Toronto acquires midfielder Mihailovic for $8 million from the Colorado Rapids
The cash-for-player exchange includes another $1 million if certain performance goals are met.
Mihailovic, 26, signed a three-year deal that will keep him in Toronto through 2028 with a club option for 2029. He will occupy a designated player roster spot.
'When I first joined the league, Toronto was a powerhouse, and I could tell it was one of the best teams in MLS. I know the history and potential of this club and where it can go," Mihailovic said in a statement.
Over the course of his career, Mihailovic has played for the Chicago Fire, CF Montreal, and Dutch club AZ Alkmaar in addition to the Rapids. He's scored 48 career goals with 63 assists.
He has scored nine goals with seven assists this season for Colorado.
'We communicated our vision for the club moving forward, and Djordje expressed his excitement in embracing the responsibility as the focal point of our new project,' Toronto general manager Jason Hernandez said. 'We know Djordje is only beginning to enter his prime and will be a key piece of our franchise for many years to come."
Mihailovic has also played for the U.S. national team, appearing in 11 matches with three goals.
___
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
19 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Canadian Victoria Mboko Steps Into Tennis Spotlight Ahead of U.S. Open
Victoria Mboko, a rising Canadian tennis talent, has entered the limelight at just the right time, winning her first title on the eve of the U.S. Open. The 18-year-old went from being ranked 350th in the world at the end of 2024 to No. 24 this week after winning the Canadian Open final over Naomi Osaka on Thursday. Mboko became the second-youngest player to defeat four former Grand Slam winners—Sofia Kenin, Coco Gauff, Elena Rybakina and Osaka—in the same tournament. The youngest was her idol Serena Williams, who did so at 17 in the 1999 U.S. Open. More from Tennis Players' NCAA Prize Money Case Certified as Class Action Hall No: Billionaire Ackman's $10M Offer to Tennis HOF Declined British Open Keeps 2025 Prize Money Flat at $17 Million Although Mboko has made a name for herself among hardcore tennis fans this year, it's safe to say that most sports fans may have not heard of her until this week. However San Francisco-based marketing expert Bob Dorfman said that she's already showing some of the tools that can make her the perfect pitchwoman for brands. 'She seems to be pretty composed and confident on camera, kind of a bubbly teenager,' he said in a phone interview. 'A great backstory with her parents coming over from Africa, and her parents seem like really fun people to watch in the stands.' Mboko was born in Charlotte, N.C., after her family moved to the U.S. to avoid the political strife in the Democratic Republic of Congo. They moved further north when she was two months old, settling in Toronto. She's the youngest of four children, all whom play and coach tennis. Anjali Bal, a sports marketing professor at Babson College and avid tennis fan, called Mboko an electric and extraordinary tennis talent. She believes that Mboko can be one of the emerging faces of women's tennis, a sport that has long delivered strong sponsorship value and viewership around the globe. 'Her youth, charisma and compelling story as a proud Canadian and immigrant make her deeply relatable and aspirational,' Bal said in an email. 'For brands, she offers a rare opportunity: high visibility and cultural resonance at a fraction of the cost of more established athletes. Mboko is not just a rising star—she's a powerful ambassador for the future of Canadian tennis.' Mboko, who is sponsored by Wilson for both apparel and rackets, has a story that isn't just a Canadian one but also an immigrant one. In a highly charged political climate both in Canada and the U.S., some marketers may steer from engaging in narratives that could be perceived as political. Bal said that would be a mistake. 'To ignore that narrative would be to deny the very essence of what makes [Mboko] compelling,' she said. 'Her identity isn't a distraction from her success; it's part of the reason people are drawn to her. In fact, embracing her full story allows brands to connect with audiences on a deeper, more human level. Mboko is marketable not just because she's a champion, but because she embodies the values so many admire. Also, she has a killer serve, which doesn't hurt.' No matter where a player is from, winning matters over all else, which is why Dorfman cautioned against hitching any major marketing wagon onto Mboko just yet. 'You've got to win a Grand Slam tournament to really break through,' Dorfman said. 