ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – New Mexico United announced on Wednesday the club had signed former United States youth international Gedion Zelalem ahead of the 2025 USL Championship season. The transaction is pending league and federation approval.

Zelalem joins New Mexico having most recently been with Croatian top-flight club NK Lokomotiva. Prior to that, he saw action for FC Den Bosch in the Dutch Eerste Divisie, recording 38 appearances across all competitions.

“We are very excited to welcome a player of Gedion’s caliber and pedigree to New Mexico,” said United Sporting Director Itamar Keinan. “Gedion has played for some of world’s biggest clubs, refining his skillset and becoming a terrific player. We can’t wait to see what he does in Black & Yellow.”

A native of Berlin, Germany, Zelalem developed in the Arsenal FC Academy before spending six seasons in the professional ranks with the Premier League side. He made his First Team debut against Galatasaray in the UEFA Champions League while also appearing for the side in the F.A. Cup and Carabao Cup.

After his time at Arsenal, Zelalem joined Sporting Kansas City of Major League Soccer in 2019, where he made nine appearances for the side. During that span, he also competed for Sporting KC II in the USL Championship, logging seven appearances and 537 minutes and scoring once against Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC.

Zelalem then joined New York City FC ahead of the 2020 season and made 19 appearances for the side over three seasons. He then returned to Europe, arriving at Den Bosch midway through the 2022-23 season.

In addition to his club career, Zelalem has also represented both his native Germany and the United States at the youth national team level. He competed at both the U-18 and U-23 levels for the United States, competing for the U-23s in 2016 Concacaf Olympic Qualifying.

Zelalem – a dual-citizen of the United States and Germany – has represented those nations more than 25 times. He made his international debut in the Germany youth system at just 15 years old, before making the switch to the US system at the age of 18.