Efrain Morales
 Morales with Bolivia in 2026 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Efraín Andrés Morales Badillo | ||
| Date of birth | March 4, 2004 | ||
| Place of birth | Decatur, Georgia, U.S. | ||
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||
| Position | Centre-back | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | CF Montréal | ||
| Number | 24 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2016–2021 | Atlanta United | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2020–2025 | Atlanta United | 9 | (0) |
| 2020–2025 | → Atlanta United 2 (loan) | 74 | (3) |
| 2025– | CF Montréal | 11 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2023 | Bolivia U20 | 6 | (0) |
| 2024– | Bolivia | 10 | (0) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 21 March 2026 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 31 March 2026 | |||
Efraín Andrés Morales Badillo (born March 4, 2004) is a professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Major League Soccer club CF Montréal. Born in the United States, he plays for the Bolivia national team.
Club career
[edit]Morales joined in the youth academy of Major League Soccer club Atlanta United in 2016.[1] Morales began at the under-12 level but quickly progressed to the under-17 side.[1] After impressing coaches in the youth setup, Morales signed a professional homegrown player contract with Atlanta United on August 13, 2020, which will come into effect on January 1, 2021.[1]
On August 15, 2020, Morales made his professional debut for Atlanta United 2, Atlanta United's reserve team in the USL Championship, against Charleston Battery. He came on as a 22nd-minute substitute for Patrick Nielsen and scored his first professional goal in the 51st minute. Despite the goal, Atlanta United 2 lost 3–2.[2]
Morales signed a contract extension with Atlanta United on November 29, 2023.[3]
On July 23, 2025, Morales was transferred to fellow MLS club CF Montréal.[4]
International career
[edit]Morales was elegible to play for Bolivia national team and Puerto Rico due to his mother. Morales made his Bolivia national team debut on 14 November 2024 in a World Cup qualifier against Ecuador at Estadio Monumental Isidro Romero Carbo. He played the full game as Ecuador won 4–0.[5]
Personal life
[edit]Born in Decatur, Georgia, Morales is the son of a Puerto Rican mother and a Bolivian father.[6]
Career statistics
[edit]Club
[edit]- As of match played March 21, 2026[7]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | Other | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Atlanta United 2 | 2020 | USL Championship | 4 | 1 | — | — | 4 | 1 | ||
| 2021 | USL Championship | 6 | 0 | — | — | 6 | 0 | |||
| 2022 | USL Championship | 24 | 0 | — | — | 24 | 0 | |||
| 2023 | USL Championship | 20 | 1 | — | — | 20 | 1 | |||
| 2024 | USL Championship | 15 | 1 | — | — | 15 | 1 | |||
| 2025 | USL Championship | 5 | 0 | — | — | 5 | 0 | |||
| Total | 74 | 3 | — | — | 74 | 3 | ||||
| Atlanta United | 2024 | MLS | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| 2025 | MLS | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | |
| Total | 9 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 0 | ||
| CF Montréal | 2025 | MLS | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2[a] | 1 | 8 | 1 |
| 2026 | MLS | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | |
| Total | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 13 | 1 | ||
| Career total | 94 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 99 | 4 | ||
- ↑ Appearances in Leagues Cup
International
[edit]- As of match played March 31, 2026[8]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bolivia | 2024 | 2 | 0 |
| 2025 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2026 | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 10 | 0 | |
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 Bogert, Tom (August 13, 2020). "Atlanta United sign 16-year-old US youth national team defender Efrain Morales to Homegrown deal". Major League Soccer. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
- ↑ "Charleston Battery 3–2 Atlanta United 2". Soccerway.
- ↑ "Atlanta United re-signs Efraín Morales". ATLUtd.com. Atlanta United. Retrieved November 29, 2023.
- ↑ "CF Montréal to acquire 21-year-old centre-back Efrain Morales from Atlanta United: Bogert". Canadian Soccer Daily. July 20, 2025.
- ↑ "Ecuador v Bolivia game report". ESPN. November 14, 2024.
- ↑ "Club de la MLS ficha al juvenil boliviano Efraín Morales | EL DEBER". eldeber.com.bo.
- ↑ Efrain Morales at Soccerway
- ↑ Efrain Morales at National-Football-Teams.com
External links
[edit]- Efrain Morales at Soccerway.com
- Efrain Morales at National-Football-Teams.com
- Efrain Morales at FBref.com
- Efrain Morales at Kicker (in German)
- Efrain Morales at Major League Soccer
- 2004 births
- Living people
- Sportspeople from Decatur, Georgia
- Bolivian men's footballers
- Bolivia men's under-20 international footballers
- Bolivia men's international footballers
- American men's soccer players
- Bolivian people of Puerto Rican descent
- American people of Bolivian descent
- American people of Puerto Rican descent
- Sportspeople of Puerto Rican descent
- Men's association football defenders
- Atlanta United 2 players
- Atlanta United FC players
- USL Championship players
- Soccer players from Georgia (U.S. state)
- Homegrown Players (MLS)
- MLS Next Pro players
- Major League Soccer players
- 21st-century American sportsmen
- Bolivian expatriate men's footballers
- Bolivian expatriate sportspeople in Canada