The captain’s armband is one of the most visible symbols in football. It represents leadership, accountability, and the responsibility to guide a club through every moment of a match. At San Diego FC, Danish midfielder Jeppe Tverskov was named the Club's first-ever captain, but leadership extends far beyond the armband. Behind the scenes, a core leadership group helps guide the Chrome and Azul both on and off the pitch.
Following a memorable inaugural season, expectations have only grown in year two. With the 2026 campaign underway, SDFC is building on that foundation for the San Diego community. From making decisions in the locker room to the pitch, communication is key to effective leadership. SDFC’s leadership group includes Ema Boateng, Aníbal Godoy, Marcus Ingvartsen, Christopher McVey, and Jeppe Tverskov.
Defender Christopher McVey was added to the Club’s second season leadership group, adding his perspective as a veteran defensive player.
“I think it’s a big opportunity to help lead this team, I think we have a lot of leaders in the group who you can take after who leads with example and to be able to be one of them is a cool experience,” said McVey.
The veteran defender joined MLS in 2022 when he signed for Inter Miami after departing IF Elfsborg in Sweden, before later joining the inaugural roster of SDFC in December 2024. Since joining the Club, McVey has played 42 matches across MLS play, contributing three goals and two assists. In addition to being added to the leadership group, McVey was named to this season’s MLS Team of the Matchday 1, for his one goal and one assist contribution in SDFC’s 5-0 victory over CF Montréal.
“I think it’s been really good so far, we had a good first season, obviously it’s a lot also about getting to know each other and I think it’s also, you know for me, getting added into this leadership is also to lead by example, so get the young guys with you. I’ve been in the league for a little bit longer than a lot of them and playing for a while so also try to bring my experience with me to them so they can hopefully, you know maybe skip some steps of failures and stuff and kind of show leadership that way as well,” added McVey.
Ema Boateng, a Ghanaian native and Right to Dream Academy Graduate, is also bringing extensive MLS experience to San Diego. With 11 seasons under his belt, the midfielder brings a lot of knowledge to the younger generations.
“First of all, it’s an honor to be able to represent this group on that level. I think we have a fantastic group; the job is a lot easier. Obviously we have meetings and everything always to have a big picture, look at the team in terms of stuff happening in the locker room that we could make better and also sometimes the coaches expectations because we feel like we’re an extension of the coaches in the locker room so just to make sure things are in order,” said Boateng. “I think from the first year up until now a lot of the work that we’ve done we’re seeing it in the way that we play, the way that we work hard for each other and how we all care for each other and so I think it’s been even smoother as of recent because everybody’s buying into that and everybody’s being very accountable.”
SDFC’s roster features a number of young players. The Club continues to develop emerging talent, making MLS history by fielding the first defensive group with an average age of 20 on Saturday, April 4 against the San Jose Earthquakes at PayPal Park. The backline included Oscar Verhoeven, Osvald Søe, Manu Duah, and Luca Bombino.
Boateng’s Thoughts on SDFC’s Young Roster
“We have a young team, but also very smart and very professional young guys. I think that is credit to the entire leadership group with Tyler (Heaps) and Mikey (Varas), making sure they’re bringing the right guys here not just good footballers but also professionals that want to work and we also do our best to kind of help them especially the game to game, traveling, how to get ready, recovery, and all that stuff,” said Boateng. “We try to help out with our experience and tell them, hey when I do this, this is what helps me recover, and we all have different ways that we can help them with that and also just preparing the mindset for games, everybody prepares very differently in our locker room that’s actually one of the good things that I always feel about our locker room.”
SDFC’s midfielder Pedro Soma shared his experience with the leadership group since joining the Club back in July 2025.
“I think our leadership group is an older, we could say, age of guys, but we love them. They’re great; they help us every single day,” said Soma. “It’s a very good connection between the outside, a little bit of the outside world to our inner world, and they help us and guide us a lot, so I am very grateful for the leadership committee.”
The 19-year-old midfielder has made 11 appearances with SDFC across all MLS competitions. As a midfielder, Soma shared how SDFC captain Jeppe Tverskov has influenced him both on and off the field, especially as they play the same position.
Soma’s Thoughts on Jeppe Tverskov
“I think for me the top thing is to be calm in difficult moments, especially in a team sport you want to transmit calmness. Especially in those little times where you might feel like you’re having a difficult time on or off the field and to have a calm mind keeps you from making bad decisions and keeps you going in the right direction so that’s one thing I learned from him (Tverskov),” said Soma. “Something else is on the field, I would just say being brave all the time and knowing exactly what’s going on everywhere on the field, not just in the 15 yards around you. Thank you Jeppe for everything you do for us, and I can’t wait for more this year and to reach our objectives that we have as players and as a team.”
McVey’s Thoughts on Tverskov
“I think Jeppe has been great, I look up to him a lot, he’s a great person as well, foremost and I see him as a friend as well as a colleague and teammate, so I think he also it’s the same way with him, he demands a lot from everyone, but also from himself and I think it’s easy to kind of follow that because you know he’s going to put the work in every day and if he says something, he’s also a smart guy so you listen,” said McVey. “Obviously we as a leadership group have sometimes discussions of how we think things should be done and stuff like that and that’s really good because I think that’s also how we push each other to become better and I think everyone’s really good at listening and taking that in and helping each other in that sense as well. I think Jeppe is a great leader.”
Join SDFC for Community Night, presented by California Bank and Trust, this Saturday, April 11 against Minnesota United FC. Commemorate this match by arriving early to receive a Captain’s Pennant and cheer on the Club’s leadership group as well as the whole squad as they look to remain undefeated at Snapdragon Stadium! Show up for San Diego, purchase your tickets now and bring the electric energy to the stands.
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Tverksov’s Thoughts on the Captain’s Pennant
“First of all a sign of respect, it’s two teams that before a game that’s usually hard fought and since they show respect to each other say good game and as a captain you hand over (the pennant) to the other captain, as a sign of respect and two teams going into a battle. It’s a great thing to do before a game,” said Tverskov.
