FAYETTEVILLE, Ga. — U.S. midfielder Brenden Aaronson had a valid reason to miss the training session for the U.S. World Cup team on Friday—he was getting married.
The Leeds midfielder tied the knot with his longtime girlfriend, Milana D’Ambra, who is the daughter of Don D’Ambra, head coach of the Saint Joseph’s men’s soccer team.
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Aaronson, who was also part of the U.S. squad in the 2022 World Cup, left the camp following Thursday’s training and is expected back for Saturday’s session.
Fellow midfielder Gio Reyna, who couldn’t attend the wedding, had his wife Chloe represent him at the ceremony.
“We’re still trying to find out if it’s a no-phones wedding. That would help us a lot,” shared Cristian Roldan, another U.S. midfielder. “If it is a phone wedding, Gio’s wife will be FaceTiming in so we can all watch it live.”
Aaronson, age 25, comes from a well-known soccer family in Medford, New Jersey.
His brother Paxten plays for Major League Soccer’s Colorado Rapids, while his sister Jaden was a freshman at Villanova last fall. Their father, Rusty, serves as the sporting director for Real Futbol Academy in Medford.
American goalkeeper Chris Brady speculated that Aaronson was likely to spend Friday afternoon golfing before the ceremony.
“Good luck. Don’t mess it up,” Brady said his teammates advised Aaronson before he left the camp. “Just remember to say ‘I do.’
The timing for the wedding posed a challenge.
Players participating in the World Cup are expected to have 21 days off before returning to their Premier League clubs for the season openers scheduled from August 21-23. The U.S. team’s final match could be as early as June 25 if they are knocked out in the group stages or extend to July 19 if they reach the final, a rare possibility for them.
The U.S. is set to play its first warm-up match before the World Cup against Senegal in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Sunday.
In a similar situation, the U.S. team permitted star Christian Pulisic to skip training to attend his high school prom on May 27, 2016, before returning for the next day’s Copa América match against Bolivia in Kansas City, Kansas.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.