ST. PETERSBURG, FL – A Tampa Bay Rowdies stalwart over the past few seasons is getting a shot on the international stage this week. Rowdies center back Jordan Scarlett is set to join Jamaica’s national team for the country’s upcoming CONCACAF Nations League match against Mexico on Tuesday, June 14. This is Scarlett’s first call-up for his home country.
Kickoff for Jamaica’s match against Mexico is set for 8 p.m. ET at National Stadium in Kingston, Jamaica. The match can be streamed live on Paramount+.
Now in his third season in Tampa Bay, Scarlett is firmly entrenched as a mainstay of one of the most consistent defensive sides in the USL Championship. The 26-year-old center back recently made his 70th appearance for the Rowdies in the club’s 2-1 win at Miami FC over the weekend.
Scarlett was born in Jamaica before moving to the United States at a young age. He excelled in the youth soccer ranks while growing up in the Bronx in New York City. After a standout collegiate career at Iona College, Scarlett was drafted in the MLS SuperDraft in 2017 and then promptly signed for the organization’s USL Championship outfit, New York Red Bulls II.
His performance over three seasons in New York was enough to convince Rowdies Head Coach Neill Collins to sign him ahead of the 2020 season. With Scarlett as a regular on the back line, the Rowdies have claimed back-to-back Eastern Conference titles and finished with the best regular-season record in 2021. Scarlett and the entire back line’s performance during a record-breaking 891-minute shutout down the stretch of last year’s season aided the Green & Gold in locking down the best regular-season record.
Jamaica currently sits atop League A’s Group A in Nations League play after recording a draw and a win over Suriname in its first two matches. This is only the second edition of the still relatively young Nations League competition, which will serve as a qualifier for the 2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup.
