Chester- Ramzi Qawasmy’s full-circle journey began in 2017 when he played for Continental FC (now FC Delco). He became the first player already enrolled at YSC Academy to play for the Philadelphia Union Academy. In addition, he made 14 starts in 19 appearances for the Union U-18/19 team in 2017-18.

“Being from the area,” Ramzi said, “Union was always the top club. We would play them in our league, but it would be a very tough game for us. So joining them, to me, was the next step in the direction I wanted to go with soccer and just being a part of YSC Academy.”

“I thought it was a great connection between Union, obviously, because it’s their school. So I thought going to the school and being on the Union Academy was both in the right direction.”

For Ramzi, his dream schools were Penn State, UCLA, and Villanova University. But a school not even on his radar was Providence College, where he would eventually enroll and sign.

“I knew players from a good club were going there, and also, for myself, the great education—I thought it would help me be the best student-athlete I could become.”

And the best student-athlete he could be was realized under the tutelage of Providence College head soccer coach Craig Stewart. Under Stewart, Ramzi saw success, starting in 88 games for the Friars, scoring seven goals, and contributing one assist during his career. He was named All-Big East in 2021 and was selected to the United Soccer Coaches All-East Region First Team in 2021 and 2022. However, for him, his best memory in college came in the 2019 Division I Men’s Soccer Championship second round.

Down 2-0 in the 55th minute to Penn State, Providence mounted a three-goal comeback in overtime to win the match and advance. To Ramzi, that was the highlight of his college career.

“It was a freezing day, and we were losing 2-0, and somehow we flipped the script and ended up winning 3-2 in overtime. And back then, in the overtime days, it was a golden goal, so you score that goal, and you guys kind of freak out when you win the game. So I would say not a personal one, but a team one.”

Like many student-athletes, there were lessons he learned that he may not have appreciated at the time but now values.

“I thought about how people talk about how time flies. You never really think about how fast it actually goes until it’s done. And even being a pro—like the last two years that I played—it kind of flew by. So I would say, just enjoy every moment.”

In 2023, he signed on as a trialist for Louisville City. Qawasmy impressed from the start, helping LouCity keep Major League Soccer’s Nashville SC scoreless in its preseason opener. That day, Nashville featured striker Hany Mukhtar, the 2022 MLS MVP, per Louisville City’s release.

“The professional world, I feel like—we train in the morning. We’re done by 11 o’clock. So you have the majority of the day to either sit there and do stuff or sit there and not do anything, play with your thoughts or not play with your thoughts. ‘Oh, this training went well,’ or ‘this training went bad.’ So to me, we had a lot of time, and after I left here, I used that time to think about soccer, and maybe even the negative things that might have happened in that training session. Like, the coach might not have liked this or that.”

During his time with Louisville City, he started once and played a total of 51 minutes across two matches in USL Championship competition. Though it didn’t work out for him in Louisville, he has high praise for former Philadelphia Union player Danny Cruz, now one of the best coaches in the USL Championship.

“To me, he was almost like a player’s coach, which I enjoyed. And actually, a weird connection—the guy who trains me outside of team-wise, just on my own, used to be Danny’s trainer back in the day. So I had that connection before I went to Louisville City with him. I would obviously come here and watch some games as well.”

After his time with Louisville City, he signed a contract with Atlanta United 2 in 2024. But his story was not complete—Union II announced the signing of Ramzi in 2025.

To him, it was a perfect fit.

“It was a no-brainer. I love being home. I haven’t been home in almost six years now because of school, plus playing out in Louisville and Atlanta last year. So I’ve been away for the majority of my time, and I know myself—being around my family is what I really enjoy. So to me, playing in my home state is a no-brainer.”

Union II head coach Ryan Richter echoed similar sentiments in his press conference last week.

“An Academy player who is fully committed to the project that we have on hand, and I look forward to working with him, first because of who he is as a person. I think he brings great leadership qualities into our group and has more life experience than many of the players. So it’s good to have men like him around who can show younger players what it means to be a professional—how to carry yourself daily and how to prepare for games.”

Ramzi shared the same thoughts about his new head coach.

“I’ve known Ryan for many years now, from the days that he played at Bethlehem Steel and throughout the Academy and stuff like that. So I got to see both sides of it—him as a player and him as a coach. And obviously, he was the captain of Bethlehem Steel back in the day.”

“So again, like I talked about with Danny Cruz, who’s a player’s coach, I feel like Ryan has a little bit of both sides to him. He’s the coach, and he’s the strong face out here, and it’s his word. But also, he has the playing experience, and I feel like he knows how you feel as a player from his experiences of playing and being around different players.”

Qawasmy played the full 90 minutes on Monday, completing 77 percent of his passes in Union II’s penalty kick win over Red Bull II. While his future is still uncertain, he’s definitely a player to keep an eye on with the second team in 2025.

Main article photo courtesy of Philadelphia Union II

Jillian Almoney contributed to this article.