Report: Stefan Cleveland signs contract with Sporting Kansas City
Austin FC's backup goalkeeper the previous two season appears to be out the door. That means a new opportunity — though it may involve a lot of observation from the bench — for Damian Las.
While Austin FC has not officially announced it yet, a report from The Athletic's Tom Bogert indicates that goalkeeper Stefan Cleveland — who played sparingly for Verde after being announced on Christmas Eve 2023 — is leaving to sign a new contract with Sporting Kansas City to compete for the starting goalkeeper job there, with $50,000 in General Allocation Money (GAM) reportedly coming Austin's way.
🔵 Sources: Sporting KC has acquired GK Stefan Cleveland from Austin FC.
Deal is worth $50k GAM. Cleveland has signed a new contract with SKC.
The 31-year-old Cleveland, though he filled in for Stefan Frei in 29 MLS regular-season matches between 2021 and 2023, never really got a chance to shine during his time in Austin — as Brad Stuver started all regular-season matches and most of the extra matches during Cleveland's two years with the club.
He did memorably start the 2024 Leagues Cup home match against Pumas, saving a penalty kick in a 3-2 win. That win, coupled with the 2-0 win over Monterrey in which Stuver kept goal, made for a surprisingly successful Leagues Cup group stage before Verde fell to LAFC (on the road, if you remember that injustice) in the Round of 32.
Cleveland presided over one tournament game in 2025 — the U.S. Open Cup opener against El Paso Locomotive. That scoreline was also 3-2, but it came against USL Championship rather than Liga MX competition, and in the next match (and all other subsequent Open Cup matches), Stuver was in goal.
What does it mean?
The question about whether Austin FC would ride into 2026 with three goalkeepers, or choose between Cleveland and Damian Las as Stuver's backup, has now seemingly been answered (unless Bogert is wrong, which he almost never is in these matters).
For Cleveland, it's an opportunity to gain a starting role (or, at least platoon as a starter) with a team that started John Pulskamp for 34 games and let in 70 goals.
For Las, now 23 (and turning 24 in April), it's the next logical step in his developmental journey after being one of USL's best goalkeepers two years running. It's unlikely that Stuver misses any time as an Austin FC starter, as he's only missed four starts in five seasons in Austin, but it's conceivable that Las will start cup competitions (which could be the yet-to-be-announced League variety as well as the confirmed Open variety), and would be called upon should Stuver turn up injured.
While one could argue that Las needs minutes, Las also needs to compete against MLS-level competition to get better, even if it is mostly in preseason and training.
Perhaps more importantly, Las being on a supplemental roster spot gives Verde's sporting director, Rodolfo Borrell, another senior roster spot to use on a field player. For a team that now has no TAM players and could use another two or three impactful contributors to graduate this team from its current tier to the next, having a capable backup goalkeeper who doesn't take up one of 20 senior roster spots helps.
And while $50,000 in GAM isn't a lot, this is the time of year when that level of GAM can buy an international roster spot from another team, which is also something that Verde could use.
Whenever the move is officially announced, perhaps later today, it will be on the cusp of free agency season, with a choice of players that include some interesting out-of-contract names, including:
Willy Agada, forward, Sporting Kansas City
Hassani Dotson, midfielder, Minnesota United FC
Justin Haak, midfielder, NYCFC
Ryan Hollingshead, fullback, LAFC
Anthony Markanich, fullback, Minnesota United FC
Walker Zimmerman, center back, Nashville SC
Starting Wednesday at noon CT, Austin FC will be able to consider league-established players from the free agent pool to fill out its roster. Then, on Thursday at noon CT, the Re-Entry Draft process that brought Jáder Obrian to Austin for the 2024 season — when he became the team's co-leader in goals for that blighted season — commences. The full list of eligible players for Thursday's draft will be released today.
