Red Bull New York is adding to its roster ahead of the club’s home opener on Saturday.
Defender Joyeux Masanka Bungi was brought in on loan from RB Leipzig, the Bundesliga club also owned by Red Bull.
Bungi’s time with the club will be brief, with the loan running through June 30 and no option to purchase his contract at the end of it.
The Belgian youth international brings a plethora of experience at left back to the Red Bulls amid a period when the club has some questions around its back line, which included Justin Che at center back and 17-year old Matthew Dos Santos at left back during the season opener in Orlando.
“Young, talented left-footed defender from Red Bull Leipzig,” Red Bull New York head coach Michael Bradley described Bungi as during a press conference on Thursday. “And so we are really excited to have him join us. The people in Leipzig and at Red Bull Global speak very, very highly of him. And so we are really looking forward to adding him to our group, and to seeing if we can take the really good starting points and help develop him even more.”
Bungi has a wealth of experience on the international stage, having represented for the the U-15, U-16, U-17 and U-18 teams.
He joined the RB Leipzig Academy in 2023 and signed his first professional contract last year with RB Leipzig.
“We’re pleased to welcome Joyeux on loan from RB Leipzig,” head of sport Julian de Guzman said in a statement. “He’s a talented young player with strong technical quality, and we believe this will be an important step in his development while adding to our group.”
The Red Bulls open the home portion of their schedule on Saturday afternoon against the Revolution.
