Jace Dayton Kotsopoulos (born December 1, 1997) is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays for FC Berlin in the United Premier Soccer League.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Jace Dayton Kotsopoulos | ||
| Date of birth | (1997-12-01) December 1, 1997 (age 24) | ||
| Place of birth | Burlington, Ontario, Canada | ||
| Height | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Oakville SC | |||
| Dixie SC | |||
| Burlington SC | |||
| College career | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2015–2019 | Guelph Gryphons | 61 | (58) |
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2018 | Vaughan Azzurri | 1 | (3) |
| 2019 | Forge FC | 3 | (2) |
| 2020 | York9 FC | 1 | (0) |
| 2021–2022 | Guelph United | 24 | (20) |
| 2022– | FC Berlin | 1 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of October 29, 2022 | |||
Kotsopoulos played youth soccer with Oakville SC, Dixie SC, and Burlington SC.[1][2] When he was 16, he trained with the Spanish club Real Sociedad youth academy.[1]
Kotsopoulous attended the University of Guelph playing for the men's soccer team for five years, where he set the school's all-time goal scoring record with 58 goals, beating the previous mark by nine goals.[3] In his first season, he led the team with 11 goals, being named an OUA Second Team All-Star.[4][5] In his second year, he led the OUA with 17 goals, being named to the OUA West Second Team All Star for the second year in a row, as Guelph won the OUA title and a national bronze medal.[4][6] During his third year, he missed part of the season due to a meniscus tear and missed most of his fifth and final season due to a sprained ankle.[3] In his third season, despite an injury, he was named an OUA West First Team All-Star and a U Sports Second Team All Canadian after scoring ten goals in nine games.[7][8] In his fourth year, he led the Ontario University Athletics with 15 goals in 17 games, being named the U Sports men’s soccer player of the year as well as the OUA male athlete of the year,[3] named OUA West MVP and an OUA First Team All-Star,[9] and he was also named the U Sports soccer player of the year,[10] and was nominated for the U Sports Male Athlete of the Year.[11][12][13][14] In his final season in 2019, he struggled with injuries, but returned in the quarter-finals to score two goals to help Guelph to the OUA Final Four.[15]
In 2018, Kotsopoulos played one league match for League1 Ontario side Vaughan Azzurri and scored a hat-trick.[16] He also played in three league cup matches, scoring three goals, including both of his team's goals in a 2-1 victory over Toronto FC III in the final.[17]
On November 12, 2018, Kotsopoulos was drafted 3rd overall by Forge FC in the 2018 CPL–U Sports Draft.[18] On May 16, 2019, he signed a developmental contract with Forge.[19] On June 12, 2019, Kotsopoulos made his debut as a substitute in the Canadian Championship against Cavalry FC.[20] He made his league debut as a substitute the following weekend, scoring the tying goal in a 2–1 come-from-behind win against Valour FC, which qualified Forge for the 2019 CONCACAF League, and made him one of the youngest goalscorers in league history.[21][22] In August 2019, Kotsopoulos opted to return to the University of Guelph to finish his final semester.[23] He finished the season with two goals in five substitute appearances, including an appearance in the CONCACAF League.[22][24]
On August 9, 2020, York9 announced the signing of Kotsopolous.[25][26] He made his debut on August 22 against Valour FC,[27] which was his only appearance in the short 2020 season.
On March 13, 2021, Kotsopoulos became the first ever player to sign with League1 Ontario expansion side Guelph United.[28] In his debut on July 30, he scored a hat trick against FC London.[29] He led the league in scoring in 2021 with 15 goals in the regular season,[30] and helped the team win the league championship, scoring twice in Guelph's 3-1 victory over Blue Devils FC in the championship final.[31] For the 2021 season, he was named West Division MVP, a West Division MVP, and won the league Golden Boot.[32][33]
In October 2022, he signed with FC Berlin in the United Premier Soccer League.[34]
| Club | Season | League | Playoffs | Domestic Cup | League Cup | Continental | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Vaughan Azzurri | 2018[36] | League1 Ontario | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | – | 3 | 3 | – | 4 | 6 | ||
| Forge FC | 2019 | Canadian Premier League | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 1 | 0 | 5 | 2 | |
| York9 FC | 2020 | Canadian Premier League | 1 | 0 | – | – | – | – | 1 | 0 | ||||
| Guelph United FC | 2021[37] | League1 Ontario | 12 | 15 | 2 | 3 | – | – | – | 14 | 18 | |||
| 2022[38] | League1 Ontario | 12 | 5 | – | 1 | 0 | – | – | 13 | 5 | ||||
| FC Berlin | 2022[39] | United Premier Soccer League | 1 | 0 | – | – | – | – | 1 | 0 | ||||
| Career total | 30 | 25 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 38 | 31 | ||
2018 CPL–U Sports Draft selections | |
|---|---|
| First round | |
| Second round | |
| Third round |
|