It's entirely possible that, between those opportunities and the Jon Bell rumors that have been floating around, there's a new Verde player coming sometime this week. Even though there are goalkeepers available in the free agent market, it appears that Borrell is set there, and will turn his attention further up the field.
Verde All Day is a reader-supported online publication covering Austin FC. Additional support is provided by Austin Telco Federal Credit Union. For more coverage, check out Emergency Podcast! (an Austin FC Podcast) wherever you get your podcasts.
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While Austin FC has not officially announced it yet, a report from The Athletic's Tom Bogert indicates that goalkeeper Stefan Cleveland — who played sparingly for Verde after being announced on Christmas Eve 2023 — is leaving to sign a new contract with Sporting Kansas City to compete for the starting goalkeeper job there, with $50,000 in General Allocation Money (GAM) reportedly coming Austin's way.
The 31-year-old Cleveland, though he filled in for Stefan Frei in 29 MLS regular-season matches between 2021 and 2023, never really got a chance to shine during his time in Austin — as Brad Stuver started all regular-season matches and most of the extra matches during Cleveland's two years with the club.
He did memorably start the 2024 Leagues Cup home match against Pumas, saving a penalty kick in a 3-2 win. That win, coupled with the 2-0 win over Monterrey in which Stuver kept goal, made for a surprisingly successful Leagues Cup group stage before Verde fell to LAFC (on the road, if you remember that injustice) in the Round of 32.
Cleveland presided over one tournament game in 2025 — the U.S. Open Cup opener against El Paso Locomotive. That scoreline was also 3-2, but it came against USL Championship rather than Liga MX competition, and in the next match (and all other subsequent Open Cup matches), Stuver was in goal.
What does it mean?
The question about whether Austin FC would ride into 2026 with three goalkeepers, or choose between Cleveland and Damian Las as Stuver's backup, has now seemingly been answered (unless Bogert is wrong, which he almost never is in these matters).
For Cleveland, it's an opportunity to gain a starting role (or, at least platoon as a starter) with a team that started John Pulskamp for 34 games and let in 70 goals.
For Las, now 23 (and turning 24 in April), it's the next logical step in his developmental journey after being one of USL's best goalkeepers two years running. It's unlikely that Stuver misses any time as an Austin FC starter, as he's only missed four starts in five seasons in Austin, but it's conceivable that Las will start cup competitions (which could be the yet-to-be-announced League variety as well as the confirmed Open variety), and would be called upon should Stuver turn up injured.
While one could argue that Las needs minutes, Las also needs to compete against MLS-level competition to get better, even if it is mostly in preseason and training.
Perhaps more importantly, Las being on a supplemental roster spot gives Verde's sporting director, Rodolfo Borrell, another senior roster spot to use on a field player. For a team that now has no TAM players and could use another two or three impactful contributors to graduate this team from its current tier to the next, having a capable backup goalkeeper who doesn't take up one of 20 senior roster spots helps.
And while $50,000 in GAM isn't a lot, this is the time of year when that level of GAM can buy an international roster spot from another team, which is also something that Verde could use.
Whenever the move is officially announced, perhaps later today, it will be on the cusp of free agency season, with a choice of players that include some interesting out-of-contract names, including:
Starting Wednesday at noon CT, Austin FC will be able to consider league-established players from the free agent pool to fill out its roster. Then, on Thursday at noon CT, the Re-Entry Draft process that brought Jáder Obrian to Austin for the 2024 season — when he became the team's co-leader in goals for that blighted season — commences. The full list of eligible players for Thursday's draft will be released today.
It's entirely possible that, between those opportunities and the Jon Bell rumors that have been floating around, there's a new Verde player coming sometime this week. Even though there are goalkeepers available in the free agent market, it appears that Borrell is set there, and will turn his attention further up the field.
Verde All Day is a reader-supported online publication covering Austin FC. Additional support is provided by Austin Telco Federal Credit Union. For more coverage, check out Emergency Podcast! (an Austin FC Podcast) wherever you get your podcasts.
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