The Wichita Wings are pleased to announce the signing of Mehrshad Ahmadi, the reigning Major Arena Soccer League 2 Golden Boot winner. Ahmadi, originally from Herat, Afghanistan, spent the last two seasons as a member of the New Mexico Runners, after graduating from Sandia High School in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Mehrshad burst onto the indoor soccer scene as a rookie near the end of the 2021-2022 season, where he managed 18 goals and 3 assists in just 7 games before lighting up the stat sheet in year two averaging 4.0 points per game. Last season, he lead the league with 38 goals and 10 assists, winning the Golden Boot outright. In all, Ahmadi appeared in just 19 games for the Runners, but finished with an astonishing 56 goals for and 13 assists.
“We are happy for Mehrshad to be given an opportunity to expand his horizons and soccer career. We wish him the best of luck this season, and we look forward to facing off with him in the coming months.“ stated New Mexico Runners owner Andres Trujillo.
Since 2018 the New Mexico Runners have focused their goals to develop and open up doors for athletes to further their soccer careers. The Runners continue to search for and develop partnerships with local and national soccer programs to create a pathway for athletes to compete at the highest level possible. The organization wishes him the best of luck this upcoming season.
Ahmadi and the Wings recently finalized a multi-year agreement that will see the newest Wichita Wing arrive immediately on Sunday, October 1st, just one month ahead of the teams 2023-2024 preseason training camp. Wings training camp begins with a public
open tryout scheduled for October 29, 2023, at Hartman Arena in Park City, KS.
"I'm grateful for my time with the Runners," said Ahmadi. "New Mexico will always be home and have my heart, but I'm equally excited to earn my place within this culture in Wichita. It's such an amazing atmosphere for the players, I'm anxious to meet the orange army fans and get to work."
Wichita Wings President Blake Shumaker says the signing of Ahmadi couldn't come at a more important time for the historic franchise.
"The expectation is to operate this club at the highest standard in every aspect. It's taking time, but we've turned a corner and we took it at 100 mph," said Shumaker. "There's an amazing fan base in Wichita, it's easily among the best in the country. By extending our home season to 10 games and then winning the bid for the 2024 National Finals, we are on the verge of something special here hosting 20 games at Hartman Arena this season. I believe Wings fans deserve to call the most entertaining players, a Wichita Wing. We're proud to introduce Mehrshad and looking forward to continuing this trend with our next player announcements.