Charlotte Independence Inks Promising Young Midfielder Rafael Jauregui

The 20 year old already has five seasons on his resume with Sacramento Republic

Image credit Sacramento Republic

Rafael Jauregui is just 20 years old, but has been a professional soccer player for five seasons. At the age of 15, he signed a professional contract with Sacramento Republic of the USL Championship, after working his way through their youth and academy systems.

The midfielder and winger remained with Sacramento for all five seasons of his career so far, putting up 50 appearances, mostly as a substitute. In 2024, he made the most appearances of his career with 26. Then at the conclusion of the season, his option was not exercised, and he became a free agent.

Charlotte Independence swooped in on the opportunity, signing Jauregui (pronunciation: How-rreh-gee) for the 2025 season. Said Head Coach Mike Jeffries in the team’s press release:

“We are excited to add a promising, young attacker to our group. Rafael possesses creativity and great instincts in the final third, along with a great work ethic and strong engine.”

He’ll likely step in to support a role vacated by several long-time veteran midfielders and wingers, Kharlton Belmar, Miguel Ibarra and Gabriel Obertan. Belmar retired, Ibarra signed with AV Alta FC, and Obertan is rumored to be retiring.

Along with returnee Luis Álvarez and newcomer Jon Bakero, Jauregui’s signing appears to be part of rebuilding the attack to skew younger. At 28, Bakero is the senior member of the 2025 attack squad so far, whereas Belmar, Ibarra and Obertan ranged from 32 to 35 years old.

At the age of 20 and with five years’ experience at a higher level, Charlotte may provide the environment to open the floodgates of goal scoring, especially if Jauregui finds his way into the regular starting 11.

Look for Charlotte to add a few more offensive pieces over the coming weeks, especially as it seems Álvarez may be on the transfer market.

Charlotte Independence’s 2025 Roster So Far

Forwards: Luis Álvarez, Jon Bakero
Midfielders: Omar Ciss, Rayan Djedje, Nathan Gray, Rafael Jauregui, Bachir Ndiaye
Defenders: Clay Dimick, Fabrice Ngah, Anton Sorenson, Nick Spielman
Goalkeepers: Matt Levy

Charlotte will open its 2025 campaign on Saturday, March 15th, hosting Richmond Kickers at American Legion Memorial Stadium.