Expansion side FC Cincinnati selected UCLA midfielder Frankie Amaya No. 1 overall in the 2019 MLS SuperDraft on Friday.

"This is what I worked my whole life for," Amaya told MLSSoccer.com at the draft in Chicago. "This is a crazy moment."

Amaya, 18, is the youngest player in the draft, but his upside is such that he's expected to adapt well to the professional game, even in a central playmaking role that is usually the domain of foreign players.

The Generation Adidas player spent just one season...

The Portland Timbers and defender Liam Ridgewell have agreed to mutually part ways.

Ridgewell played for the Timbers for five seasons and made 97 appearances, all starts. The two-time All-Star was on the Portland team that won the MLS Cup in 2015 and appeared in 13 postseason games during his career with the Timbers.

Five seasons. Two-time All-Star. MLS Cup Champion.

Thank you for everything, Liam. #RCTID pic.twitter.com/r72sFa7mvS

— Portland Timbers (@TimbersFC) January 10, 2019

Portland team owner Merritt Paulson called Ridgewell "one of the most important and influential signings in Timbers history."

The 34-year-old from England had six goals over his career...

FC Cincinnati acquired defender Alvas Powell on Thursday from the Portland Timbers for $250,000 in general allocation money, as well as a percentage of the fee if the player is transferred outside the MLS.

Powell, 24, made 23 club appearances for Portland in each of the last four seasons. He won an MLS Cup with the Timbers in 2015, as well as playing in the 2018 MLS Cup loss to Atlanta. 

Powell is a Jamaica international, having made his debut for the Reggae Boyz in 2012. 

FCC, which will...

Schmid's family said he died Tuesday at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center. Schmid was hospitalized three weeks ago as he awaited a heart transplant.

"Our family is deeply saddened by his passing and is taking this time to grieve the loss of a tremendous husband, father, leader and mentor," the family said in a statement Wednesday through the Seattle Sounders, one of the three MLS teams Schmid coached.

"We also recognize how...