Wilfredo Alejandro Rivera Cepeda (born October 14, 2003) is a Puerto Rican footballer who plays as a winger for Orlando City of Major League Soccer, and the Puerto Rico national team.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Wilfredo Alejandro Rivera Cepeda | ||
| Date of birth | (2003-10-14) October 14, 2003 (age 19) | ||
| Place of birth | San Juan, Puerto Rico | ||
| Height | 1.68 m (5 ft 6 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Winger, forward | ||
| Club information | |||
Current team | Orlando City | ||
| Number | 32 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2008–2010 | Academia Quintana | ||
| 2010–2017 | Clay County Soccer Club | ||
| 2017–2018 | Jacksonville FC | ||
| 2018–2020 | Orlando City | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2020– | Orlando City B | 25 | (4) |
| 2021– | Orlando City | 0 | (0) |
| 2022 | → Indy Eleven (loan) | 11 | (0) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2018 | United States U16 | ||
| 2019 | Puerto Rico U17 | 3 | (0) |
| 2021– | Puerto Rico U20 | 3 | (1) |
| 2021– | Puerto Rico | 8 | (0) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of October 15, 2022 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of June 12, 2022 | |||
Rivera grew up in the Quintana barrio of San Juan, Puerto Rico and began playing soccer for the Academia Quintana team.[1][2] His family moved to Florida, United States in 2010 and he joined Clay County Soccer Club.[3] After seven seasons at Clay County SC, Rivera moved to Jacksonville FC before joining the SIMA/Orlando City DA program at Montverde Academy.[4][5]
In March 2020, Rivera signed an academy contract with Orlando City B, Orlando City's USL League One affiliate.[6] He made his debut in the season opener on August 1, 2020, starting against South Georgia Tormenta[7] and scored his first goal for the club the following week in a 2–0 victory over New England Revolution II.[8] He started in all 15 games and finished the season as the team's top scorer with three goals.[9]
Having originally committed to playing college soccer for South Florida Bulls beginning fall 2021,[10] Rivera joined the Orlando City senior team's preseason camp ahead of the 2021 season and on March 22, 2021, signed a professional three-year homegrown contract. He became the club's ninth homegrown and second youngest player to sign a first-team contract after Tommy Redding in 2014.[9]
Rivera continued to play for Orlando City B during the inaugural 2022 MLS Next Pro season until July 25, 2022, when he joined USL Championship side Indy Eleven on loan for the remainder of the season.[11]
In September 2018, Rivera was called-up to the United States under-16 training camp.[3]
Rivera made his Puerto Rico under-17 debut in 2019 during 2019 CONCACAF U-17 Championship qualifying and later represented the team during the knockout stage, starting in a 2–1 loss to Mexico in the Round of 16.[12][13]
On January 19, 2021, he made his senior debut with Puerto Rico as an 80th-minute substitute in a friendly 1–0 win over Dominican Republic.[14][15]
As of October 15, 2022[16]
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Playoffs | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Orlando City B | 2020 | USL League One | 15 | 3 | — | — | 15 | 3 | ||
| 2022 | MLS Next Pro | 10 | 1 | — | — | 10 | 1 | |||
| Total | 25 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 4 | ||
| Indy Eleven | 2022 | USL Championship | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 11 | 0 | |
| Career total | 36 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 4 | ||
Orlando City SC – current squad | |
|---|---|