HERRIMAN, Utah (Friday, June 10, 2022) – Recently-signed Real Salt Lake Homegrown midfielder Diego Luna has been named to the U-20 U.S. Youth National Team for this month's 2022 CONCACAF U-20 Championship in Honduras, which will serve as the qualifier for the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup and the 2024 Olympic Games.
Luna, 18, recently joined Real Salt Lake as the Club’s 34th all-time Homegrown player, signing from El Paso Locomotive (USL Championship), where he scored 13 goals and added seven assists in 43 appearances over the 2021/22 seasons. Luna was named to the USL Championship Team of the Week six times and finished second in voting for the 2021 ULS Championship Young Player of the Year.
Last weekend, against Vancouver Whitecaps FC, Luna made his Claret-and-Cobalt debut as a second-half substitute, coming on for Sergio Cordova in the 88th minute, just days after his arrival into Salt Lake City. The following day he started for Real Monarchs in MLS NEXT Pro, playing 84 minutes against Whitecaps 2.
Luna made his debut with the U-20 U.S. Youth National Team last year, joining the Stars-and-Stripes in November for the inaugural Revelations Cup held in Mexico. The young midfielder scored his first goal for the Red, White and Blue against Mexico in the 50th minute, the lone goal in the 2-1 loss for the United States.
The United States are set to begin the U-20 Championship on Saturday, June 18 against the U-20 side from St. Kitts and Nevis. The team will then face Canada on Monday, June 20 and Cuba on Wednesday, June 22 to round out the group stage. The top three teams from each group will move onto the knockout stage. The winners in the Quarterfinal stage will earn automatic qualification to the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup, while the winners of the semifinal round earn additional qualification to the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics.
Real Salt Lake returns to play on Saturday, June 18, when the team hosts San Jose Earthquakes at 7:30 p.m. MT for the Club’s Juneteenth celebration. Tickets are available for purchase at www.rsl.com/tickets.
