NASHVILLE, TN – Nashville SC made their first trade of the offseason on Monday, announcing the acquisition of defender Thomas Williams from Orlando City in exchange for their first round pick in the 2026 MLS SuperDraft, as well as an additional $100,000 in General Allocation money if certain performance triggers are met.
Williams, 21, was signed by Orlando as a homegrown player in 2021 at just 16 years and 10 months old, the youngest player ever signed to a first-team deal. Williams made his first and only MLS appearance this season, playing 10 minutes in a 0-0 draw with CF Montréal. In total, Williams has made 99 appearances for Orlando, mostly with their reserve team in MLS NEXT Pro.
At the international level, Williams has made 11 appearances for the US Youth National Teams at the U17, U19, U20 and U23 levels. He made his U23 debut in November, playing the full 90 minutes in a 1-1 draw with Denmark.
The bulk of Williams' minutes have come for Orlando City B in MLS NEXT Pro. In 2025, Williams had the third-highest goals added rating of all MLSNP center backs to play at least 2,000 minutes, per American Soccer Analysis, and has looked capable of performing at a higher level.
"Thomas has a lot of potential as an exciting young prospect and has performed really well when given the opportunity with the U.S. Youth National Teams and for Orlando City with their second and first teams," said Nashville SC President of Soccer Operations and General Manager Mike Jacobs. "He fits what we look for in a player on and off the field and we look forward to adding him to our club."
Williams, who can also play as a left back, joins a center back corps that includes Jeisson Palacios, Jack Maher, Josh Bauer and Chris Applewhite, as well as recently-signed Maxwell Woledzi.
