POSITION: Defender
BIRTHDATE: Sept. 28, 2000
HEIGHT: 6-2
WEIGHT: 187
HOMETOWN: Montréal, Canada
YOUTH CLUBS: Fabrose, Chomedey, Étoile De L’est
PREVIOUS TEAMS: Vancouver Whitecaps FC
PRONUNCIATION: ka-ree-fa YA-O
PROFILE
Following stops in Major League Soccer and the Canadian Premier League, Yao signed with Rhode Island FC on January 23, 2024. The physical defender joins his first USL Championship club in 2024 after spending his first five seasons as a professional in Canada. Yao signed an MLS Homegrown Player contract with Montréal Impact (now CF Montréal) on June 5, 2019, after featuring for the club’s academy at the Under-17 and Under-19 levels. Born in Montréal to an Ivorian father and a Senegalese mother, Yao made his professional debut with Montréal on September 20, 2020. For the 2021 season, Yao was loaned out to Canadian Premier League side Cavalry FC, where he would go on to make 56 appearances, adding two goals and two assists over two seasons. On November 17, 2022, Yao was selected by Vancouver Whitecaps FC in Stage 1 of the MLS Re-Entry Draft. Yao’s 2023 stats for the Whitecaps first and reserve team included 824 minutes across 12 starts in 30 appearances. At the international level, Yao received multiple call ups to the Canadian Under-15 and Under-17 squads.