'You can kind of succeed around the edges, if you have a cool story and you're a great personality, but you're not going to crack through to the general fan, to the more average fan, to the non-hardcore fan, unless you win the big tournaments.' Although Bal thinks Mboko's story will resonate beyond wins for those within the communities she represents, she added that 'winning remains one of the strongest predictors of visibility and appeal.' 'Players who build strong personal narratives, engage authentically with fans and represent broader values—such as diversity, resilience, or national pride—can maintain relevance even without a Grand Slam title, but sans a title, that popularity is harder to grow outside of local community,' Bal said. If anything, a few wins at a Grand Slam could net some decent earnings for Mboko. On Wednesday, the USTA announced that it increased player compensation by 20% to $90 million, the biggest purse in tennis history. Winners of the singles' tournaments will net $5 million, up 39% from last year. Even first-round losers will get a pay bump to $110,000, a 10% increase from last summer. According to the WTA's prize money career and year-to-date leaderboards, Mboko has earned $1.26 million in her short career thus far, picking up all but nearly $62,000 of that in 2025 alone. Mboko has played a lot of tennis this year, winning 51 of her 60 matches in 2025, including her first 22, a three-win debut at this year's French Open and a 'lucky loser' draw at Wimbledon. Health willing, Canada's latest tennis phenom is primed to increase those earnings on and off the court. 'Being only 18, she has an incredibly long career ahead of her,' Dorfman said. 'If she's successful, [she'll be] somebody that a marketer would want to latch on to now and stick with. You never know what's going to happen with all these tennis players, but if her recent performance is any indication, she's going to be a major star.' Best of Tennis Prize Money Tracker: Which Player Has Earned the Most in 2025? Browns Officially Get Public Money for New Stadium in Ohio Budget WNBA Franchise Valuations Ranking List: From Golden State to Atlanta


Washington Post
28 minutes ago
- Washington Post
Schmidt scores late goal to lift the Dash over the Courage in the NWSL
Sophie Schmidt scored in the last seconds to give the Houston Dash a 2-1 comeback victory over the North Carolina Courage on Friday night in the National Women's Soccer League. In the only other match in the NWSL on Friday, the first-place Kansas City Current beat the last-place Utah Royals 1-0 on the road. In Houston, midfielder Riley Jackson gave North Carolina a 1-0 lead from the penalty spot in the 32nd minute. The foul from Maggie Graham on Jaedyn Shaw was originally been deemed to be outside the box, but it was changed after a VAR review. Dash midfielder Kiki van Zanten tied it on a stunning long-range shot the 39th minute. Neither team created many big chances in the second half until Dash forward Yazmeen Ryan wiggled away from pressure inside the North Carolina box and slipped the ball across to Schmidt to score from 2 yards out in the fifth minute of stoppage time. It was the second consecutive game where Schmidt had a late goal to positively changed the outcome of a match for Houston. Last week, Schmidt scored an 88th minute equalizer for the Dash in a 2-2 draw with Bay FC. The victory snapped a six-game winless streak for Houston (4-8-3), going back to May. This was the first game for the Courage (5-6-4) under acting head coach Nathan Thackeray. Former head coach Sean Nahas was fired on Wednesday, having led the team since December 2021. Temwa Chawinga scored her 10th goal of the season to give the Current a 1-0 edge over the Royals. The Malawian forward scored the game-winner by latching onto a long ball by Current defender Kayla Sharples and then dinking the ball over Royals goalkeeper Mandy McGlynn, who was rushing off her line, in the 82nd minute. Making her 40th NWSL regular-season appearance, Chawinga has reached 30 career NWSL regular-season goals faster than any other player in league history. Chawinga is also now tied with Esther Gonzalez for top scorer in the NWSL this season. Ally Sentnor made her debut for the Current against her former team by coming on as a substitute at halftime. Last week, Sentnor was traded from Utah to Kansas City in exchange for $600,000. The transfer fee was a record between two NWSL teams. In the dying moments, substitute Cloe Lacasse missed a chance to snatch a point for Utah when she headed over the bar from six yards out. The Canadian forward was playing her first match since recovering from an ACL tear in October 2024. Kansas City (13-2-0) has won seven consecutive matches and recorded three consecutive clean sheets to lead the league standings. Utah (1-11-3) is winless in 10 games. ___ AP soccer:
