It’s a trend that has seen numerous players follow the path Luna set out on three years ago when he elected to join El Paso to start his pro career. His continued success since joining Real Salt Lake has delivered an example for those players to follow.

“Being able to showcase myself and express myself with all the fans, it’s been a pleasure for me,” said Luna.

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