Red Bull New York striker Julian Hall kicked off the 2026 season with a sensational performance to claim MLS Player of the Matchday honors for Matchday 1.
In the club's first match under new head coach Michael Bradley, the 17-year-old started and scored both goals in RBNY's 2-1 victory at Orlando City.
Hall's brace made him the youngest player in league history to score multiple goals in his club’s opening game of the season. It was just his fifth career regular-season start, and he produced his first game-winning goal in MLS.
Hall was one of three players aged 17 or younger – alongside midfielder Adri Mehmeti (16) and defender Matthew Dos Santos (17) – to start for New York on Matchday 1, which marked the first time three players aged 17 or younger started an opening match in league history.
Hall is the first Red Bull player to be named MLS Player of the Matchday since Emil Forsberg (Matchday 12 of 2025). At 17 years and 336 days old, he is the sixth-youngest player in MLS history to win the award.
New York will look to make it two wins in a row to start Bradley's first season at the helm when they host the New England Revolution on Saturday (2:30 pm ET | Apple TV).
The MLS Player of the Matchday is selected each matchday of the regular season through both media and fan voting in a process conducted by MLS Communications. A panel of journalists from the North American Soccer Reporters (NASR) comprises 75 percent of the vote, while an Instagram fan vote represents the remaining 25 percent of voting. NASR consists of members of print, television, radio, and online media.
