Real Salt Lake signs five teenage Academy products to Homegrown Contracts

Real Salt Lake has announced the signing of five teenage Academy products to Homegrown Contracts: 15-year-old midfielder Jude Wellings, 16-year-old midfielder Julio Benitez, 16-year-old goalkeeper Gavin Beavers, 17-year-old defender Jaziel Orozco and 14-year-old forward Axel Kei.

Each of the Homegrown signings were announced over the course of this week. Follow the links below to view the full individual announcements on each player:

TRANSACTION 1: Real Salt Lake have signed midfielder Jude Wellings as a Homegrown Player on January 10, 2022.

Jude Wellings
Pronunciation: Jude Wellings
Position: Midfielder
Date of Birth: April 26, 2006
Age: 15
Hometown: Birmingham, Michigan
Citizenship: United States
Last Club: RSL Academy
How Acquired: Signed on January 10, 2021

TRANSACTION 2: Real Salt Lake sign Julio Benitez as a Homegrown Player on January 11, 2022.

Julio Benitez
Pronunciation: BEEN-E-tez
Position: Midfielder
Height: 5’8″
Weight: 139 pounds
Date of Birth: July 30, 2005
Age: 16
Hometown: Mesa, Arizona
Citizenship: United States
Last Club: Real Monarchs
How Acquired: Signed on January 11, 2021

TRANSACTION 3: Real Salt Lake sign goalkeeper Gavin Beavers on January 12, 2022.

Gavin Beavers
Pronunciation: Gav-IN
Position: Goalkeeper
Height: 6’4″
Weight: 183 pounds
Date of Birth: April 29, 2005
Age: 16
Hometown: Henderson, Nevada
Citizenship: United States
Last Club: Real Monarchs
How Acquired: Signed on January 12, 2021

TRANSACTION 4: Real Salt Lake have signed defender Jaziel Orozco as a Homegrown Player on January 13, 2022.

Jaziel Orozco
Pronunciation: HA-see-el OR-AHH-sco
Position: Defender
Height: 5’9”
Weight: 183 pounds
Date of Birth: June 2, 2004
Age: 17
Birthplace: Ciudad Juárez, Mexico
Hometown: El Paso, Texas
Citizenship: United States and Mexico
Last Club: Real Monarchs
How Acquired: Signed on January 13, 2021

TRANSACTION 5: Real Salt Lake Axel Kei to a Homegrown Player contract.

Axel Kei
Pronunciation: Axle KAY
Position: Forward
Height: 6’4″
Weight: 183 pounds
Date of Birth: December 30, 2007
Age: 14
Birthplace: Ivory Coast
Hometown: San Diego, California
Citizenship: United States
Last Club: RSL Academy
How Acquired: Signed on January 14, 2021