There is a new Designated Player in Seattle and he’s more than ready to make his presence known as he embarks on his next chapter with the Sounders.
Arguably one of the most lethal No. 9’s in Major League Soccer, Dejan Joveljić joins the Rave Green during the summer transfer window from Sporting Kansas City on a $6 million deal.
“We couldn't be happier than to welcome him here,” said General Manager & Chief Soccer Officer Craig Waibel. “It's a good day for our club to be able to bring a player like Decki in… He’s a true competitor.”
The Serbian international comes in with a decade of professional experience, winning three titles — including an MLS Cup — and contributing to 107 career all-competition goals in 265 appearances since 2016.
He has an obvious knack for goal — something that will benefit the Sounders immensely as the team looks to return to winning form. Back in 2024, it was Joveljić who scored the decisive goal to knock the Sounders out in the Western Conference Finals. Two years later, and he’s poised to spark a run for Seattle as the team pushes for more trophies.
“I'm a striker who works hard, who is helping the team in every possible way,” said Joveljić. “I can score with left, right, head — it doesn't matter. If Seattle is playing the way they played the last couple of years, I'm going to score a lot of goals, and I'm ready for it.”
Upon reflecting on what the team needs at the moment, as well as what is needed long-term, Joveljić checked all of the boxes.
“He knows our league. He fits our culture, and I think this is going to pay dividends, hopefully, for the Seattle Sounders and give [him] a home for many years,” said Head Coach Brian Schmetzer.
It was a no-brainer for Schmetzer and Waibel to pursue the top-tier striker. And the feelings were mutual for Joveljić. During his initial phone call with the club, he immediately saw his future in Seattle. He said that within only a few minutes into the conversation, he gave them his word that he was going to come to Seattle.
From his fellow Serbian Nikola Petkovic voicing that the team was the best group of guys he’d ever met, to the club’s history of success, he knew this was the perfect next step in his career.
“When you say Seattle, you mean winning. This team has always been in top positions. This team wins trophies,” said Joveljić. “And I'm just here to help to score and to bring the trophy where it belongs.”
A historic transaction for the Seattle Sounders, none of it would have been possible without the commitment of veteran midfielder Albert Rusnák, who agreed to restructure his contract so the club could allocate a top player like Joveljić.
“We have a lot of great people in our locker room, Albert being one of them. We weren't going to get in a conversation about reconstructing his deal without a player coming in that was going to be impressive for him, one that he felt was going to help us win and lift trophies,” said Waibel.
“Albert deserves a lot of praise for the way he's gone about the last seven to nine days, in order to construct a deal that made sense for him and his family, that made sense for the club, and also made sense for us to be able to move and bring Dejan on in.”
