Diego Lopez signed his first professional contract with ATL UTD 2 Jan. 24, 2018.
A 16-year-old forward from Chino, California, Lopez comes to ATL UTD 2 after spending his youth career with FC Golden State, which is coached by Jimmy Nordberg, one of the top youth coaches in southern California. Lopez represented the U.S. Youth National Teams at the U-15 and U-17 levels in 2017. He was part of the U-15 squad which won the prestigious Torneo Delle Nazioni in Italy and was one of 20 players called in to the U-17 team for the 2017 Men’s Nike International Friendlies in Lakewood Ranch, Florida.
2017-18 (FC Golden State): Lopez played with the U-16/17 squad and scored five goals in 11 appearances with eight starts.
2016-17 (FC Golden State): With the U-14 team, Lopez scored 16 goals in 21 total appearances. He also made nine appearances, three starts, with the U-15/16 team and scored one goal. Lopez made one appearance as a sub with the U-17/18’s
INTERNATIONAL: Lopez represented the U.S. at the U-15 and U-17 levels in 2017. He was part of the U-15 squad which won the prestigious Torneo Delle Nazioni in Italy and scored the game-tying goal in a 2-1, come-from-behind victory against Russia. Lopez was one of 20 players called in to the U-17 team for the 2017 Men’s Nike International Friendlies in Lakewood Ranch, Florida by head coach John Hackworth. Lopez started against Netherlands and came in as a substitute in the tournament’s final match against Brazil to score the game-tying goal in a 1-1 draw.