Real Monarchs SLC transfer defender Stanley Okumu to Swedish 1st Division club

Real Monarchs SLC continue to adjust their USL roster by transferring the rights to defender Stanley Okumu to Swedish first division side IF Elfsborg. The transfer fee received by the Monarchs was a USL Championship record for an outgoing player.

Early indications are that Okumu went for $200,000 base, with a further six figures of performance based escalations and a sell-percentage.

“First and foremost, we are ecstatic for Stanley. Since his arrival at the club, Stanley has bought into the plan laid out for him to continue to develop as a player,” Real Monarchs SLC General Manager Dan Egner said. “His hard work and continued determination to improve earned him the chance to move to a European first division club. From a club standpoint, this is historic. We set out to win and develop with the Monarchs, and this illustrates the execution of a significant part of the club’s vision. We are excited to break the USL record for a transfer fee, and we hope this move helps raise the profile of the league and our club at the global level.”

The 22-year-old Okumu arrived at the Monarchs late in the 2018 season after playing the full 2018 NPSL season for AFC Ann Arbor where he received honors including 2018 NPSL National XI selection and 2018 Great Lakes Conference Best XI as well as the TopDrawer Soccer NPSL Player of the Year in 2018.

He featured in just two matches for the Monarchs in 2018, totaling 173 minutes but has seen time in 10 of their 2019 matches, eight of which were starts to total 716 minutes played. In June, Okumu became the first player in RSL and Real Monarchs history to be named to a final roster for the African Cup of Nations when he was named to Kenya’s final tournament roster. During the 2019 African Cup of Nations, Okumu made three appearances for the Harambe Stars and played 270 minutes.