Tormenta FC announced the transfer of their captain Gabriel Cabral to USL Championship side Miami FC for an undisclosed fee. Previously the club announced Cabral as one of their USL League One Day One returnees, signed to a multi-year contract.
The 25 year old Brazilian midfielder featured in all 33 regular season and playoff matches for Tormenta FC in 2022, logging the second highest minutes played for the club. He was named captain midway through the season, and named to the USL League One All-League Second Team. Under his leadership, Tormenta FC clinched a playoff spot and defeated Charlotte Independence, Greenville Triumph and finally Red Wolves SC to win the league championship.
Cabral finished the season with 3 goals and 3 assists, while also recording the most passes.
Cabral is one of several high profile USL League One transfers this off season. Earlier this month, Richmond Kickers transferred Young Player of the Year winner Ethan Bryant to the Sporting Kansas City organization, and Forward Madison transferred veteran defender Eric Leonard to the Chicago Fire FC organization. Both players will start out in the clubs’ respective MLS Next Pro sides as they vie for a spot on the MLS squads.
In addition, Union Omaha midfielder Ryen Jiba was selected 19th overall by Minnesota United FC in the MLS SuperDraft. MNUFC will need to negotiate a transfer from Union Omaha, but Jiba is likely to join that organization in 2023.
Correction: a previous version of this story incorrectly referred to Miami FC as FC Miami