Explore the latest developments concerning Wisconsin's 'Milwaukee Messi'.
Wisconsin's 'Milwaukee Messi' shines at World Cup, sport's biggest stage
Esmir Bajraktarević is playing in the FIFA World Cup 2026™ representing his parents' home nation of Bosnia & Herzegovina. In doing so, he's helping put Wisconsin soccer on the map.
APPLETON, Wis. – Beneath the Stars and Stripes of the USA Youth Soccer Complex, dreams grow just like the kids chasing them. Here, there are soccer and baseball fields in every direction. It wasn't that long ago the coach of the now-Wisconsin United FC, Shant Mesdjian, had to keep kicking a younger player off the fields, which were closed.
That player was Esmir Bajraktarević. Now, 21 years old and playing professionally for the Dutch club PSV, Esmir Bajraktarević is playing in the FIFA World Cup 2026™ representing his parents' home nation of Bosnia & Herzegovina. In doing so, he's helping put Wisconsin soccer on the map.
Esmir Bajraktarević sent his country to a World Cup. He's also a Revolution academy success story.
Esmir Bajraktarević sparked a frenzy when he scored the game-winner in a shootout against Italy in March to send Bosnia and Herzegovina to their second-ever World Cup. It was another crowning moment for the 21-year-old, whose meteoric rise began with the New England Revolution.
Bajraktarević, whose parents moved to the United States after the Bosnian war, left Wisconsin in August 2021 to join the Revolution’s residential academy program. He immediately started training with Revolution II, earning a Homegrown contract in less than a year. His first-team debut came in a U.S. Open Cup game in May 2022. By 2024, he was a full-time starter.
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The country they never left
Bosnia’s World Cup squad is built on the descendants of war and displacement, players raised across Europe and North America who are finding their way back through football.
The Bosnia-Herzegovina side warm up at the Estádio do Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro ahead of their clash with Argentina during 2014 FIFA World Cup. Source: BiHVolim via Wikimedia Commons.
The 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup is going to be the most cosmopolitan tournament in football history. Across the 48 qualified nations, more teams than ever are drawing on players raised beyond their borders, turning the competition into a showcase not only of footballing talent but also of new identities.
For more detailed information, explore updates concerning Wisconsin's 'Milwaukee Messi'.
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