Chester – Philadelphia Union homegrown defender Frankie Westfield has been selected by U.S Under-20 Men’s National Team head coach Marko Mitrović as one of 21 players who will represent the United States in the 2025 FIFA U-20 World Cup starting this month in Chile. Additionally, homegrown forward Eddy Davis has been chosen as a training player leading up to the tournament.

“We are very excited about the group of players that will represent the United States at the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Chile,” said Mitrović in a press release statement. “Wearing your country’s crest in a World Cup is a special moment for every player and as a Federation, we’re proud that each player has developed through our American soccer pathway. We are grateful to the clubs that released their players in support of our mission and now our goal is to make our country proud.”

The USA qualified for the World Cup with a runner-up finish at the 2024 Concacaf Men’s U-20 Championship in Mexico. Overall, 12 players return from the squad that helped the U.S. clinch a sixth-straight U-20 World Cup berth and 18^th overall appearance in the competition.  

The U.S will head Chile to begin training per US Soccer on September 22 after this weekend’s slate of matches and will begin group stage play on September 29 as they face New Caledonia in their opening match of the tournament.

US will then face international powerhouse France in their second match on September 2, and then wrap up group play on October 5 against South Africa. All three matches will be played at Estadio El Teniente in Rancagua.   

Should the US advance out of group play, they will continue to the round of 16 and a knockout bracket.

Westfield and Davis follow in the footsteps of Quinn Sullivan, Jack McGlynn, and Brandan Craig, who all featured in the 2023 U-20 World Cup.

Westfield’s Rise

A little over a year ago, Westfield was playing Union II and about to leave to play for Penn State in the fall of 2024 to go the college route after working his way through the Union Academy. He was having a breakout season with the second team, and ended up signing a professional contract with Union II in July 2024 and staying with the squad for the remainder of the season. The co-captain was an integral part in their run to winning the Eastern Conference Championship of MLS Next Pro, and making it to the MLS Next Pro Cup where the team would ultimately fall to North Texas. The Union saw his value, and the trajectory he has been on has been remarkable.

In February 2025, it was officially announced that Westfield had inked a homegrown contract. He began as an off-roster homegrown with the first team, with the expectation he may be getting his minutes with the second team. That changed after Nathan Harriel suffered an injury in the early going. Westfield made his first start with the Union in their opening game of the season at Orlando in February 2025, and he seized his opportunity. He went on to make more starts and impress, and scored his first MLS goal—a scorcher in the roof of the net—against Columbus on May 10.

As the season has progressed, Westfield has shown he is an asset to the squad and his stock has continued to rise. Sure, there have been learning moments (see Houston match), but the 19 year old from Northeast Philly continues to improve and adapt, and has been getting more notice on the national and international level.

From the Union’s press release:

“Westfield continues his national team campaign after earning six caps with the U-20 squad, including four starts. During that span, he contributed to three clean sheets, with the team conceding only four goals. In a standout first MLS season, the 19-year-old defender has made 24 appearances (17 starts), tallying four assists and one goal thus far.”

The Union organization continues to be a model for the player pathway, and Westfield and Davis are just more examples of players being successful as part of it.

“It’s an honor to represent your country at any level in a World Cup and we’re very proud of Frankie,” said Philadelphia Union Sporting Director, Ernst Tanner. “Their selection remains a testament to our dedication and investment into developing our Homegrown talent and we look forward to seeing their contributions on the international stage.”

Union II head coach Ryan Richter, no stranger to seeing the development of players having coached at the Academy, Next Pro, and MLS level, shared his thoughts on Davis, who mostly plays for him on the second team, and on Westfield.

“It’s great for it’s great for both those guys,” Richter said. “Obviously, a great representation of our club, and for them and their families, and, yeah, we’ll see what happens. For Eddy- you don’t wish anything bad on anybody, but hopefully it’s a situation that he can find himself in that final roster.

“And for Frankie, it’s an awesome accomplishment, and he deserves it. By the way that he’s played this year and the way that he’s kind of developed over the last 18 months, where he’s taken a huge jump. So he deserves to be in that roster, and I think he’s earned that with his play at MLS and now Eddy on the bubble, and we’ll see how the next two weeks go for him.”

Davis, for his part, has been on the rise as well. After being the top goal scorer for Union II in 2024 and helping lead them to the MLS Next Pro Cup, he also signed a homegrown contract ahead of the 2025 season. While mostly featuring with Union II, where he has five goals, he has gotten some chances with the first team. He featured in the friendly against Atlas in June where he scored a goal, and made his MLS debut later that month in the match at Chicago Fire. On the national team side, he recently attended the U-20 MNT Identity Camp.

For Union fans and fans of US Soccer, it will be an exciting time to see the rising stars looking to make names for themselves and represent their country well. For both Westfield and Davis, it will be a chance to shine, but to represent their families, Philadelphia, and all who helped them get to this point after many years of development and perseverance.

Main article photo credit: Philadelphia Union