Published December 10, 2025
BY DANIELA FOLEY
After seven years of dedication to club teams, Carmel High soccer and opportunities abroad, senior Liam Rodriguez has committed to University of Gloucestershire, a professional soccer academy in the United Kingdom.
“Liam has an excellent work ethic and has shown great dedication to the game of soccer and to the team,” says Scott Hirschfield, coach for Carmel High’s varsity soccer team. “As one of the captains this year, he is also proving himself to be a strong leader.”
Liam Rodriguez, a four-year Carmel varsity player, has thrived as center back for the team. Photo by VIOLET FREW
Rodriguez got his first touches on the ball at the YMCA before joining his first club, Monterey County Football Club, in fifth grade, where his soccer journey really began. Now Rodriguez plays for Monterey Surf Soccer Club, where he has been playing for the past four years.
“[Monterey County Football Club] was where I first fell in love with the game,” says Rodriguez. “Since then, I have put myself out there to get more opportunities.”
Further devoting his time to the sport, Rodriguez has spent his summers in high school training at One Soccer, a camp in Santa Barbara. There, Rodriguez was chosen to join a select team to train abroad in England and Spain, where he traveled the countries with other selected players, forming a team to play against professional teams.
“One Soccer took me to England and Barcelona with a lot of other selected players and to compete against professional teams,” says the future criminology major. “It was an amazing time, transformed my skill level and going abroad to play has definitely been my best memory playing soccer.”
After taking advantage of local and international opportunities, Rodriguez knew he wanted to continue his soccer career beyond high school. As a junior, the soccer player used Next College Student Athlete, a recruiting website to expand his connections to college-level coaches. There, University of Gloucester reached out to him, and he was placed on trial, practicing with other potential teammates before being signed onto the team.
Eager to play for the professional academy, Rodriguez will study Criminology at University of Gloucester. Photo by BELLA TAYLOR-SHAW
“To make it to this position, I had to put in the extra work–it wasn’t enough to just show up to practices and games,” says the center back, who dedicates over 20 hours a week to soccer. “Going above and beyond in training, in the gym, getting those touches on the ball is what set me apart. You have no days off to get to the next level.”
Arriving at University of Gloucester in August 2026 for preseason practices, Rodriguez hopes to make it to the first team while also competing with local clubs to eventually reach his ultimate goal: playing at the professional level.
To see Rodriguez in action, Carmel’s varsity boys’ soccer team plays at King City High School 5:45 p.m. Thursday, at Stevenson on Saturday and against Stevenson at home on Monday.
