Sports stats



MLS New England Revolution

New England Revolution Acquire Defender Will Sands and $600K GAM from Columbus Crew

July 31, 2024 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
New England Revolution News Release


FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - The New England Revolution acquired defender Will Sands and $600,000 in General Allocation Money (GAM) from the Columbus Crew in exchange for defender DeJuan Jones. New England will receive $300,000 in 2024 GAM and $300,000 in 2025 GAM and will retain a portion of the fee if Jones is transferred abroad.

Sands, 24, joins New England after three seasons in Columbus, where the Rye, N.Y. native collected 25 league appearances, including 16 starts, and three assists for the Crew. In 2023, Sands featured in seven games, all starts, and logged two assists, helping Columbus to the MLS Cup title. This season, the left back has posted six appearances, four of them starts, in 2024.

Prior to arriving in Columbus, Sands played three seasons of collegiate soccer at Georgetown University from 2019-21. Sands registered 56 career appearances for the Hoyas, with four goals and five assists. Sands helped Georgetown win the NCAA College Cup during his freshman campaign in 2019, in addition to helping guide the Hoyas to Big East Conference titles in 2019 and 2021. On the youth international level, Sands featured for the United States at the Under-17 and Under-19 levels.

"We are excited to welcome Will Sands, a talented left-footed defender with ample MLS experience, to New England," Revolution Sporting Director Curt Onalfo said of the club's newest acquisition. "Will brings solid MLS experience to our backline and has all the tools to succeed here in New England. Will's arrival provides additional cover for us at the outside back position, which will be an important asset as we pursue a playoff berth over the final 11 games of the season."

Jones departs New England in the midst of his sixth professional season after arriving as a first-round pick in the 2019 MLS SuperDraft. The Lansing, Mich. native registered 142 MLS appearances for New England, including 127 starts, with six goals and 22 assists. Jones helped the Revolution qualify for the MLS Cup Playoffs in four of his five seasons with the club, including an appearance in the Eastern Conference Final in 2020 and the club's first Supporters' Shield title in 2021.

"The entire Revolution organization is tremendously grateful to have had DeJuan Jones representing our club for the past five-and-a-half seasons," Onalfo said. "DeJuan is an exceptional person and a true professional who has always given his best to the club on the field, in the locker room, and in the community. We wish DeJuan all the best in Columbus and will always consider him part of the Revolution family."

New England returns to action next Tuesday, August 6, when the Revolution host Nashville SC in the final match of the Leagues Cup 2024 Group Stage. The Revolution currently sit first in East Group 5 entering Wednesday night's action, following their 1-0 win against Mazatlán FC in the group stage opener. Tuesday's 7:30 p.m. ET match airs nationally on FS1 and is free to watch on the Apple TV app in English and Spanish.

TRANSACTION: New England Revolution acquire defender Will Sands and $600,000 in General Allocation Money from the Columbus Crew in exchange for defender DeJuan Jones on July 31, 2024. The Revolution will receive $300,000 in 2024 GAM and $300,000 in 2025 GAM and will retain a portion of the fee if Jones is transferred abroad.

REVOLUTION MEDIA CENTER

WILL SANDS

Full Name: Will Sands

Position: Defender

Height: 5-10

Weight: 150 lbs.

Date of Birth: July 6, 2000 (24)

Hometown: Rye, New York

Previous Club: Columbus Crew

Nationality: United States

Acquired: Trade with Columbus Crew on July 31, 2024.

SANDS AT A GLANCE

Third-year pro owns 25 MLS appearances over three seasons with the Columbus Crew (2022-24).

Made seven starts in 2023 for the MLS Cup champion Columbus Crew.

Played three seasons of collegiate soccer at Georgetown University, where he logged four goals and five assists over 56 appearances.

Helped the Hoyas win the 2019 NCAA College Cup.

Announced as a Homegrown Player signing by Columbus following a trade with New York City FC in January 2022.

Twin brother of NYCFC midfielder James Sands.

Check out the New England Revolution Statistics

• Discuss this story on the Major League Soccer message board...

Major League Soccer Stories from July 31, 2024


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central