At 15, Brooklyn Raines was invited to train with the U-19 squad at the Barca Residency Academy in Casa Grande, Arizona.
The team featured future professionals Diego Luna, Caden Clark, and Bryce Duke. Coach Ivan Militar went as far as to call it the “best U-19 team assembled in youth soccer history.”
Raines clearly had talent and stood out at other levels, but Militar had doubts now that he was playing up three age groups.
“I remember I said, ‘Brooklyn is not ready for this,’” Militar told The Blazing Musket.
Other players, such as Luna, had adjusted quickly to new environments, but Raines, who Militar described as shy, needed time.
By week three, Raines was showing his quality.
“Brooklyn taught me that we can't panic,” Militar said. “We just need to observe and see how they flourish, and they will. If you really are sure about the potential, they will eventually rise to the occasion.
“We Knew Brooklyn Had Arrived.”
Raines was 12 when he went to a winter camp at the Barca Residency Academy.
Coach Ged Quinn recalls him as a quiet, introverted kid with a giant smile. When the training session started, he noticed something else.
“I remember after the first session, going in and just saying, ‘Hey, there's a little young lad in my group, and he's really talented,’” Quinn said.
Raines was a two-footed player with great technique. He used his body well and scanned the field naturally. He understood the game and excelled in rondos and positional play.
The central midfielder continued to impress when moved up to other age groups during the week, a common theme in his life. When the camp concluded, the coaching staff was ready to make an offer.
Residency teams didn’t start until U-15, but his mother, Susie, liked the program so much that she moved from Illinois to Arizona so her son could be a commuter. One year later, he joined the residency program, though his mother stayed close.
Raines always played up during his four-year stay and also made trips to La Masia in Spain to train with the FC Barcelona Academy.
“We kept trying to challenge him,” Quinn said. “Brooklyn's personality was always one where he was quite quiet and shy and introverted, and we would try and stretch the boundaries with him.
“It would take him a little time, but once he got comfortable in an environment, he would then start to grow and get better.”
Naturally skilled, Raines also stood out because he was coachable. Quinn recounted that a halftime talk during a U-19 game sparked a change.
Raines was steady in the first half, but the coaches wanted him to be braver, step higher, and make more forward passes. He took the feedback to heart and collected an assist.
“We had to pull him off after about 20 minutes because he just kept getting fouled; the other team was just trying to hurt him,” Quinn said.
After the game, the coaches compared his passes and interceptions from the first and second halves. The difference was stark.
“Everything we said to him at halftime, he adjusted,” Quinn said.
Toward the end of his tenure at the Barca Residency Academy, Raines became so important that Quinn remembers him as “the best player on our U-19s team, essentially.” It’s high praise considering he was only 15.
A match between the U-19 team and Toronto FC’s second team highlighted Raines’ quality, as he covered the field and scored a stunning goal to help secure a win.
“We didn't even know the athleticism and magic he had in him when it came to scoring goals,” Militar said. “That was the aha moment. That was the end of that period when we knew Brooklyn had arrived and he could play on this level.”
“If It's Been Difficult, That's Good Because That's Stretching You.”
Raines’ first professional opportunity came when he was loaned to El Paso Locomotive of the USL Championship in Sept. 2021. El Paso needed reinforcements as injuries hit late in the season.
Raines, 16, only made three appearances before returning to the Barca Residency Academy, but it was another step in his development.
“A lot of our conversations would be about how this is part of the process,” Quinn said. “If it's been difficult, that's good because that's stretching you.”
Interest in Raines continued to grow, prompting him to sign a Homegrown contract with the Houston Dynamo in Feb. 2022.
“To be honest, he outgrew the level that we could provide him in Arizona,” Quinn said. “Houston had become interested, and they wanted to bring him in, so we said, it's probably the time for him to take that opportunity, because if we keep him here too long, we're going to hold him back.”
In his first season, he played one MLS league game and recorded one goal and three assists in 16 MLS Next Pro appearances. His MLS contributions increased in subsequent years (seven appearances in 2023, 15 appearances in 2024).
He broke out in 2025, making 22 appearances (20 starts) and earning a spot on the league’s 22 Under 22 list. He was also a finalist for the U.S. Soccer Young Male Player of the Year award after being a key contributor for Marko Mitrovic at the FIFA U-20 World Cup.
Ahead of 2026, he was traded to the New England Revolution in a cash-for-player trade worth $1.6 million, plus up to $400,000 in additional compensation if additional conditions are met. It was Mitrovic's first acquisition as the Revolution's head coach.
“I kind of have clarity in the way that I would love the team to play,” Mitrovic said afterward. “That’s one of the positions that is very, very important. Every position is important, but to find the profile for that position somehow, I find it's always completely difficult.”
Raines has been a fixture for the Revolution, contributing 2306 minutes in 26 starts. He has one goal and four assists, his first appearances on an MLS scoresheet.
His efforts earned him a call-up to the U.S. Men’s National Team in September, where he started two games and appeared off the bench in two others.
As in so many past cases, Raines is thriving after adjusting to a new environment.
“He’s a Perfect Human Being.”
Raines’ humility and infectious personality make him easy to root for, something Militar and Quinn have done for years.
Casa Grande is unique, with Militar describing it as an oasis with a golf course, soccer academy, and not much else. While not ideal for most activities, the location is perfect for forging community.
Gwen, Ged’s wife, was the residential director, serving as the mom for 150 kids. She cultivated a space that united the various age groups, and Raines played a big part in that.
“He’s a community guy,” Militar said. “He always had a great relationship with all his teachers and all the RAs and all that.”
Raines would sometimes go back to Barca Residency Academy during the Dynamo’s off-season. The club tried to make a big deal of it, but he preferred to fly under the radar.
Even as his career evolved, he’s stayed connected to his roots. Quinn remembers having breakfast with Raines the day after a Dynamo game, while Militar says that they still talk from time to time.
“He's one of those good guys where there's no criticism that could come out,” Militar said. “There is really none. If you ask me about this, that, and the third player, I will always say something like, ‘There is one side of him that is crazy.’ And not with Brooklyn. He’s a perfect human being.”
Seeing him shine in MLS and with the national team brings pride to those who worked with him in the past, and they believe more success lies ahead.
It’s always hard to project the future of a young, talented player because so many factors are at play.
Quinn believes it’s important that Raines keeps being challenged. Militar predicts he'll do best on a team that plays with the ball and has a supportive locker room. Both coaches believe he can play at the highest level.
“I think he still has potential to keep growing,” Quinn said. “He's the type of player that I think takes the steps maybe a little bit more incrementally, but what I've really been impressed with with Brooklyn is that even if it takes time to get to that next step, he keeps finding the level, and he keeps surpassing it. For me, that's why I would say he still has an upside.”
