This soccer phenom is ready to soar. Faith and family keep him grounded
Real Salt Lake midfielder Zavier Gozo poses for a portrait at America First Field in Sandy after team practice on Friday, May 1, 2026. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News It’s 1:30 p.m. on a Friday. Zavier Gozo opens the door behind his mom, Esther Gozo, in their Eagle Mountain, Utah, home. For the past half hour, Esther and I have been speaking over Zoom about how her son became one of the most talked-about names in American soccer. Zavier, who is just 19, says hello to me before hugging his mother goodbye. He is about to leave for Texas to play in Real Salt Lake’s game against FC Dallas the next day. But he couldn’t leave without telling Esther goodbye. Esther Gozo wishes her son safe travels and asks if he has everything he needs. He does. “Love you, bud,” she says as he walks away. If life goes Zavier Gozo’s way, this type of scene could soon be playing out in Europe. The Utah-born phenom could be hugging his mother goodbye before heading off to play matches for his new Champions League team — in stadiums double to quadruple the size of Real Salt Lake’s America First Field and with the sport’s most prestigious players. At just 19, Gozo is the leading goal scorer for his hometown Major League Soccer club. His coach calls him the team’s “golden child” who plays with an “unwavering belief in himself.” His acrobatic goals go viral. Some soccer pundits and fans demanded the “uncapped teen” represent the U.S. at next month’s World Cup, though he reportedly didn’t make the cut. He’s been garnering the interest of Champions League teams. Real Salt Lake’s Zavier Gozo smiles and fans cheer after he scored a goal as they and Club America play in the Leagues Cup Phase One at America First Field in Sandy on Wednesday, July 30, 2025. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News But Zavier Gozo believes he’s “much more than just a soccer player.”“I think first of all, I’m a child of God and that’s what I’m here to be,” the teenager told me while sitting in the east stands of America First Field after training earlier this month, still dressed in his gray training kit. “And I’m here to help people and share his light and share his word.” I feel like my only love was soccer.Zavier GozoUpbringing and journey to Real Salt LakeZavier Gozo stands barefoot on the grass of one of Real’s practice fields in Herriman, Utah. The fearless winger isn’t playing, but he has a soccer ball at his feet as he watches teammates scrimmage. A whistle signals the end of training. Gozo — still barefoot — dribbles over and sends a shot into the empty goal.The relationship between Zavier Gozo and a soccer ball has always been magnetic. “My dad was a coach, so he kind of groomed me to be a soccer player for sure,” Gozo said. “I feel like my only love was soccer.”His middle name — “Didier” — pays homage to the Ivorian great Didier Drogba, whose Chelsea jersey Gozo used to sleep in. He started playing rec soccer in West Valley, Utah, at just 3 years old. At his first game, his oversized T-shirt/jersey went down to his knees. He was so happy to have his own little shin guards and cleats, Esther Gozo recalled. In that first game, Zavier scored all the goals, according to his father, Alban Gozo, who recalls asking the coach to take his son out of the game for a few minutes to give the other kids a chance.You could tell that there was something there.Andrew MayAt age 14, Zavier Gozo joined Real Salt Lake Academy, the MLS team’s residential youth soccer development program. “You could tell that there was something there,” said his former academy head coach, Andrew May. “He was very relentless in his training.”The intrinsic motivation Gozo possessed was evident even at the academy, and May knew that “the ceiling was going to be very high for him.”In his first season, some of Gozo’s teammates were called up to play for the Real Monarchs, Real Salt Lake’s reserve MLS NEXT Pro team. But Gozo was not.“Let’s not fast track this,” May recalled being told. “Let’s be patient. Let’s make sure that he’s getting what he needs.”Frustrated, the future RSL star met with May. He remembers his coach telling him to be patient and that “it was what’s best for me in the long run.”“I think if I had gone earlier, I feel like my development wouldn’t have gone the way it did,” Gozo said.He finished that first season with 16 regular-season goals and added another five in the MLS NEXT Cup tournament. It was after that first season that Gozo realized his dream of pursuing soccer professionally was possible.In December 2022, at 15, the Real Monarchs signed Gozo to a MLS NEXT Pro professional contract. He made his Real Salt Lake debut the following October and signed his homegrown contract with RSL in February 2024. Real Salt Lake midfielder Zavier Gozo poses for a portrait at America First Field in Sandy after team practice on Friday, May 1, 2026. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News But as he transitioned to Real’s first team, he realized what most young players realize in that situation — he was no longer the best on his team. “You get up there, and you think you’re the best player,” Gozo said. “You get into practice, you become the worst player all of a sudden, and you have to climb the ranks. I think that was the biggest shock for me.”Gozo earned his first start on April 29, 2025. It’s a moment, the young star thinks of often.“I feel like every game I play I want to be as hungry as I was then,” he said.I feel like if I’m right with my faith, I play well on the field and I am happier off the field.Zavier GozoAbout a month later on May 24, 2025, he scored his first goal, 50 seconds into the match against the Vancouver Whitecaps. Upon scoring the goal, Gozo didn’t know what to do, so he ran to the corner nearest the goal and screamed. His family was seated in that corner section and ran down the stairs toward him. “We’re watching. It just goes in. We just start freaking out,” his older brother Elijah Gozo said. “I think none of us really knew what to do.”That moment is Esther Gozo’s favorite from her son’s Real Salt Lake career.“I’d never had such an adrenaline rush,” she said.That first goal came in the middle of a special, whirlwind weekend for the then-18-year-old. Two days prior, he graduated high school, and the day after the goal, he baptized one of his former teammates and best friends into the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.‘God has a perfect plan for me’ Real Salt Lake midfielder Zavier Gozo speaks as he’s interviewed by the Deseret News at America First Field in Sandy after team practice on Friday, May 1, 2026. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News Zavier Gozo has built his life and his soccer career on the foundation of his faith.As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Gozo regularly attends the temple, a dedicated house of worship where church members participate in sacred ordinances. Gozo also studies the church’s Sunday School curriculum daily.“I always say God has a perfect plan for me and whatever happens is what’s supposed to happen,” he said. “So I think that helps me play free during the games and live my life. Whether good or bad happens, I feel like it’s what’s meant for me.” The morning before a Real Salt Lake match, you’ll find Gozo at what Latter-day Saints believe is the House of the Lord. Last year, he decided to include worshipping in the temple as part of his prematch routine. Inside the temple, he’s reminded of “what I’m really here for and what life really means to me.”“I feel like a lot of times I get too hyped up, and when I’m too hyped up, I don’t play my best,” Gozo said. “So, I just like to be in a calm mindset and feel like the Lord is with me.”Gozo believes that if he prioritizes his faith, it shows on the pitch.“I feel like if I’m right with my faith, I play well on the field and I am happier off the field,” he said.Gozo didn’t always prioritize God. But following some serious internal reflection roughly two years ago, he committed to changing that, he said.A quick scroll through Gozo’s Instagram reveals that he uses scripture verses as captions for the majority of his posts.“Soccer is a tool that I can use to spread the light that God has given me and all the blessings that he’s given me,” Gozo said.Every match, he plays with a white, makeshift wristband with a scripture verse scrawled on it. He chooses a new verse every season. This year, it’s Jeremiah 1:8: “Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the Lord.” Real Salt Lake forward Zavier Gozo (72) loses his cleat during a challenge by Seattle Sounders defender Yeimar Gómez (28) during the first half of the game at America First Field in Sandy on Saturday, Feb. 28, 2026. | Rio Giancarlo, Deseret News Underneath the scripture, he writes “Just be you” and the names of his mother and girlfriend, Afton Perry, who plays soccer for BYU.“I think it’s just a reminder every time I step on the pitch who I’m playing for and what I should be,” he said. His older brother has seen faith ground Gozo as the spotlight grows and pressure builds — especially with Europe looming.“I think the reason why he’s been able to kind of stay grounded and stay humble and get through all those things is just being so centered in Christ and having that relationship with him, and having a good relationship with his family,” Elijah Gozo said.Perry, who often attends the temple and studies scriptures with her boyfriend, said Gozo has “relied on the Lord more” as his life and career have gotten “crazier.”“Alot of people try to find their confidence from awards or the fame or what other people have to say,” Perry said. “But I think he finds his confidence and true value, again, from his faith and what he believes.”Whether I do good or do bad, I go home. I hug my mom.When Gozo was in elementary school, he and his father were at The Humanitarian Center of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, where Alban Gozo volunteered as a teacher. The father and son were about to head to Burger King when Alban Gozo realized he had lost his wallet. Zavier Gozo suggested they pray to find it. Alban Gozo hadn’t even thought to pray — it “was too elementary for me,” he said — but he asked his son if he would like to say the prayer. The young Zavier obliged.Still unable to find the wallet, they left the humanitarian center. But after leaving the parking lot, Alban Gozo’s phone rang. Someone had found the wallet, which meant Zavier’s prayer was answered — and he was able to get his burger after all.A safe space away from soccer Real Salt Lake midfielder Zavier Gozo (72) gives fans a thumbs up as he exits the game as Real Salt lake and Portland Timbers play at America First Field in Sandy on Saturday, May 2, 2026. Real won 2-0. