TRANSFER TRACKER STATUS: Signing
The Colorado Rapids have acquired Danish international center back Andreas Maxsø from Brøndby IF, the club announced Friday.
The 28-year-old defender’s deal runs through the 2025 MLS season with an option for 2026. He'll occupy a Designated Player roster spot alongside forward Kévin Cabral, who was acquired in a trade with the LA Galaxy earlier this winter.
Maxsø captained his former Danish Superliga squad, helped them win the 2020-21 league title and departs with seven goals and two assists in 112 games for the club. Now, he joins ex-Brøndby teammates Mikael Uhre (Philadelphia Union) and Hany Mukhtar (Nashville SC) in MLS.
"Andreas is an experienced and physically imposing center back who has led his side to a championship in a strong European league," Pádraig Smith, Colorado's EVP & general manager, said in a release. "His proven leadership and commanding presence will be a tremendous addition to our team as we tackle multiple competitions next season."
Maxsø has played in nearly 300 professional games since debuting for Nordsjælland in 2012, plus also featured at FC Zürich (Switzerland), Ankaraspor (Turkey) and KFC Uerdingen 05 (Germany). He’s featured twice for Denmark, most recently appearing in a March 2022 friendly vs. Serbia.
Colorado have a deep center back group, often playing with a five-man backline under head coach Robin Fraser. Danny Wilson and Lalas Abubakar are veteran pieces, while Aboubacar Keita and Gustavo Vallecilla are young, proven pieces acquired via trades in recent seasons. They also selected Moise Bombito No. 3 overall in the 2023 MLS SuperDraft presented by adidas.
While teams rarely use DP spots on defensive players, there are some recent examples in that mold. Walker Zimmerman (Nashville), Thiago Martins (NYCFC) and Teenage Hadebe (Houston Dynamo FC) were all DP center backs during the 2022 MLS campaign.
Colorado, who didn't qualify for the Audi 2022 MLS Cup Playoffs after finishing atop the Western Conference table in 2021, open their 2023 campaign on Feb. 26 at Seattle Sounders FC (8 pm ET | MLS Season Pass, FS1).
READ MORE: MLS Transfer Tracker presented by Avant
