.jpg) Acosta withFC Cincinnati in 2023 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Luciano Federico Acosta | ||
| Date of birth | (1994-05-31)31 May 1994 (age 31) | ||
| Place of birth | Buenos Aires, Argentina | ||
| Height | 1.60 m (5 ft 3 in) | ||
| Position | Attacking midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Fluminense | ||
| Number | 32 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Comunicaciones | |||
| 2007–2014 | Boca Juniors | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2014–2016 | Boca Juniors | 25 | (2) |
| 2015 | →Estudiantes (loan) | 27 | (1) |
| 2016 | →D.C. United (loan) | 31 | (3) |
| 2017–2019 | D.C. United | 95 | (21) |
| 2020–2021 | Atlas | 33 | (3) |
| 2021–2024 | FC Cincinnati | 125 | (48) |
| 2025 | FC Dallas | 21 | (5) |
| 2025– | Fluminense | 27 | (4) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 3 February 2026 | |||
Luciano Federico "Lucho" Acosta (born 31 May 1994) is an Argentine professionalfootballer who plays as anattacking midfielder forCampeonato Brasileiro Série A clubFluminense.[1]
Acosta began his professional career withBoca Juniors and later moved to the United States. There, he played forMajor League Soccer clubsD.C. United,FC Cincinnati, andFC Dallas from 2016 to 2025.
Acosta joined the youth ranks of the "Xeneize" club at the age of 14, after a brief stint atClub Comunicaciones. From a very young age, he faced growth issues, similar to those encountered by the successful footballerLionel Messi. Acosta once mentioned that a medical professional told him that he would no longer grow, but he persevered by accepting his short stature.[2][3]
In the youth divisions, he was for a considerable time a substitute for the currentRoma player,Leandro Paredes, who at that time was regarded as the club’s top youth prospect. As both played in the same position, Acosta's debut was delayed by a few years.[4]
He would play another match, this time againstBelgrano de Córdoba at home, in a game without an audience due to incidents that occurred during the 2013 Torneo Inicial. In this match, he came on as a substitute forNahuel Zarate in the 72nd minute of the second half and scored his first goal in the top flight. However, his team would lose the match 3–2.[5]
He played his third consecutive match as a first-division footballer, again in the same tournament, againstAtlético Rafaela, where he started the match.[6] He played his fourth match, his second consecutive one as a starter, againstEstudiantes de La Plata, in a 1-0 victory for his team, where he stood out as one of the top performers of the match.[7] He played two more matches from the start, which included a loss toVélez in round 5[8] and a home victory againstOlimpo, where he delivered a notable performance.[9]
His next match was againstRacing Club atEl Cilindro, where his team secured a victory.[10] In that match, he came on as a substitute and helped Boca Juniors score the winning goal.
In the next game, he started again and delivered another good performance, assisting onEmmanuel Gigliotti's goal, which gave his team a short lead.The match ended in a draw.[11] He played another match as a starter againstQuilmes.
In round 10, Boca Juniors faced River Plate, where Acosta came on in the 66th minute as a substitute forJuan Sánchez Miño, but his team lost 2–1. In the next match againstRosario Central, which ended in a 2–1 defeat, he came on as a substitute in the 72nd minute. In the following round, a 3–0 win againstGodoy Cruz, he remained on the bench without playing. He returned to action in the next match, coming on as a substitute forFederico Bravo. In the subsequent 0–0 draw againstSan Lorenzo de Almagro, he came on in the 77th minute forHernan Grana.
He returned to the starting lineup in round 15, in an away match againstClub Atlético Tigre, where he played the full 90 minutes in a 0–1 victory for his team.[12]
For round 16, the coach decided to startJuan Manuel Martínez, so Acosta returned to the bench but came on as a substitute and won a penalty, whichEmmanuel Gigliotti converted in a 4–2 victory overArsenal de Sarandí.[13]
He found himself on the bench again for the matches againstClub Atlético All Boys andClub Atlético Lanús. He returned to the starting lineup for the final match of the tournament, an away match againstGimnasia y Esgrima de La Plata, where he scored the goal that secured his team's victory.
This concluded his first tournament as a professional, appearing in 17 matches, alternating between starting and substitute roles, recording 2 goals and 1 assist.
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In 2016, Acosta went on a season-long loan toD.C. United ofMajor League Soccer. Acosta made his competitive debut on in aCONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal match againstQueretaro. He scored his first goal forD.C. United in the 86th minute of a league game against theNew England Revolution on 23 April.
