Bay FC defender Savy King has been working hard to make her dreams come true in the soccer world. King, like many aspiring soccer athletes, puts in the work and shows up every day to put her best foot forward.
“This has been something that I’ve been working towards for a really long time,” said King. “It’s just such an honor to be able to say that I’m going to be able to play in the U-20 World Cup, and I know that that’s something that a lot of people are strive towards.”
King was signed to a three-year contract back in February to the Bay Area’s new women’s professional soccer franchise after being number 2 overall in the 2024 NWSL Draft.
“I definitely did not expect to be here,” said King. “The goal and my dream was to be here one day, but I definitely didn’t think it was going to happen as young as I am.”
Since being signed, King has started 12 times for Bay FC and has joined the U.S. Youth National Team camps. She is also one of ten players on the current roster who assisted the U.S. in qualifying for the 2024 tournament by finishing as runners-up at the 2023 CONCACAF Women’s U-20 Championship.
“I think just taking every day and enjoying it and having fun, you know, the most important part is to have fun and building our chemistry as a team on and off the field,” King said. “You know, just continue to build on that and then hopefully bring home gold.”
King is grateful for the opportunity to be a professional athlete at this point in her life. “It’s been a lot of hard work to get here, but, you know, the sacrifices are all worth it. You know, this is what I do it for,” said King.
The U.S. U-20s are in Group C with Spain, Paraguay and Morocco. The top two teams in each of the six groups automatically advance to the knockout stage as well as the four best third-place teams.
The tournament kicks off for King on Sunday, Sept. 1 at 1 p.m. PT when the U.S. faces the reigning U-20 World Cup champions Spain before taking on Morocco on Wednesday, Sept. 4 at 6 p.m. PT. The group wraps up pool play against Paraguay on Saturday, Sept. 7 at 4 p.m. PT
