Anthony White (soccer)

Anthony White (born August 1, 2003) is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a centre-back.

Early life

White began playing youth soccer with Port Moody SC. Afterwards, he played youth soccer with Coquitlam Metro-Ford SC. He also captained the British Columbia provincial team and had trials with the youth teams of Croatian clubs Dinamo Zagreb (in 2016 and 2017) and HNK Šibenik (in 2019), German club 1. FC Nürnberg (in 2018), and the Vancouver Whitecaps Academy. In 2019, White was part of a group of 16 Generation Adidas players invited to train in Spain with Real Madrid and at the Spanish national training centre.

University career

In 2021, White began attending the University of Toronto, where he played for the men's soccer team. He scored his first goal on October 23, 2021 against the Algoma Thunderbirds. In 2022, he was named an OUA East Second Team All-Star.

Club career

In May 2022, he joined TSS FC Rovers in League1 British Columbia. He helped the club win the 2022 championship, starting in the championship final victory over Varsity FC.

In December 2022, White was selected first overall in the 2023 CPL-U Sports Draft by Vancouver FC, becoming the youngest player ever to be selected with the first pick. After attending pre-season with the club, he signed a two-year professional contract with Vancouver in March 2023, with an option to extend the deal until 2026. He made his professional debut on April 22, in a substitute appearance, against York United FC. After limited playing time to start the season, he earned his first start on June 17 against Atlético Ottawa, which led to a string of 16 consecutive starts. In late June, he was named to the CPL Team of the Week for the first time.

Personal life

He has a brother, Nikolas, who also plays soccer as a centre-back; the two played together for TSS FC Rovers, where they won the League1 BC Championship in 2022.