PLAYER PROFILE – Croix Soto was one of the first signings in AFC Toronto history. The 5’10” American defender (centre-back) was born in Pasadena (a city in Los Angeles County), California, United States, on January 2, 2001, a city where she also grew up.
Croix Soto: A Dependable AFC Toronto Defender
Childhood
Soto grew up in California (she is of African American, Puerto Rican, and German descent), where she played sports such as track and field, basketball, and gymnastics. The sport, however, that she followed was soccer, as that was what her mother played.
She also talked about her role models in soccer (Source: PJ Green of Fox 4):
“We had LA Soul, and Marta was on it. And that’s who I looked up to, just cuz she was like a Brown girl. So that was the closest thing, close to me at least. It was really fun to see,” Soto said. “And like I grew up watching Sydney Leroux at UCLA. That was super fun.”
University of Oregon (2019-22)
Soto, who studied business administration at the University of Oregon, played as a defender for the Oregon Ducks. In 2019, she started all 15 matches at centre-back and played in 1,397 minutes with more than 17 games played. Then, in 2020, she made the All-Pac-12 third team selection and started in all 16 matches she played in as a sophomore player.
Her honours included making the 2020 All-Pac-12 Third Team, making the 2021 Honors, All-Pac-12 Second Team, United Soccer Coaches All-Pacific Region third team, and the CoSIDA Academic All-District 8 Second Team. She also earned the CoSIDA Academic All-District 8 in 2022.
At the Kansas City Current, Soto reunited with Chardonnay Curran. Curran played with the University of Oregon from 2019-22 (Source: Hayden Herrera of KPIC).
Kansas City Current (2023)
Soto went undrafted in the 2023 NWSL draft but was still able to sign a professional contract with the Kansas City Current. This is what the general manager of the Current, Camille Ashton, said about Soto (Source: Kansas City Current Website):
“Croix came in last week on a trial basis and did a great job fitting right in,” said general manager Camille Ashton. “We’re very excited for Croix to earn her first professional contract with the Current.”
Soto played seven games for the Current and played three games in 2024 for the Houston Dash before moving on to AFC Toronto.
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AFC Toronto (2024-Present)
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Soto was AFC Toronto’s first-ever international signing and AFC’s third-ever signing. She moved north of the border and said this about playing in Toronto (Source: AFC Toronto Website):
“Joining AFC Toronto is such an exciting new chapter, and I’m honoured to be part of this milestone for women’s soccer,” said Croix Soto. “This team is building something really special, and I’m ready to bring my experience and determination to help lay the foundation for success. I’ve heard so many great things about Toronto, and I’m inspired by the league’s vision. I can’t wait to get started and feel the energy of this incredible city.”
Soto has made a name for herself with AFC Toronto, as she helps with the club’s defence. In fact, in the game against the Calgary Wild FC on August 30, Soto really shone, as this is what Milanovic said from this writer’s question on the performance of Soto:
“I thought Croix was very good today. One of her best games, you heard Sarah mention how well she communicates with the rest of the back line. That’s something that we can’t hear. Even we, on the bench, can’t hear it, but she does organize the backline quite well, and those spaces between the lines become much smaller when she does that.” Markonovic said, “And on the ball. I thought she made really good choices. When to switch, when not to switch, and when to play forward. It was one of her best performances.”
A week later, Soto played very well defensively, which led to her being named the player of the match against the Halifax Tides FC at the Wanderers Grounds.
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AFC Toronto Looks Ahead After Qualifying for the NSL Playoffs
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AFC will now look to the future as they have qualified for the NSL playoffs after beating the Vancouver Rise FC by a scoreline of 7-0. Their next opponent, at York Lions Stadium, will be the Halifax Tides FC. That game will take place on Sunday, September 21, at 2:00 PM ET (3:00 PM AT).
It will be shown live in Canada on TSN+ and NSL.ca. It will also be shown in the U.S. on ESPN+.
Photo Provided by AFC Toronto on August 17, 2025.
