Taylor Calheira

23-Year-Old ForwardF

Sporting Kansas City

MLS

DOB 4/26/2002

Joins Sporting KC

FSporting Kansas City

February 19, 2026

Calheira has completed a permanent move from FC Tulsa to Sporting Kansas City and signed a two-and-a-half-year MLS contract through the 2027-2028 season with club options for the 2028-2029 and 2029-2030 seasons, his new club announced. "Taylor has an impressive goalscoring record at every level he has played from college to MLS NEXT Pro to the USL Championship. Taylor has consistently shown high levels of performance as he stepped up to a higher level of competition each of the last three seasons and he is now eager to prove himself in MLS. He will provide good instincts around the goal to go along with his clean technical ability and an excellent work rate," President of Soccer Operations & General Manager David Lee said.

ANALYSIS
Calheira has totaled 38 goals and 10 assists in 69 professional matches, scoring 17 goals in the 2025 USL Championship with FC Tulsa after posting 17 goals and six assists in 2024 with NYCFC II in MLS NEXT Pro. He finished as the second top scorer in the USL Championship in 2025, earned All-League First Team honors, scored twice in the Western Conference Final, and converted a penalty in the USL Championship Final shootout. Prior to turning pro, he registered 32 goals and 16 assists in 61 matches at UMBC and was named America East Striker of the Year in 2022 and 2023. He should play a decent role for Sporting Kansas City heading into the 2026 MLS season with the recent departure of Daniel Salloi to Toronto.