Alfonso Ocampo-Chávez is the latest Austin FC player, the club announced Tuesday.
Ocampo-Chávez, who Austin claimed off of the MLS End-of-Year Waivers list on November 17, secured the rights to negotiate the forward's contract with the move, and in doing so, the player will retain his MLS Homegrown designation, technically making him the second Verde Homegrown signing after Owen Wolff. The 20-year-old, signed to a one-year deal in 2023 with options for 2024 and 2025, will take a supplemental spot on the 2023 roster.
As the Striker relayed on Nov. 17, when Austin FC drafted the rights to the player known in some circles as "Soccer AOC," "Ocampo-Chávez played with the Seattle Sounders FC’s MLS NEXT Pro affiliate Tacoma Defiance in 2022, contributing nine goals and four assists. The 20-year-old has also spent time overseas, going to FC Pinzgau Saalfelden of the Austrian Regionalliga Salzburg in the latter part of 2021 on loan from the Sounders, getting a goal in 13 appearances there.
The player also made three first-team appearances with the club back in 2019, starting once, as one of the leading lights of the Sounders academy as a 17-year-old.
Ocampo-Chávez joins a current Austin FC forward corps that includes Maxi Urruti and U-22 initiative player Moussa Djitté.
Ocampo-Chávez also has international youth experience. He represented the United States at the U-14, U-15, and U-17 levels, competing for the U.S. at the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2019. According to Austin FC's release, "he was a key part of the team’s qualifying campaign as one of two players to appear in all seven of the team’s matches at the 2019 Concacaf U-17 Championship."