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Courage cite reasons for firing coach Sean Nahas: ‘Performance issues, culture issues'
The North Carolina Courage clarified in a statement Friday night why they fired former head coach Sean Nahas, citing 'confounding performance issues, culture issues, and a perceived lack of fit that created an environment that club leadership felt was untenable to the point that change was necessary at the head coaching position.' A club spokesperson issued the statement following the Courage's 2-1 loss to the Houston Dash in Texas on Friday night, two days after Nahas' termination. It also came a day after the club held a brief press conference in which it offered little detail for the firing beyond mentioning a 'multitude of factors.' Nathan Thackeray was named interim head coach and led the team on Friday. Despite scoring first, the Courage, currently ninth in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) with a record of 5-4-6 (W-D-L), conceded a stoppage-time goal to the 12th-place Dash. Speaking after the match, Thackeray, previously an assistant coach, said that despite recent turmoil, 'the team's been great emotionally.' He added that players had 'a good conversation with management on Thursday. We then chatted when we got into Houston last night and discussed a couple of things more, and then told them that, right, everything from Friday onwards is full focus on our ability to get better, perform well and get results.' Thackeray and Nahas, who was named permanent head coach of the Courage in December 2021, share a long professional history. 'I've worked with Sean for a long, long time, both with our youth club in North Carolina, with the North Carolina FC, and then obviously in the pro team since we've moved into Raleigh in 2017,' Thackeray said Friday. 'I'm disappointed for him, obviously. It's tough for me to take, and I don't want to ever see anyone suffer, but unfortunately, professional sports can have a brutal side to it as well.' Courage captain Denise O'Sullivan described a different atmosphere among the players in the days following the firing. 'It's been an emotional week, definitely a tough week for the team,' said the 31-year-old Ireland national team midfielder. 'Wednesday, we all got phone calls, and that's how we found out.' 'It was a shock for me,' she added. O'Sullivan explained that while 'there was obviously different reactions' to the news, she 'personally had a really good relationship with Sean,' having known him for seven years. 'He made me captain of the club, and I appreciate that, and I do want to thank Sean for everything.' But she maintained her belief in the Courage's ability to punch their ticket to the postseason even as the timeline for Nahas' permanent replacement remains unclear. 'It's been a roller coaster of a week, but we have to move on now as a group, and we have to look towards the game next week, and we got to continue to stick by each other and help each other through it,' O'Sullivan said. 'I fully believe we're still a playoff team.' Thackeray and O'Sullivan were asked about the kinds of changes the Courage will need to make to ensure that. Both pointed to the necessity of capitalizing on chances created in the final attacking third as a critical missing piece to the possession-oriented team. Against the Dash, the Courage had four shots on target out of 13 total, resulting from 431 passes for 57% possession of the game. 'We're still lacking quality in the final third,' Thackeray said, 'wasteful in moments where we win the ball back, and then turn it over or we get into good positions, and the final pass is not good enough, or the final run's not good enough, or we're slightly offside. Those are things that we need to continue to work on and, and really, really apply into the training weeks.' O'Sullivan believed the team started the game brightly, evidenced by their going up a goal in the 32nd minute after Courage and USWNT forward Jaedyn Shaw drew a foul on the line of the penalty area that a VAR check later confirmed was a penalty; 19-year-old Riley Jackson converted it. 'It was very positive, and I think last 15 minutes of the half we let slip, we lost control of the game a bit,' O'Sullivan said. 'Our lines became a bit too big and second half, again, I think we dominated.' She stressed that she didn't think conceding late in the game 'had anything to do with what happened.' The Courage's next test will be a home match against the sixth-place Portland Thorns on Saturday, Aug. 16. (Photo: Rebekah Wynkoop / SPP / Sipa USA / AP Images) This article originally appeared in The Athletic. North Carolina Courage, NWSL 2025 The Athletic Media Company