Racing Louisville marked a new team milestone with the signing of young forward Milly Clegg to a three-year contract, the club announced Monday.
The New Zealand national team member is the youngest player in club history to sign a contract with Racing, joining the team less than three months past her 18th birthday.
Clegg joins Racing after a remarkable stretch in her international career that saw her suit up for the Football Ferns in the U-17, U-20 and senior FIFA Women’s World Cups over a 10-month span. Her remarkable call-up to the 2023 World Cup came when she was 17 years and eight months old – about three months younger than Racing defender and Kiwi legend Abby Erceg was when she was called into the New Zealand squad for the 2007 World Cup.
An Auckland native, Clegg started the 2023-24 season with Western Sydney Wanderers in the Australian A-League Women, but the club and Clegg mutually terminated her contract early for her to join Racing ahead of the 2024 NWSL season. Currently rehabilitating a leg injury, Clegg plans to arrive in Louisville in March.
“Milly is a generational player who already has significant international experience at a young age,” said Racing general manager Ryan Dell. “We cannot wait to see her grow and develop at Racing. She has a unique ability to score goals with exceptional pace, and she will play an important role for us for years to come.”
“Milly has shown incredible ability at such a young age,” first-year Racing coach Bev Yanez said. “We are not only very excited to have her in our environment, but we are also looking forward to continuing to push her game to new heights in helping her develop in specific areas. We’re thrilled to welcome her to Racing!”
“I’m beyond excited to be joining Racing Louisville in the NWSL,” Clegg said. “From the players, coaches and staff to the fans and community, Racing Louisville seems like a very special team and amazing place to be. Thank you to Bev and Ryan for giving me this opportunity to play in such a talented team in a world class league. I can’t wait to get started and join an organization that is hungry to win games and trophies.”
Clegg has been a fixture in the New Zealand Youth National Team setup. She scored twice in the U-17 World Cup and once in the U-20 World Cup. Her scoring ability in the youth national team ranks caught the attention of Football Ferns coach Jitka Klimková, who called the teen phenom “incredible” in bringing her into the senior team. Clegg made her full national team debut in April 2023 and has since rung up four total appearances.
Clegg started out in the National League, New Zealand’s top women’s soccer league. She helped Auckland United win the amateur 2022 Kate Sheppard Cup, the country’s top domestic trophy.
From there, Clegg joined Wellington Phoenix, New Zealand’s only club in Australia’s first division A-League Women. The forward scored four goals in 16 appearances there, finishing among the league’s top 20 goal scorers before she turned 18. She was a finalist for the A-League Women Young Footballer of the Year.
Clegg signed with Western Sydney Wanderers ahead of the 2023-24 campaign and made one appearance there before her injury.
With Racing, Clegg brings versatility to an attacking corps that includes three others who played at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup: Elexa Bahr (Colombia), Uchenna Kanu (Nigeria) and Linda Motlhalo (South Africa).
Louisville also re-signed attackers Kirsten (Davis) Wright, Parker Goins and Maddie Pokorny to new deals and selected UCLA and U.S. Youth National Team star Reilyn Turner and Ohio State winger Emma Sears in the 2024 NWSL Draft.
