OAKLAND, Calif. – Oakland Roots SC announced on Thursday the club had signed Ali Elmasnaouy to his first professional contract. The transaction is pending league and federation approval.

The Oakland born-and-raised midfielder and Project 51O product has competed for Roots’ First Team since April 2024 as a USL Academy signing. The Berkeley High graduate made his debut in the U.S. Open Cup in 2024, when he scored the game-winning goal in extra time against El Farolito to help Roots advance to the next round.

This season, the 20-year-old has recorded 13 appearances across all competitions for Roots, recording his first assist in the USL Championship while logging seven starts and 564 minutes of action. Elmasnaouy has also won 13 tackles at a 76.5 percent success rate and 43 duels at a 60.6 percent success rate while making 34 recoveries and five interceptions.

“We’ve seen the growth in his poise and leadership on the field, as well as his off field attention to detail and maturity since joining our program in the summer of 2022,” said Oakland Roots SC Technical Director Jordan Ferrell. “Ali continues to consistently do the little things well, which has earned him opportunities to grow through the levels of our club. He is a prime example of what we have built with Project 51O and the roots of our club, strong local homegrown talent, making an impact with our first team.”

Elmasnaouy first joined Project 51O in early August 2022, immediately helping the team win the UPSL NorCal Regular Season Conference Championship for Fall 2022. In just under three full years with Project 51O, he helped win four trophies in total, including the Fall 2023 UPSL NorCal South Playoff Conference Championship, the Fall 2024 UPSL NorCal South Regular Season Conference Championship, and the Fall 2024 NorCal South Playoff Conference Championship. He was also part of the USL League Two Project 51O side that went to the 2024 USL League Two Western Conference Finals.

Individually, Elmasnaouy was named the 2024 Project 51O Player of the Year by the club and the 2024 USL League Two Southwest Division Player of the Year by the league.