Favian Loyola

Favian Antonio Loyola (born May 18, 2005) is an American soccer player who plays as a midfielder for Orlando City of Major League Soccer and the United States under-19 national team.

Club career

Youth

Born at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, Loyola's family moved to Florida where he joined the Orlando City SC academy. In 2021, he was part of the under-17 academy team coached by Javi Carrillo that won the MLS Next U17 National Championship title. He continued with the academy to begin the 2022 season before being elevated to the professional Orlando City B side for the inaugural 2022 MLS Next Pro season. He made his professional debut on June 19, 2022, as a 69th-minute substitute in a 6–1 defeat to Columbus Crew 2. He scored his first goals on July 17, a brace in a 4–3 victory over Chicago Fire FC II. In total, Loyola scored six goals in 11 appearances during the 2022 season. He was also named MVP at the 2022 MLS Next All-Star Game.

Orlando City

On December 2, 2022, Loyola signed a three-year MLS homegrown contract with the Orlando City first team ahead of the 2023 season. On July 1, 2023, he debuted for the senior side when he came on as a substitution for Facundo Torres in a 3–1 victory over Chicago Fire.

International career

In April 2022, Loyola was named to a United States under-19 training camp by Marko Mitrović for the first time. In June 2022, he was part of the under-19 squad that traveled to Spain for friendlies against England and Norway. He was recalled to the squad in September 2022 for the Slovenia Nations Cup to face Malta, Croatia and Scotland. Loyola would start in the squad that would win the tournament following a 2–1 victory over Croatia.

Personal life

Born to a Chilean father and an Italian mother, he has an older brother, Donovan, who is also a player currently signed with Chilean side Universidad Católica until 2023.

Career statistics

As of match played November 25, 2023