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Once Zavier has left the room, I ask his mother if she has time for a couple more questions. The first one brings her to tears.What’s one thing everyone should know about her son?“You’re going to make me cry,” she said. “He’s got a great heart. I’m so proud of him, and I think the gospel helped with that for sure, keeps him humble. But he really has a sweet heart. He treats me very well. … He just really cherishes and works to have good relationships with his family and now with his girlfriend and her family.”Esther and Alban Gozo separated when Zavier was 8 and divorced three years later. Though Alban is still very involved in all of their lives, Esther, Zavier and Elijah became a “good tight unit” following the separation. She considers her son one of her “good friends.”After two years living in the dorms at the academy, Gozo moved home at 16 and still lives with his mom in Eagle Mountain.Being able to come home after every training session and match helps the young star never “get too low or too high.”“Whether I do good or do bad, I go home. I hug my mom,” he said.Esther and her ex-husband worked to make their family a safe space for their son away from soccer, she tells me.“It was never about being a pro to us, to me or his dad,” Esther Gozo said. “It was just do your best, and we’re always here no matter what happens, no matter what the result of the game is.”Real Salt Lake’s ‘golden child’ Real Salt Lake forward Zavier Gozo (72) shoots past Inter Miami midfielder Telasco Segovia (8) during the second half of an MLS game at America First Field in Sandy on Wednesday, April 22, 2026. | Rio Giancarlo When Zavier Gozo isn’t practicing or playing soccer, he’s your typical teenager. He enjoys playing Skip-Bo, UNO and Nertz with his family, though his brother says he “definitely” is not as good at card games as he is at soccer. He has a habit of leaving the lights on — that’s how his mom knows he’s been home — and he often sings around the house. (His go-to is Mario’s “Let Me Love You.”)“I don’t think I have the best voice in the world, but I do love to sing,” he said.His unwavering belief in himself is what’s really setting himself apart.Pablo MastroeniHe plays Just Dance and Super Mario Bros. with Perry. He watches and attends as many of her BYU games as he can, including spring scrimmages, and he gets mad when his career prevents him from being there. He attends her siblings’ soccer games, where he is often recognized by young Real Salt Lake fans. “My parents always think it’s crazy how one second they’re watching him on TV (doing) all these crazy things, and then the next second, he’s just at our house just being himself and being a 19-year-old kid,” Perry said. At practice, he’s often smiling as he visits with his teammates. When he leaves the practice field, he greets Real’s communications team with high-fives and fist bumps.Real Salt Lake head coach Pablo Mastroeni called Gozo “one of the most wonderful, joyful, happy, smiling, pleasant players I’ve ever met.”“I think he’s ingratiated himself in a way where he’s friends with everyone in the locker room,” Mastroeni said. “He gets on with everyone on the staff. He’s a model, a representative of this club and the state, and so he’s really our golden child.” ‘The sky’s the limit’ Sporting Kansas City midfielder Nemanja Radoja (6) and Real Salt Lake forward Zavier Gozo (72) battle for a header during the first half of the game at America First Field in Sandy on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025. | Rio Giancarlo, Deseret News Gozo’s game is defined by creativity and confidence. While trying to break into Real’s first team, Gozo learned to play with a sense of fearlessness. That came with some hiccups early on, as Mastroeni would talk with his young star about if he made the best decision on a play. Gozo made his share of mistakes, but Mastroeni said that hasn’t stopped him — noting the young star’s recent goals with “low percentage chances” of success.“His unwavering belief in himself is what’s really setting himself apart because he’s willing to go against conventional thought in certain plays,” Mastroeni said. “But he makes the play.”Growing up, Zavier and Elijah would practice moves they saw on YouTube, including Zlatan Ibrahimović’s legendary bicycle kicks, which they dreamed of scoring in a real game. That dream came to fruition last season when Zavier Gozo scored one for Real Salt Lake. It’s his favorite moment of his career.Bicycle kick from Zavier Gozo!! 