| Danny Leyva | |
| Full Name: | Daniel Ulises Leyva[1] |
| Birth Date: | 5 May 2003 |
| Birth Place: | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States |
| Height: | [2] |
| Position: | Defensive midfielder |
| Currentclub: | Seattle Sounders FC |
| Clubnumber: | 75 |
| Youthclubs1: | Barcelona USA Academy |
| Youthyears2: | 2017–2019 |
| Youthclubs2: | Seattle Sounders FC |
| Years1: | 2018– |
| Clubs1: | Tacoma Defiance |
| Caps1: | 31 |
| Goals1: | 2 |
| Years2: | 2019– |
| Clubs2: | Seattle Sounders FC |
| Caps2: | 54 |
| Goals2: | 0 |
| Years3: | 2023 |
| Clubs3: | → Colorado Rapids (loan) |
| Caps3: | 16 |
| Goals3: | 0 |
| Nationalyears1: | 2018 |
| Nationalteam1: | United States U16 |
| Nationalcaps1: | 5 |
| Nationalgoals1: | 1 |
| Nationalyears2: | 2019 |
| Nationalteam2: | United States U17 |
| Nationalcaps2: | 10 |
| Nationalgoals2: | 0 |
| Nationalyears3: | 2021 |
| Nationalteam3: | United States U20 |
| Nationalcaps3: | 2 |
| Nationalgoals3: | 0 |
| Nationalyears4: | 2023– |
| Nationalteam4: | United States U23 |
| Nationalcaps4: | 5 |
| Nationalgoals4: | 1 |
| Club-Update: | October 7, 2023 |
| Nationalteam-Update: | November 16, 2021 |
Daniel Ulises Leyva (born May 5, 2003) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a defensive midfielder for Major League Soccer club Seattle Sounders FC.
Leyva was raised in Las Vegas, Nevada; his father Ulises had played in the youth academy of Club América in Mexico City, but left the sport to pursue a career in civil engineering.[3] Leyva played for the Barcelona USA Academy in Las Vegas before joining the Seattle Sounders FC Academy at the age of 13. Leyva was placed on Seattle's under-15 team ahead of the 2017–18 season, but was later moved to the under-17 squad.[4] [5] [6]
He made his debut for the Sounders reserve team in the United Soccer League (USL) on September 29, 2018, during a 3–1 loss to San Antonio FC, becoming the second-youngest player in league history.[4] [7] Leyva signed a full USL contract with the team the following month and began training with the senior team during the 2019 preseason, appearing in friendlies against the Portland Timbers and Club Nacional.[3] Leyva signed a homegrown contract with Seattle Sounders FC on April 9, 2019, becoming the youngest player in the team's history.[8] He made his first-team debut on June 5, 2019, as a late substitute during an away loss to the Montreal Impact, becoming the third-youngest player in the league's history.[9] Leyva played in 12 matches during the 2022 season and had two assists as a temporary replacement for injured midfielders João Paulo and Obed Vargas until they returned mid-season.[10]
On April 24, 2023, the Sounders loaned Leyva to the Colorado Rapids for the rest of the season in exchange for a future MLS SuperDraft pick and $92,000 in general allocation money.[10]
In October 2019, Leyva was named to the United States squad for the 2019 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Brazil.[11]
Leyva who has only played for U.S. youth national teams, also holds the option to be called up by Mexico.[12]
Born in the United States, Leyva is of Mexican descent.[13]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Tacoma Defiance | 2018 | USL | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | ||||
| 2019 | USL | 14 | 1 | — | — | — | 14 | 1 | |||||
| 2020 | USL | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | |||||
| 2021 | USL | 6 | 0 | — | — | — | 6 | 0 | |||||
| 2022 | MLS Next Pro | 9 | 1 | — | — | — | 9 | 1 | |||||
| Total | 31 | 2 | — | — | — | 31 | 2 | ||||||
| Seattle Sounders FC | 2019 | MLS | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 7 | 0 | |||
| 2020 | MLS | 2 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | ||||
| 2021 | MLS | 24 | 0 | — | — | — | 24 | 0 | |||||
| 2022 | MLS | 19 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 22 | 0 | |||
| 2023 | MLS | 3 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 54 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 60 | 0 | |||
| Colorado Rapids (loan) | 2023 | MLS | 16 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | 19 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 101 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 110 | 2 | |||
Seattle Sounders FC
Individual