The New England Revolution just made a statement about their future, and it involves reuniting a promising young midfielder with the coach who knows him best.
Brooklyn Raines is heading to Foxborough after Houston agreed to ship the 20-year-old homegrown product north in exchange for serious cash – $1.6 million guaranteed, with another $400,000 potentially heading to Texas if certain benchmarks get hit. That’s real money for a player still developing, which tells you everything about how highly New England rates this kid.
Mitrović Gets His Guy
Here’s where this gets interesting: Raines isn’t walking into an unfamiliar situation. New England’s freshly-minted head coach Marko Mitrović coached the midfielder at the 2025 FIFA U-20 World Cup with the U.S. youth national team. They’ve already built chemistry on the international stage, and now they’re linking up at club level.
“I know Brooklyn very well as a person and as a player. He is someone whose qualities fit our style of play, and his mentality is aligned with the culture that we want to build,” Mitrović said.
Translation? This wasn’t a move made by committee. Mitrović wanted his guy, and sporting director Curt Onalfo delivered.
Breaking Out at the Perfect Time
Raines put together a career year in 2025 that caught the attention of evaluators league-wide. He cracked the annual 22 Under 22 Rankings at No. 21, validating what Houston fans had been seeing: a midfielder with technical ability and tactical awareness beyond his years.
Over four seasons with the Dynamo, Raines logged 61 appearances across all competitions, contributing one goal and two assists. Those numbers don’t jump off the page, but anyone watching knew his impact went beyond the stat sheet. He controlled tempo, recycled possession, and showed the kind of soccer IQ that coaches love.
The Revolution are betting they can accelerate his development. They’ve locked him down through the 2028-29 season on a U22 Initiative deal, with a club option for another year after that. It’s the kind of contract structure that screams long-term investment.
New England’s Playoff Push
Let’s be real: the Revs need help. They finished 11th in the Eastern Conference last season with 36 points, missing the playoffs for the first time since 2023. That’s not acceptable for a franchise with their history and resources.
Raines won’t fix everything overnight, but he gives Mitrović another piece to work with as he installs his system. The midfielder’s versatility and youth profile fit perfectly with what New England is trying to build – a squad that can compete now while developing assets for tomorrow.
Houston, meanwhile, cashes out on a homegrown talent and adds flexibility to reshape their roster. Sometimes the best trades are the ones where both sides walk away feeling like they won. This might be one of those deals.
