Brenden Aaronson Marries Milana D’Ambra During U.S. World Cup Training

FAYETTEVILLE, Ga. — While his U.S. teammates went through their paces on a training field Friday, Brenden Aaronson was stepping into a very different arena.

The Leeds United midfielder skipped the U.S. World Cup team’s session with full permission from staff, trading cones and rondos for vows and rings as he married longtime girlfriend Milana D’Ambra.

It was hardly a casual absence. D’Ambra is the daughter of Saint Joseph’s men’s soccer coach Don D’Ambra, and the ceremony tied together two deeply rooted American soccer families. Aaronson left camp after Thursday’s workout and is scheduled to be back in time for training on Saturday, a brief detour in a week otherwise dedicated to national-team business.

At 25, Aaronson has already lived several footballing lives: a Premier League player with Leeds, a 2022 World Cup squad member, and the most prominent face of a clan that has become synonymous with the game in Medford, New Jersey. The sport runs through the Aaronson household like a family language.

His younger brother Paxten is carving his own path with the Colorado Rapids in Major League Soccer. Sister Jaden, a freshman at Villanova last fall, has already pulled on a college jersey. Their father, Rusty, oversees the Real Futbol Academy in Medford as sporting director, shaping the next wave of prospects while his own children push on in the professional game.

For the U.S. setup, this is not uncharted territory. The program has shown a human touch before with its brightest talents. Back in 2016, Christian Pulisic was granted a day away from camp to attend his Hershey High School prom at the Hershey Hotel in Pennsylvania. He returned the next day and went straight into Copa America duty against Bolivia in Kansas City, Kansas.

Aaronson’s brief escape from the grind carries a similar message. Even in the high-stakes world of international football, life’s landmark moments still matter. The U.S. camp will have him back soon enough — married, refreshed, and stepping again into the familiar rhythm of training with a new chapter already underway.