Gotham FC signs another rookie with UCLA's Sofia Cook joining the team | OneFootball

A day after NJ/NY Gotham FC announced that the club and Crystal Dunn parted ways, the Bats added another player. Continuing the theme of signing college players, the club signed UCLA's Sofia Cook, a midfielder from the state of California. Her contract will keep her in New Jersey through 2026, with an option for 2027.

Cook joins fellow UCLA teammates, Ryan Campbell and Lilly Reale, as part of the rookie class. She is also the fourth player from the Big Ten since Khyah Harper also signed for the 2025 season. This also marks the fifth college signing, highlighting that the NJ/NY team is willing to take the risk and sign multiple rookies.

Sofia Cook is the latest UCLA player to join Gotham FC

Meanwhile, it is intriguing that Gotham FC brought in another Bruin. At the same time, it could help with chemistry since there have been many departures this offseason. One cannot help but wonder whether the front office spent a lot of time watching UCLA in 2024.

Unlike the other college signings, Cook played just three years of collegiate soccer and left after her junior year. Like Reale, she was part of the 2022 NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Championship team in her freshman year. The player was part of the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team. She scored the most goals during that season, finding the back of the net with seven.

In total, Cook scored 12 goals and had six assists for UCLA. Notably, she did not start or appear in every match. She was in the Starting XI for 13 of her 17 appearances in 2024, meaning she missed seven games. She was still a part of the First Team All-Big Ten team and helped lead UCLA on their run to their first Big Ten Tournament title. Sadly, she did not play in the title-winning game, but she was an important part of the first season in the Big Ten.

So, why did Gotham FC sign Cook? "Sofia is a player we have been keeping an eye on for some time, and we are excited by what we have seen," Yael Averbuch West, the general manager and head of soccer operations, told gothamfc.com. "She has shown tremendous ability at the collegiate and international levels, and we are thrilled to have her join us."

If the newest midfielder can capture what she did in her freshman season at UCLA, then perhaps she can become a valuable player off the bench. It will be interesting to see what Cook and the other college signings do in their first season at Gotham FC.