| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | (2000-10-10)October 10, 2000 (age 25) | ||
| Place of birth | Toronto, Ontario, Canada | ||
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder,left-back | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | ||
| Number | 22 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2020–2022 | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2022 | Whitecaps FC 2 | 15 | (0) |
| 2022 | →Vancouver Whitecaps FC (loan) | 2 | (0) |
| 2023– | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | 66 | (3) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2023– | Canada | 22 | (1) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of October 18, 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals as of November 13, 2025 | |||
Ali Ahmed (born October 10, 2000) is a Canadian professionalsoccer player who plays as amidfielder orleft-back forMajor League Soccer clubVancouver Whitecaps FC and theCanada national team.
Ahmed was born in Toronto to parents from theOromo Region ofEthiopia.[1] In 2018, he went on trial with theToronto FC Academy, who were ready to sign him to join the academy, but he opted to head to Portugal to trial with the U19 side ofC.F. Os Belenenses, but was unable to sign as he was under 18.[1] He then went to Spain, before returning to Toronto, before returning to Europe to trial in Portugal, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands.[1] In November 2019, he trialed with theVancouver Whitecaps Academy and then trialed again the following year,[1] and in August 2020, he joined theVancouver Whitecaps Academy.[2] In 2021, he played with theVancouver Whitecaps FC U-23.[2] He attended pre-season camp with the first team in 2021 and 2022.[2]
In March 2022, he signed a professional contract withWhitecaps FC 2 inMLS Next Pro.[3] He made his professional debut on March 26 againstHouston Dynamo 2.[4] He led the team in assists with five in 2022.[5] He was named the 2022 WFC2 Player of the Year.[6]
On April 22, 2022, he joined thefirst team on a short-term four-day loan ahead of theirMLS league match againstAustin FC.[7] In the match the next day, he made his official first-team debut.[8] On August 4, he signed another short-term loan with Vancouver.[9] In November 2022, he signed a permanent contract with the first team for the 2023 season, becoming the first Whitecaps FC 2 player to sign a first-team contract.[10] On May 24, he suffered what appeared to be a serious injury in a match, where he lost consciousness and was treated on-field for seventeen minutes,[11][12] but was released from hospital the next day with only a concussion.[13][14] On June 7, 2023, he won the2023 Canadian Championship with the Whitecaps, defeatingCF Montreal and won the tournament's Best Young Canadian Player Award.[15]
Ahmed is aMuslim and fasts during the month ofRamadan.[16][17]
In May 2023, Ahmed was listed on theCanada preliminary roster for the2023 CONCACAF Nations League Finals.[18][19] In June 2023, he was named to the final 23-man squad for the2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup.[20] Ahmed made his debut for Canada on June 27 in their tournament opener againstGuadeloupe.[21][22]
In June 2024, Ahmed was named to Canada's squad for the2024 Copa América.[23]
| Club | Season | League | Playoffs | National cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Whitecaps FC 2 | 2022 | MLS Next Pro | 15 | 0 | – | – | – | – | 15 | 0 | ||||
| Vancouver Whitecaps FC (loan) | 2022 | MLS | 2 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | – | – | 2 | 0 | |||
| Vancouver Whitecaps FC | 2023 | MLS | 22 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 30 | 3 |
| 2024 | 22 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 31 | 1 | ||
| 2025 | 22 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 37 | 3 | ||
| Total | 66 | 3 | 8 | 0 | 9 | 4 | 12 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 98 | 7 | ||
| Career total | 83 | 3 | 8 | 0 | 9 | 4 | 12 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 115 | 7 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canada | 2023 | 4 | 0 |
| 2024 | 8 | 0 | |
| 2025 | 10 | 1 | |
| Total | 22 | 1 | |
Scores and results list Canada's goal tally first.
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 5, 2025 | Arena Națională,Bucharest, Romania | 18 | 2–0 | 3–0 | International Friendly |
Vancouver Whitecaps
Individual