Karifa Yao (born September 28, 2000) is a Canadian professional

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

player who plays as a defender for

Rhode Island FC Rhode Island FC is an upcoming American professional soccer club located in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. The club is planned to debut in the USL Championship in 2024. History On December 2, 2019, it was announced that a new soccer-specific stadiu ...

of the USL Championship.

Early life

Yao began playing youth soccer at age seven with

CS Fabrose FC Laval (formerly CS Fabrose) is a Canadian semi-professional soccer club based in Laval, Quebec that plays in the Première Ligue de soccer du Québec. In 2021, CS Fabrose merged with youth clubs CS Chomedey and Delta Laval to form FC Lava ...

. Afterwards, he joined youth club Étoiles de l’Est. He was also part of the National High Performance Centre. In 2017, he joined the Montreal Impact Academy, playing a year with the U17s, before playing two years with the U19s.

Club career

In June 2019, Yao signed a homegrown contract with Montreal Impact. He made his professional debut on September 20, 2020, appearing as a substitute against the

Philadelphia Union The Philadelphia Union are an American professional soccer club based in Chester, Pennsylvania. The Union compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. Founded on February 28, 2008, the club began playing in 201 ...

. In February 2021, Yao went on a season-long loan to Canadian Premier League side Cavalry FC. On November 20, Yao scored his first professional goal against Pacific FC, netting the equalizer in their 2021 CPL season play-off semi-final, which ultimately ended in a 2-1 defeat for Cavalry. He was selected as Cavalry fans’ Player of the Year in 2021. After the 2021 season, Cavalry announced that Yao would leave the club at the end of his loan spell, and CF Montréal announced that they would exercise the option on Yao's contract for 2022. In March 2022, he extended his contract with Montreal adding another option year, while also returning to Cavalry on loan for a second season. He played a pivotal role for Cavalry, leading all outfield players in minutes played for the team. Over his time with Cavalry, he scored two goals and added two assists in 56 games, across all competitions. After the 2022 season, his option was declined by Montreal and he departed the club. However, at the

2022 MLS Re-Entry Draft The 2022 MLS Re-Entry Draft was conducted in two stages, as it has been in previous years. Stage 1 took place on November 17, 2022, and Stage 2 took place on November 22, 2022. All 28 existing Major League Soccer club and its newest expansion cl ...

, Vancouver Whitecaps FC announced they had picked up Yao's contract for the 2023 season. He made his debut for the Whitecaps on March 8, in a

CONCACAF Champions League The CONCACAF Champions League, known officially as the Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League for sponsorship reasons, is an annual continental club football competition organized by CONCACAF. The tournament is contested by clubs from North Ameri ...

match against Honduran club

Real España Real may refer to: Currencies * Brazilian real (R$) * Central American Republic real * Mexican real * Portuguese real * Spanish real * Spanish colonial real Music Albums * ''Real'' (L'Arc-en-Ciel album) (2000) * ''Real'' (Bright album) (2010) ...

. In January 2024, he signed a professional contract with USL Championship expansion side

International career

In March 2015, he was called up to a camp with the Canada U15 team. In April 2017, he was called up to a camp with the Canada U17 team.

Personal life

Yao was born in to an Ivorian father and a

Senegalese Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...

mother.

Career statistics

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Yao, Karifa 2000 births Living people Canadian men's soccer players Canadian people of Ivorian descent Canadian people of Senegalese descent Men's association football defenders Soccer players from Montreal CF Montréal players Cavalry FC players Major League Soccer players Canadian Premier League players Homegrown Players (MLS) Vancouver Whitecaps FC players FC Laval players MLS Next Pro players Rhode Island FC players