Charlotte FC signs college soccer star from Georgetown ahead of MLS SuperDraft
Charlotte FC has signed midfielder Chris Hegardt from Georgetown University to its inaugural roster. Hegardt becomes the sixth midfield player announced for the growing Major League Soccer expansion team.
Hegardt, 20, will also be the team’s second homegrown player for roster-building purposes, joining Charlotte native Jaylin Lindsey. Hegardt was born in San Diego, Calif., and he played for the Seattle Sounders’ academy prior to his time at Georgetown.
Charlotte FC traded $50,000 in general allocation money (GAM) to Seattle Sounders FC in exchange for Hegardt’s MLS Homegrown Priority, and agreed to send an additional $50,000 in GAM to Seattle if certain performance-based incentives are met. Hegardt’s contract will run until 2023 with option years in 2024 and 2025. He wasn’t eligible for this year’s MLS SuperDraft.
“Chris was a midfielder we really liked as we evaluated college players across the country in advance of the 2022 MLS SuperDraft, and we’re delighted to have signed him to an MLS contract,” Charlotte FC sporting director Zoran Krneta said in a statement. “We believe there are good players throughout the U.S. at the college level, and to acquire Chris prior to the draft was very important.”
Hegardt appeared in 31 matches for the Hoyas across the last two seasons. He scored three goals and added six assists for Georgetown, which won the Big East conference tournament last season and fell to Washington in the semifinals of the 2021 NCAA Division I men’s soccer championship.
During Hegardt’s youth career, he battled cancer, undergoing six rounds of chemotherapy and a liver transplant.
Charlotte FC’s first match is set against D.C. United in Washington, D.C. on Feb. 26, followed by its home-opener against the LA Galaxy on Mar. 5.
The 2022 MLS SuperDraft is on Jan. 11 and Charlotte FC holds the first overall pick.
This story was originally published January 6, 2022 at 12:00 PM.
