Zach Zengue spent several years on the radar of St. Louis CITY SC sporting director Corey Wray.
Wray played a large role in the Columbus Crew’s decision to draft Zengue out of Georgetown in the 2024 MLS Superdraft. Their paths diverged, however, before the pair could meet back up in Columbus, Ohio. So when Wray had the opportunity to bring Zengue to St. Louis, Wray jumped at the opportunity.
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“I have followed Zach since recruiting him out of college in 2024,” Wray said in July, after CITY SC acquired Zengue on loan with an option to make the acquisition permanent following the 2026 season. “We’re excited to have Zach in our CITY2 and first-team environments for the remainder of the season and will be watching closely to see how he develops and where it can lead.”
Following a stellar start in Columbus’s MLS NEXT Pro side—where Zengue contributed 10 goals and three assists over his first 16 matches—Zengue was excited to reunite with Wray in St. Louis.
“You can tell something special is happening here,” Zengue said. “I love what they’re doing here. Corey [Wray] has been a genius everywhere he has gone.”
The Background
Zengue was born in DC, but his mother’s work with the United States Agency for International Development took his family all over the world, including Nigeria, Haiti, and Sri Lanka. Some of Zengue’s earliest memories of that life were from his family’s time in Nigeria and Haiti. In Port-au-Prince, Zengue saw the hardship and perseverance following the 2010 earthquakes.
“Living in places where there is a lot of inequality, it opened my eyes to how people live,” Zengue said. “The reverence they hold for the Earth and the spiritual connection in their cultures opened my eyes to different ways of living, and I apply that to my life now.”
The family eventually settled down in Minnesota, where Zengue played soccer at Shattuck-St. Mary’s School. Soccer provided a way to connect with others, including his brother, Xavier, and his schoolmates. While neither Zengue or his brother played organized club soccer while living abroad, both quickly found success in the United States; Xavier played club soccer with the Minnesota Thunder and in college at Dayton, while Zengue joined the MLS NEXT Academy side at Shattuck-St. Mary’s.
“That’s where I started to learn what it takes to become a professional athlete,” Zengue said. “I was around a lot of high-achieving individuals, and it taught me how to keep your head down and work hard at something.”
Zengue went on to play soccer at Georgetown University, where he was named All-Big East in 2025 and All-American as the Hoyas made the NCAA tournament quarterfinals. Zengue also spent summers lacing up for USL League 2 powerhouse Vermont Green. Zengue was the league’s high scorer at the club’s 2025 championship and was named to the USL League Two’s Best XI.
Afterward, Zengue signed with the Columbus Crew and made his debut with Crew 2 this past March. The journey ultimately led him back to Wray and CITY SC.
“I’m pretty used to change at this point,” Zengue quipped.
The midfielder eased into the transition with key minutes in David Critchley’s CITY2 squad before making his first-team debut against FC Dallas in August. Zengue was tasked in a more outward attacking role as he played 18 minutes in CITY’s 3–3 draw to Dallas. Making his debut at a time when the first team was finalizing deals to bring in help in the attack, Zengue was tasked with taking on the role of a hybrid striker.
Zengue returned to CITY2 this past weekend as the first team embarked on a long road trip. He joined a group of young players that Wray has acquired with future CITY SC success in mind, and while the first team won in Vancouver, Zengue scored a brace to power CITY2 over Sporting KC’s MLS NEXT Pro side in Kansas City.
“From a young age, I would tell my teachers and everyone I met that I want to be a professional soccer player,” Zengue said. “It’s a dream come true.”
