Jacob Murrell leaves DC United in transfer to Falkirk FC
Jacob Murrell is headed across the pond. This morning, DC United announced the permanent transfer of forward Jacob Murrell to Scottish Premiership side Falkirk FC. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Murrell was selected by DC United 7th overall in the 2024 MLS SuperDraft and was signed to a deal that ran through the end of the season with an option for 2027. The Forest Hill, Maryland native who played at Georgetown and also played a season with the Annapolis Blues made his Black-and-Red debut against the Seattle Sounders on April 27, 2024. He scored his first goal for the club against the Philadelphia Union in a 2-2 home drawAcross all competitions, Murrell made 65 appearances for DC United, scoring four goals and adding five assists.
“Jacob is a local talent who came to us as a first-round draft pick and grew into a professional over three seasons with this club,” DC United director of soccer operations Erkut Sogut said in a statement. “He gave this fanbase moments they will remember for a long time, and he earned everything he got here through his work.”
In his move to Falkirk, he moves to a club that finished sixth in the Scottish Premiership last season. The Bairns were promoted to the Premiership after winning the Scottish Championship in 2024-25. They look to move up the table this season and Murrell will be called upon to score goals for the club. Both DC United and Falkirk officially announced the move after rumors popped up earlier this week regarding the transfer.
Murrell’s transfer gives him an opportunity to earn playing time and get a fresh start away from home, while DC United will continue to rely upon Tai Baribo, Louis Munteanu, and Jackson Hopkins to provide goals while Nathan Ordaz also gets plenty of time on the field to make things happen.
I enjoyed Jacob Murrell, though he never really developed as much as I hoped he would. He certainly had moments of real quality. He finishes his DC career tied with Fabian Espindola for 9th most games played for DC by a forward. He’s also played the 15th most games in team history by a draft pick, surpassing Chris Odoi-Atsem.
Murrell seemed like someone who really could have benefitted from an MLS Next Pro team, and hopefully he’ll flourish in Scotland. I’ll be rooting for him.
Falkirk is a decent side. Geographically an easy train to Edinburgh, Glasgow and Stirling. I think this will be a fun adventure for him. I am going to text my old teammates to be on the lookout for him.
I’m going to assume that the folks over there will have little problem pronouncing his name correctly, as opposed to “mur-RELL.”
He can take a ride on the Falkirk Wheel (worth a google, it’s amazing)