🚲 pic.twitter.com/FEsE3FTDuh— Major League Soccer (@MLS) September 18, 2025Mastroeni said Gozo’s defending has improved, and he’s learned to preserve his energy through better defending and understanding of tactical concepts. “His improvement has been through the roof, and if he keeps going at this pace, the sky’s the limit for Gozo,” he said.To take his game to the next level, Mastroeni said Gozo just needs “more games in an environment like we have here that is psychologically safe for the young players” to make and learn from his mistakes, instead of at other clubs where “you get yanked out of games” for those same errors.Mastroeni said he sees the Utahn becoming a star on both the national team and eventually in Europe, home of the sports’ most prestigious teams and players. “He’s the prototype of what you want from a modern soccer player, which is highly technical, goal-scoring threat, assist threat,” Mastroeni said. “Physically he’s on par with some of the best players in the world, I’d imagine, given that he’s one of the top players in MLS.” Zavier Gozo’s soccer future Real Salt Lake midfielder Zavier Gozo takes a selfie with a fan as players sign autographs after a team practice at America First Field in Sandy on Friday, May 1, 2026. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News On Tuesday, at New York City’s South Street Seaport’s Pier 17, U.S. national team head coach Mauricio Pochettino will unveil his 26-player roster for the World Cup.Real Salt Lake hoped two of its players would be on it — Gozo and Diego Luna. But The Athletic reported Friday that both players were informed they will not represent the U.S. at the World Cup.On Monday, Gozo told The Guardian, who published the entire U.S. roster Saturday, that he and Luna both received an email Friday after training, informing them that they had not made the roster.“I thought I would be less disappointed than I was,” he said. “Obviously, it wasn’t like I was supposed to go. I feel like I was disappointed, but I also think it just gave me so much more motivation to be able to make the first team, whenever that is.”Prior to the news, Gozo had told me he was “extremely flattered to be in that conversation.”I feel like you don’t grow when you’re comfortable.Zavier GozoJust to be in consideration for one of the 26 roster spots is significant for a 19-year-old who has never been called up to the senior national team. “To represent the senior team in the World Cup would be my biggest dream probably,” Gozo said. “I think the World Cup is the pinnacle of all soccer, so I think representing my country that I’ve grown up in and that’s given me so much, I feel like is my dream.”His other dream is to play in Europe. In April, Gozo appeared on “MLS Countdown” and was asked about his “dream scenario” with “some big-time clubs in Europe sniffing around Zavier Gozo.”“In the summer window, obviously, I’d like to go to Europe,” he said. “That’s been my dream for as long as I could remember. I think that’s the perfect time for me to take the next step. And if I have that opportunity, I 100% want to take it.”"In the summer window I'd like to go to Europe." 👀Zavier Gozo talked to the MLS Countdown Crew about his club future and USMNT hopes. 🌟 pic.twitter.com/ZeSjZdKN7c— MLS on Air (@MLSonAir) April 28, 2026Gozo reiterated that hope in our recent conversation.“I want to play in Europe,” he said. “I want to play in Champions League. I want to play in the biggest competitions and play for the best leagues. … I feel like I’m developing at a fast pace, and I think going over there, I would be able to adapt quick at the stage that I am.”But Gozo can’t just leave for Europe on his own volition. He is still under contract with Real through 2027 and with club options through 2029, suitors for his services will have to make a handsome offer to Real Salt Lake to buy his rights.Whenever Gozo leaves for Europe, it will be quite the change — both personally and professionally — after spending his entire life and career in Utah, but his family supports his decision. His parents may even take turns staying in Europe while he adjusts to his new life and environment.New tests await the young star as he’ll have to climb the ranks of his new team, much like he first did with Real. But he’s at peace with the challenge. “It will be hard I think, for sure, but I feel like you don’t grow when you’re comfortable,” Gozo said. “I think thisis the place where I’m comfortable. So I think given that, I think I need to get out of my comfort zone.” Real Salt Lake midfielder Zavier Gozo (72) looks over at fans as he exits the game as Real Salt lake and Portland Timbers play at America First Field in Sandy on Saturday, May 2, 2026. Real won 2-0. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News It’s his relationship with God that’s given him that peace, and much like the scripture on his wristband says, he won’t be alone. Wherever Gozo ends up and whatever life throws his way, he’ll always have his family and his faith to anchor and guide him.“The Lord’s given me peace in my heart that this is the right time for me to go, and that’s my biggest pushing factor,” he said. “That’s why I feel so good about it.”
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