Gabriel Pirani

Gabriel Pirani had already won the Copa Libertadores. He lifted the trophy in 2023 with Fluminense, having also won the Rio de Janeiro state championship, the Taça Guanabara, that same year.

Pirani graduated through Santos' academy and played for the first team from 2021 to 2023, with a loan spell at Cuiabá in 2022 in between. The move to Fluminense in 2023 put him in a Libertadores-winning squad before he left, that July, on loan to D.C. United. The club activated the buyout option on 1 January 2024.

His best season in MLS colours came in 2025. By the second half of the campaign Pirani was camped in the final third, and D.C. United named him their Player of the Year. A brace against New York City FC on 30 August earned him a place in the MLS Team of the Matchday and took him to ten goal involvements for the season — six goals and four assists. Across 71 league appearances for the club he scored 14 goals.

Pirani has also played for Brazil's under-23 side, winning the Pan American Games with them in 2023 and reaching 12 caps and two goals by mid-2024. He missed out on the Paris Olympics after Brazil lost to Argentina in the decisive qualifying match.

In July 2026, D.C. United sold him to San Diego FC, occupying a U-22 Initiative roster slot. The deal brought D.C. United $350,000 in guaranteed General Allocation Money, with up to $650,000 more tied to performance, plus a sell-on percentage on any future transfer.