Dasha Jeong (Future)

Note: This page is written for January 1, 2030, instead of game start.

Dasha Jeong (born February 14, 2010), also known by her nickname DJ, is an American professional soccer player who plays as a forward for Manchester United and the United States men's national soccer team. She previously played and captained the United States women's national soccer team from 2027 to 2029.

In the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup, she scored over 13 goals, surpassing both Michelle Akers's record of 10 goals in the 1991 FIFA Women's World Cup and Ademir's record of 12 goals in the 1950 Men's World Cup. In 2028, the Premier League authorized Jeong to be transferred to Manchester United, becoming the first woman to play for a men's FC. In October 2029, FIFA granted a one-time exemption for it's policy of not allowing female players to play on men's teams for Jeong, citing her dominance in women's football, and she joined the USMNT.

She is the only female player in history to have been recruited and played in both the men's leagues and international competitions, and is widely considered to be one of the best young players in the world. After being ranked as the best women's player in the world from 2026 to 2028, she was ranked as the 14th best player in the world in The Guardian's ranking of male players in 2019, below Marcus Rashford and above Cristiano Ronaldo Jr. In 2029, she was ranked as the world's eighth highest paid athlete, behind Bryce Young of the Havana Caballos and Kylian Mbappé of the French national team. Jeong was featured in the cover of FIFA 2029, in addition being the only female player allowed in the game to play in the men's leagues.

Early Life

Jeong was born to a Ukrainian and Korean family in Kiev, Ukraine, while her parents were on a trip to visit their extended family. She was raised in Freehold, New Jersey and initially attended Freehold High School, before getting her GED in 2026 to focus on athletics.

She is the second child of Ji-Hyo Jeong, a Korean cook, and Denys Sydorenko, an Ukrainian film cinematographer, who met in Rutgers University. She is the younger sister of Myroslava Jeong, (b. 2005) a fitness trainer and former military doctor. Although her parents had little interest in sports, her sister would take her out to watch the New York City FC on weekends.

From an early age she was recognized as being extremely fast and agile, averaging over three goals a game in her middle school girl's soccer team. In 2023, she was barred from playing sports by her middle school district on suspicion of cheating, prompting the Jeong family to sue the district, which they won.

As a child, Jeong initially had an interest in baseball, but was convinced by her sister to pursue a career in soccer. She occasionally does middle-distance running in her free time, achieving a best time of 4:29 on the mile run, placing her in the top 250 best female runners in the world.

Club career

NJ/NY Gotham FC

Jeong joined NJ/NY Gotham FC at the age of 15, becoming one of the youngest female players to turn professional after Olivia Moultrie of the Portland Thorns FC. Despite being one of the youngest players in the league, her performance surpassed any other female player in history, scoring on average 1.72 goals per game.

She improved on her record in the 2026-2027 season, reaching an average of 2.11 goals per game.

Manchester United

Jeong expressed an interest in playing for Manchester United shortly before the 2027 Women's World Cup, a comment which generated ridicule among the public. Following her victory, Jeong was named as a serious contender for joining the men's leagues, and she was named as the single most valuable player, male or female, in terms of marketing potential of 2027.

Her opening game drew the largest crowd for any game in United history, scoring twice in a 3-2 win against PSG. At the start of the 2028-29 season, Jeong was initially United's top scorer, but her performance suffered towards the end of the season as Jeong missed several penalty kicks and experienced an injury in her shins. United finished the season in 4th place, an improvement over their 5th place finish from last season, with Jeong's inclusion being cited as a core factor to their fortunes for scoring 17 goals for United out of 33 appearances.

International career

She joined the United States women's national under-17 soccer team in 2025, captaining them to victory in 2026. She scored 8 goals in total, placing her in second behind Ri Un-sim's 2012 record of 9 goals for the highest goals scored in the tournament.

Jeong was the top-scoring player in the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup, scoring a hat-trick twice, in both the group stage and the semi-finals. Throughout her career in women's international football, Jeong had never played a single game without scoring at least once- her first game without one being a friendly with the United Kingdom in November 2029, her second match played with the USMNT.

Jeong was considered to join the USMNT for the 2028 Copa America, but was declined- the team would later go on to be eliminated in the group stage.

In December 2029, USMNT captain Jürgen Klopp named Jeong to the 2030 World Cup team, becoming the first woman to ever be named to a men's world cup team. She will be the first female player to ever play in the World Cup in 2030.

Style of play and reception

Former Argentine Captain Lionel Messi described Jeong's playing as "like watching an adult play against a team of kindergartners." Jeong holds nearly every single statistical record in women's football history. After defeating the Brazil team in 2027 with 5-1- all 5 goals being from her, Brazilian pundit Edmundo emphatically stated that "Dasha is R9 with his balls cut off."

She has experienced continued success playing in Manchester United, averaging 0.54 goals per game in the 2028-29 season. Jeong's success has inspired numerous other female footballers to try out for men's teams, however, none have been accepted.

Controversy

Jeong has repeatedly faced accusations of using performance-enhancing drugs to put her on the level of male players. She has extensively denied these accusations, and has never tested positive for any steroids. Despite being born a woman and testing average levels for testosterone amounts, she has frequently been accused of being a transgender woman or intersex with no evidence. There has been several instances where fans of opposing teams would chant "DJ is a man" as they lost.

Her dominance in the game has caused controversy among other female players. Over 90% of non-sports media coverage regarding women's soccer players in 2029 revolved around Jeong, and she has received advertising offers over twice as valuable as the next three most valuable female players combined. She has described being ostracized in a 2028 interview with Sports Illustrated, stating "I have very little friends among other women players, and I still confide with my mom, Slava [her sister], and my oomfies [sic] most of the time off the field."

In 2028, fringe conspiracy outlet Infowars accused her of being genetically modified before birth to be stronger and more agile. She has not responded to this accusation.

Personal Life

Although she identifies as a cisgender woman, Jeong is an outspoken advocate for transgender rights, having cited her sister-in-law Mariana Ngai as a "personal inspiration." She is fluent in English, Korean, and Ukrainian. Jeong cites Tyler Adams as her favorite player of her childhood, noting that they shared a birthday and described playing with him on the USMNT as "the wildest dream any girl ever had that came true." In an interview in August 2028, she described herself as being pansexual, but later stated in July 2029 that she has never dated any men and now identifies as a lesbian.

She has been offered scholarships to several Ivy League universities, but has refused all of them, expressing a desire to study at Rutgers University, the alma mater of her parents.