Younes Boudadi

Younes Boudadi (يونس بودادي) (born 23 January 1996) is a professional footballer who plays as a defender for Hartford Athletic in the USL Championship. Born in Belgium, he has represented Morocco at youth level.

Amateur
Boudadi joined Club Brugge when he was just 7 years old and played with them for over 13 years.

After leaving Club Brugge, Boudadi opted to move to the United States to play college soccer, and accepted a scholarship to play at Boston College in 2016. After two years in Boston, Boudadi transferred to play at Creighton University, where he played for a further two years.

Whilst at college, Boudadi appeared for fourth-tier sides in the USL PDL and the NPSL. In 2017 he played with Boston Bolts and in 2018 Laredo Heat.

Professional
On 13 January 2020, Boudadi was selected 102nd overall in the 2020 MLS SuperDraft by Los Angeles FC. However, he did not sign with the club.

On 26 March 2020, Boudadi signed with USL Championship side Reno 1868. He made his debut on 19 July 2020, appearing as a 56th-minute substitute in a 1–0 loss to Sacramento Republic.

Following Reno's folding, due to the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Boudadi signed with USL Championship side Hartford Athletic on 22 December 2020.

On 2 December 2022, it was announced Boudadi would join USL Championship side Indy Eleven ahead of their upcoming 2023 season.

Boudadi assisted club captain Tyler Gibson in the club's first league goal of the 2024 season in a 2–1 defeat at Oakland Roots on 9 March 2024. He recorded a second assist to forward Sebastian Guenzatti in a 2–1 loss to Detroit City FC on 30 March 2024.

On 14 June 2024, Hartford Athletic announced Boudadi had returned to the Connecticut-based club in a swap deal with Indy Eleven that saw forward Romario Williams join the Eleven. Boudadi made his second debut with Hartford on 15 June, in a 2–0 home win over Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC.

International career
Boudadi has represented Morocco at under-17 and under-20 levels, including at the 2013 FIFA U-17 World Cup.

Personal life
Boudadi is a polyglot, speaking four languages: Arabic, French, Dutch and English.

Racial abuse incident
After Hartford defeated Loudoun United on 4 July 2021, Boudadi received a number of racist messages on Instagram. Boudadi went public with these messages immediately and the United Soccer League was able to investigate and ban the unnamed perpetrator from all USL events.