San Jose Earthquakes and USMNT player Kaedren Spivey wins MLS NEXT MVP

Kaedren Spivey, who turned 15 last week, is the MVP of the under-15 division among all MLS Academy clubs at PayPal Park in San Jose, Calif., Wednesday, June 5, 2024. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)

Kaedren Spivey can shoot from distance and dribble past defenders with tricky feints and precise footwork.

Combine that with a composure that his coach says is rare in most 15-year-old soccer players, and it's easy to see why the San Jose native was named MLS NEXT U Most Valuable Player -15 after scoring 14 goals in 24 games. .

If you ask Spivey, though, hitting shots past the goalkeeper is among the list of things he enjoys about the game and one that has already taken him to places as far-flung as Portugal and Croatia.

The 5-foot-11 attacking midfielder, who plays for the San Jose Earthquakes academy and the U.S. U-15 national teams, grew up idolizing Paul Pogba.

The former Manchester United and Juventus superstar was a versatile talent, best known for completing the kind of long passes that Spivey likes to imitate.

“It’s a tool in my toolbox, that’s for sure,” Spivey said. “And I feel like when I use it, it creates good opportunities.”

If Spivey continues to develop at this rate – and racks up more appearances with the U.S. national team in the younger age groups – it wouldn't be a shock to see Spivey eventually earn a coveted spot with the Senior USMNT in a few years.

And maybe play in the World Cup one day.

“It’s something I dreamed of when I was little, so to talk about it as a real possibility, it’s shocking,” Kaedren said. “It's crazy.”

Spivey is the second of three football brothers. His parents, Kelly and Jermaine Spivey, didn't have ambitions for their son to represent the Stars and Stripes when they signed him and his siblings up to play football at a local leisure centre.

They just wanted the boys to exercise.

Even though Kaedren wanted to become a football star like his father, who was a defensive back at Bowling Green in the 1990s, the beautiful game eventually won him over.

After winning MVP for his age group, it's clear that Spivey made the right choice. Her mother could barely contain her excitement when she learned that Kaedren would receive the award on her birthday, May 28.

“It's just one of those moments that's a little surreal because there are so many great players at this level, and everyone is good, everyone,” Kelly Spivey said. “So for him to be singled out like that is really, really special.”

In addition to the support of his parents, Kaedren credits much of his success to his older brother Jermaine, who is 18 and plays for the Earthquakes' second team.

“Every time he trained to improve, he took me with him,” Kaedren remembers.

With training taking up most of Kaedren's life, he switched to online-only classes in March to accommodate his busy schedule.

“He missed school so much,” Kelly Spivey said. “He was a week short of being in Southern California. Then, in the fall, he was away for almost three weeks, between going to Portugal and playing against several different international teams, then coming back and going straight to a tournament in Phoenix.

Even though he has dedicated his life to pursuing a professional career, Kaedren's parents still want their son to live like a regular teenager when he can.

“He’s still texting his friends and going out on the weekends when there’s no football, going out and being a kid. Because he’s still just a young kid,” said Jermaine Spivey, who works in the tech industry while his wife works at the YMCA.