If the Philadelphia Union want to deliver a bounce-back MLS season in 2025, riding the rapidly growing talents of Quinn Sullivan might be of their best strategies in order to do so.

Sullivan is heading into his fifth MLS season this year and is fresh off what was his most productive campaign yet as a professional player. The Union homegrown attacker tallied five goals and 11 assists in 34 matches for the Eastern Conference club in 2024, shining as one of the few bright spots in what was an overall disappointing step back for the franchise.

With a new opportunity in front of him, Sullivan is focused on doing what he can to help the Union get back on track.

“We as a team know that that last season wasn’t acceptable,” Sullivan said in an interview with SBI. “I think with Bradley [Carnell] coming in, it’s kind of changed the mentality because I think everyone wants to win. There’s no one on this team that is content with losing and content with not being a playoff team and not fighting for championships.”

“There’s been a new energy and freshness to that, which I think has been good,” he added. “I think everyone knows what the message has been and that we need to give the fans something to enjoy, and that is being a playoff team. That’s fighting for something.”

Sullivan remains as one of several homegrown players in the Union squad, a trend that has continued following the long-serving leadership of former head coach, Jim Curtin. Curtin, who served as Union head coach for 10 years before his dismissal in November 2024, was the one who rewarded Sullivan with his first team debut in 2021 and continued to trust the 20-year-old up until his final days as head coach.

Bradley Carnell has replaced Curtin as the Union’s manager for the upcoming season, bringing ample coaching experience to the helm. Sullivan praised his opportunity to work with Curtin during the early stages of his career but also hinted at the new experience to work a well-recognized figure such as Carnell.

“I think we all know that it’s a business right,” Sullivan said about the Union front office’s decision to change coaches. “Everyone on the team understands that coaching changes happen, players leave, and the reality of things is, while we all had a great relationship with Jim, the front office made a decision and we’re going to play our hearts out for Bradley now.

“We’re going to build that relationship with Bradley and fight for him as much as we fought for Jim,” he added. “Obviously things are different, each coach has a different way of going about things, but the mentality is still the same, that we’re going to fight our asses off for whoever is on the sidelines.”

Despite being only 20 years old, Sullivan is one of the more experienced players on the team. He’s totaled 97 MLS appearances over four seasons, tallying 10 goals, 13 assists, and is moving close to 4,000 minutes of playing time.

Versatility has helped Sullivan fight for opportunities across multiple competitions, featuring as an attacking midfielder, forward, and winger. While many young players want to play in their favorite position, Sullivan admitted that being flexible and open to learning new positions will only help his long-term development.

“I definitely pride myself on being versatile and I think it’s helped me thus far,” Sullivan said. “My best position is as an attacking midfielder. I think I’ve excelled in wide areas a little bit, but I’m super comfortable in the No. 10 position. It kind of depends on what formation we are playing too, if we are in a 4-2-3-1, I would like to play on the right side or left side as well. If we’re playing a 4-2-2-2, I can play at the No. 10. 

“I think breaking into a team is difficult, but breaking into a team as a youngster is even more difficult and it took a couple years,” Sullivan added. “My breakout year last year, I think that came due to being versatile and being able to play in whatever role the team needed.”

Not only has Sullivan been fortunate to play early in his MLS career, but he’s also been privileged to play alongside his younger brother, Cavan. Cavan, 15, is one of the highly touted prospects in the Union squad, which has led to reported major interest from several European giants including Manchester City.

Cavan played 10 MLS minutes in 2024 (along with a larger role for Union II in MLS NEXT Pro), teaming up with his brother on multiple occasions, for what Union fans hope is the start of a growing partnership for 2025 and beyond. The hype surrounding Cavan Sullivan is real and Quinn is excited to watch his brother play a key part for the Union this season.

“Playing with him is unbelievable,” Sullivan said. “I played with him on every level and playing with each other on a professional team is truly a dream come true. I always thought that I’d play with a brother of mine, but I didn’t know which one it would be (Declan and Ronan Sullivan are also brothers of Quinn’s), and I definitely didn’t foresee it being this early in my career, but it’s been really good.

“I think Cav has had a really good preseason and it’s awesome to see him kind of come into his own and make an impact and dominate some drills,” Sullivan said. “I’m excited to hopefully see some more minutes with him and combine on the field because you can have chemistry with anyone, but there’s none quite like chemistry with your brother that you’ve played with for his whole life. We bounce ideas off of each other, we give each other criticism and it’s never personal.”

Similar to club level, Sullivan remains a rising talent on the international level. He scored seven goals and added six assists in 16 appearances with the U.S. Under-20 men’s national team, helping Mikey Varas’ squad win the CONCACAF U-20 Championship before later featuring in the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup.

Although he has yet to make his senior international debut, Sullivan is one of several young MLS talents that has dreams of featuring at the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup on North American soil.

“I haven’t had any talks with Pochettino or his staff yet, but obviously it’s a huge goal to play a World Cup, especially when it is in your home country, that would be phenomenal,” Sullivan said. “I definitely would have liked to be in the January camp after the season I had and not being included in the Olympic squad, but I am accepting of the decision.

“It would be awesome to be in a camp this year and get seen ahead of that tournament,” he added.

Sullivan could very well follow in the footsteps of several Union homegrowns before him, especially with another productive MLS campaign this year. From Brenden Aaronson to Mark McKenzie to Auston Trusty, the Union have watched several former academy talents make the move to Europe to take the next step in their careers.

His long-term focus is to have his opportunity abroad someday but for now he remains committed to helping the Union get back to winning ways.

“I definitely want to play in Europe, it has been a dream of mine forever,” Sullivan said. “You “I grew up watching those leagues, so to play in them would be amazing. I hope my performances on the field lead to that opportunity because that’s definitely a goal that I’ve been working on.

“I think it goes to show that if you play well that people will notice and if you win games, people notice even more,” he added. “I want to help the team win games and be successful this season. Winning games and making a playoff run and potentially winning MLS Cup would make this season a successful one.”