- Honorees include Sam Surridge, Hany Mukhtar, Andy Najar, Eddi Tagseth, and Taylor Washington as well as Huntsville City Football Club’s Alan Carleton and Zach Barrett and Emmanuel Arias from the Nashville SC Academy
- The 2025 season has seen Nashville SC set club records in MLS (16) and all competition (20) wins as well as MLS (12) and all competition (15) unbeaten streaks while qualifying for the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs for the fifth time in team’s first six seasons
- Additionally, the Boys in Gold are set to appear in the club’s first-ever Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final on Wednesday, Oct. 1 with the chance to win the first major professional sports championship in Tennessee history
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Sept. 29, 2025) – Nashville Soccer Club announced last night the winners of the club’s 2025 awards in a private ceremony held with players and staff at GEODIS Park.
Nashville Soccer Club
- Forward Sam Surridge (MVP, Fan Favorite Player of the Year)
- Midfielder Hany Mukhtar (Offensive Player of the Year)
- Midfielder Eddi Tagseth (Newcomer of the Year)
- Defender Andy Najar (Defender of the Year presented by AON)
- Defender Taylor Washington (Humanitarian of the Year)
- Mukhtar, Surridge, Najar (Goal of the Year)
Huntsville City Football Club
- Midfielder Alan Carleton (HCFC Player of the Year)
- Defender Zach Barrett (HCFC Fan Favorite)
Nashville SC Academy's U15 goalkeeper Emmanuel Arias (Academy Player of the Year) was also recognized for his accomplishments.
Along with their teammates, this year’s award winners helped lead the Boys in Gold to the club’s first-ever Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final, which will be played on Wednesday, Oct. 1, for the chance to bring the first major professional sports championship trophy to the State of Tennessee and the team’s fifth postseason appearance in its first six seasons. Additionally, Nashville SC has registered the most regular season (16) and all competition (20) wins in club history and record 12 (Major League Soccer) and 15 (all competition) match unbeaten streaks.
2025 Nashville SC Club Award winners and accomplishments:
- Forward Sam Surridge took home Nashville SC’s Most Valuable Player award and was voted this year’s Fan Favorite of the Year amid his record-breaking season. The 2025 Major League Soccer All-Star has set a new club record for goals in a single season across all competitions with 27, is third in MLS’ Golden Boot race with 22 goals and is tied for fifth in the league with teammate Hany Mukhtar in goal contributions with 27. He became the first player in NSC history to score four goals in a single match during Nashville’s historic 7-2 victory over Chicago Fire FC on April 26, and the Boys in Gold are 13W-1L-2D across all competitions in 2025 when the Englishman finds the back of the net.
- Midfielder Hany Mukhtar was named Nashville SC’s Offensive Player of Year while he and Surridge lead the team this season in MLS goal contributions with 27. The club’s first-ever Designated Player signing was named an MLS All-Star for the fourth-straight season and has scored the sixth most goals (16) and recorded the fifth most assists (11) in MLS in 2025. During Nashville’s club-record 12-MLS-match unbeaten streak, Mukhtar had seven goals and six assists.
- First-year Boy in Gold Andy Najar was selected as Nashville SC’s Defensive Player of the Year presented by AON. The eight-year MLS veteran was named to his first-ever MLS All-Star Team in 2025 while setting a club record for single season goal contributions by a defender with 12. Najar’s 10 assists are tied for second in the league from his position group and his 12 goal contributions rank third. During the Boys in Gold’s 7-2 win over Chicago, Najar became the first player in NSC history to record three primary assists in a single match.
- In addition, the All-Star trio of Mukhtar, Surridge and Najar were all recognized for Nashville SC’s Goal of the Year. During the Boys in Gold’s convincing 3-0 win over the Columbus Crew at GEODIS Park on July 16, Mukhtar buried a sliding kick into the back of the net off a feed from Surridge who received a near-field length pass from Najar.
- Eddi Tagseth took home Nashville SC’s Newcomer of the Year award after joining the club from Rosenborg BK, one of the top clubs in Norway's Eliteserien. Affectionately nicknamed the “Norwegian Nuisance” by fans, Tagseth has made an instant impact by helping lead the club to a plus-23 goal differential when he is on the field.
- Defender Taylor Washington won Nashville SC’s Humanitarian of the Year award for the fifth straight season. During his eight seasons in Nashville, which began during the club’s United Soccer League tenure, Washington has dedicated his time away from the pitch to volunteering and serving a number of organizations including the Nashville Rescue Mission, Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital, Dominic’s Toy Chest, and more.
- Midfielder Alan Carleton was awarded Huntsville City FC’s Player of the Year while defender Zach Barrett was voted Fan Player of the Year. Carleton, who became the first HCFC player on a short-term call-up to appear for Nashville in an MLS match on June 28 at D.C. United, leads the team this season in goals (12) and goal contributions (18) while appearing in 23 matches. Barrett, who joined Huntsville prior to the season after five years at the University of Vermont, has one goal and two assists in 24 appearances this season for the Boys in Blue.
- Goalkeeper Emmanuel Arias was named Nashville SC’s Academy Player of the Year. The U15 keeper made 31 total appearances (including 22 playing up with the U16 team), registered 10 clean sheets (including six with the U16s), and helped lead the U15 squad to the MLS Next National Semifinals. On the national stage, Arias recorded two caps for the United States’ U15 team and represented the United States in the Under-15 CONCACAF Championships in August.
On the Sporting Operations side Data Scientist Addison Wood was named Employee of the Year and Nashville SC Academy Director Darren Powell was named Newcomer of the Year while Facility Operations Manager Dane McDermott won Employee of the Year and Senior Financial Analyst Gene Prewitt won Newcomer of the Year in the Front Office.
