FC Dallas Girls Academy Defender Kiara Gilmore to Represent USA at U17 FIFA World Cup

FC Dallas Girls Academy defender Kiara Gilmore made the 21-person roster for team USA to compete in the eighth edition FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in Dominican Republic Oct.16 through Nov. 3.

“I am super excited and honored to be picked for the final roster and I just can't wait to get the games started,” Gilmore said.

The World Cup consists of 16 teams and four groups where the top two teams in each group will qualify for quarterfinals. It will be played in two Dominican Cities: the capital Santo Domingo, at the Estadio Olímpico Félix Sánchez, and in Santiago de los Caballeros, at the CFC Stadium.

Team USA is placed in group B which includes Spain, Korea Republic, and Colombia. Their first game will be against Spain, the back-to-back Champions in 2018 and 2022.

“I think it will be a really good challenge for us,” Gilmore said. “We have been training and preparing a lot for this and the first game against Spain, it will set the tone.”

Gilmore has been training all year going to domestic camps and playing games against other countries trying to get noticed by the USWNT scouts. They initially picked 55 players and then narrowed it down to 21 for the World Cup.

To get there, team USA qualified for the U-17 Women’s World Cup by winning the 2024 Concacaf tournament against their rivals Mexico. Gilmore had three starts and one shot during her second tournament representing the U.S. Youth National Team.

“It was a great opportunity and a great experience,” Gilmore said. “Just the whole tournament in general I learned so much and developed.”

Gilmore has been a part of the FC Dallas Academy for five years and credits her coaches for helping reach the upcoming tournament. Last year, she had committed to play collegiate soccer for the University of Wisconsin.

“I feel like FC Dallas is a great environment to get into because they care so much about development. I feel like I’ve developed more than ever at FC Dallas.”

Trinity Armstrong, a former FCD Girls Academy defender now at the University of North Carolina, has also been included on the USWNT roster. Amstrong, Gilmore and the USA kick off their tournament on Oct. 16 at 3PM at Estadio Olímpico Félix Sánchez and will be broadcast on FS2, Universo and Telemundo.