After the 2016 season, D.C. United purchased Acosta's contract outright for a club record fee.[14] He scored his first professional hat-trick on 13 August 2018 when playing for D.C. United against Orlando City and the match ended 3–2 in favor of D.C. United.[15] On 21 October 2018, Acosta provided an assist forWayne Rooney following an outstanding dribble, and also scored himself in a 3–1 win overNew York City FC which secured a play-off spot in theMLS Cup for D.C. United.[16]
SinceWayne Rooney's arrival to D.C. United, Luciano and Wayne developed a good chemistry together in the field and provided goals and assists to each other. Their chemistry made them to be considered to one of the best duos in all of MLS.[citation needed] D.C. United fans nicknamed their duo "Luchoroo".[17]
Before the 2019 season, Acosta was reported to be close to signing forParis Saint-Germain F.C. Sources said the offer to D.C. United was under US$10 million and Acosta was scheduled to arrive at Paris for his medical.[18][needs update] In the 2019 season, Acosta's form was declining,[citation needed] and was starting to get pushed out of the first team. After the2019 season, Acosta's contract with D.C. United ended. He played his last game for D.C. on 19 October 2019, in aMLS playoff game againstToronto FC. On 12 November 2019, Acosta told an Argentine radio channel, 'La Mano de Dios', that former D.C. teammateWayne Rooney told him he wanted to bring him toDerby County, where Rooney was going to become player-coach in 2020.[19]Acosta left D.C. United at the end of the 2019 season when his contract expired.[20][21]
On 19 December 2019, it was announced that Acosta would joinLiga MX sideAtlas on 1 January 2020.[22][23][24] Acosta scored his first goal for Atlas againstTijuana on 31 January 2020.[25]
On 17 March 2021, Acosta returned toMajor League Soccer, joiningFC Cincinnati on a three-year deal as adesignated player. FC Cincinnati acquired his MLS rights fromD.C. United in exchange for $250,000 in General Allocation Money plus potential future incentives.[26] He made his debut for the club on 17 April 2021 in their opener againstNashville SC. He scored in the 8th minute as FC Cincinnati drew 2–2 away.[27]
Acosta blossomed into a star in Cincinnati; he won the MLS MVP for the2023 season (scoring a career-high 17 goals) and was anMLS Best XI selection in three of his four seasons as an FC Cincinnati player. He led the “Orange and Blue” to their firstMLS Cup playoffs in the club's MLS history, and was a main catalyst in the team'sSupporters' Shield-winning campaign in 2023.
On 11 February 2025,FC Dallas acquired Acosta for $5 million in a transfer withFC Cincinnati.[28][29]
On 8 August 2025, Acosta was purchased byFluminense for a reported $4 million plus add-ons.[30] Lucho made his debut for the Brazilian side on 12 August, coming on as a substitute in a 2-1 Copa Sudamericana win over América de Cali.[31] His first goal for the Tricolor came in a 2-4 loss against Red Bull Bragantino in theBrasileirão.[32]
Acosta holds aU.S. green card, which qualifies him as a domestic player for MLS roster purposes.[33]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Boca Juniors | 2013–14 | Argentine Primera División | 16 | 2 | — | — | — | 16 | 2 | |||
| 2014 | 9 | 0 | — | 3[a] | 0 | — | 12 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 25 | 2 | — | 3 | 0 | — | 28 | 2 | ||||
| Estudiantes (loan) | 2015 | Argentine Primera División | 27 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 7[b] | 1 | — | 38 | 2 | |
| D.C. United (loan) | 2016 | MLS | 31 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2[c] | 0 | 1[d] | 0 | 35 | 3 |
| D.C. United | 2017 | MLS | 31 | 5 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 32 | 5 | ||
| 2018 | 33 | 10 | 2 | 1 | — | 1[d] | 0 | 36 | 11 | |||
| 2019 | 31 | 6 | 2 | 0 | — | 1[d] | 0 | 34 | 6 | |||
| Total | 126 | 24 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 137 | 25 | ||
| Atlas | 2019–20 | Liga MX | 10 | 1 | — | — | — | 10 | 1 | |||
| 2020–21 | 23 | 2 | — | — | — | 23 | 2 | |||||
| Total | 33 | 3 | — | — | — | 33 | 3 | |||||
| FC Cincinnati | 2021 | MLS | 31 | 7 | — | — | — | 31 | 7 | |||
| 2022 | 30 | 10 | 2 | 0 | — | 2[d] | 1 | 34 | 11 | |||
| 2023 | 32 | 17 | 5 | 1 | — | 7[e] | 3 | 44 | 21 | |||
| 2024 | 32 | 14 | — | 4[c] | 1 | 5[f] | 0 | 41 | 15 | |||
| Total | 125 | 48 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 14 | 4 | 150 | 54 | ||
| FC Dallas | 2025 | MLS | 21 | 5 | 2 | 2 | — | 0 | 0 | 23 | 7 | |
| Fluminense | 2025 | Série A | 16 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 3[g] | 0 | — | 23 | 3 | |
| Career total | 373 | 86 | 23 | 4 | 19 | 2 | 17 | 4 | 432 | 96 | ||
FC Cincinnati
Individual