Sporting Kansas City announced today that the club has signed 22-year-old Academy product Jake Davis to a new MLS contract through 2027 with an option for 2028.
Davis has logged 49 appearances for Sporting since making his MLS debut as a 19-year-old in 2021. The Homegrown defender, who has also played 62 matches for Sporting KC II, enjoyed a breakout year in 2023 by cementing a starting role at right back and helping the club reach the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs with an impressive late-season rally.
A native of Rochester, Michigan, Davis moved to Kansas City in 2017 to join the Sporting KC Academy. He represented Sporting at the U-17 and U-19 levels, amassing eight goals across 54 appearances in the U.S. Soccer Development Academy. In November 2019, he was selected to the United States U-17 Men’s National Team for the Nike International Friendlies in Lakewood Ranch, Florida.
Davis gained his first professional experience in 2019, inking an academy contract with Sporting KC II and making five appearances in his first USL Championship season. He took another step forward by signing a fully professional contract with SKC II in 2020, starting in 14 of the team’s 16 matches during the shortened season and finishing second on the team in minutes played.
Deployed primarily as a central midfielder with SKC II, Davis had two goals and six assists during a productive 2021 campaign in the USL Championship. He signed his first MLS contract as the club’s 19th homegrown player on Aug. 19, 2021, and debuted for Manager Peter Vermes’ side on Sept. 15 as a second-half substitute in a 4-0 victory over Minnesota United FC at Children’s Mercy Park.
The 2022 season saw Davis split time between Sporting and SKC II, playing 17 total matches and helping the first team reach the semifinals of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. He also scored two goals during SKC II’s first season in MLS NEXT Pro under head coach Benny Feilhaber.
After appearing once in Sporting’s first nine games of 2023, Davis won a starting spot at right back and flourished over the final seven months of the season. On May 28, 2023, he began a streak of 36 consecutive starts in all competitions, a run that ended Saturday when Sporting visited Minnesota United FC. Over the course of 2023, Sporting went 16-9-7 when Davis started and 0-8-3 when he did not. The club also found its form during the summer and fall, advancing to the MLS Cup Playoffs and upending No. 1 seed and archrival St. Louis City SC with a convincing two-game sweep in the Round One Best-of-3 Series. Davis' banner season culminated with Sporting KC Defensive Player of the Year honors.
From late April until the end of the 2023 regular season, Davis ranked fourth in MLS in tackles won while becoming the fourth player in club history to play 2,000 minutes in a regular season before the age of 22, logging 2,038 minutes as a 21-year-old. Last September, he notched his first match-winning assist by setting up Alan Pulido in a 2-1 home win over St. Louis.
Davis played the full 90 minutes in each of Sporting’s first nine matches this season. He had another game-winning assist in a 2-1 comeback win over the San Jose Earthquakes on March 16 and two weeks later delivered a sensational performance that resulted in MLS Team of the Matchday honors. In a 3-1 road victory over Toronto FC, Davis opened his MLS scoring account with a sensational long-range strike before assisting a late Alenis Vargas goal to seal the three points.
Davis and Sporting will return to the field Saturday with a visit to Real Salt Lake at 8:30 p.m. CT. The Western Conference clash at America First Field will stream for free on Apple TV and air on Sports Radio 810 WHB, La Grande 1340 AM and SiriusXM FC.
Sam Kovzan -
