City SC made another move to strengthen its back line Thursday, signing Tomas Totland, a Norwegian-American defender, to a three-year contract. It’s the first transfer of this period for City SC.
Totland, 24, has been with Swedish club BK Hacken after coming up through the Norwegian leagues. He has an American passport and thus will not require an international spot on the roster. In 21 games for Hacken, he had one goal and four assists as his club finished third in the Swedish first division.
In 2022, his first season with Hacken, the club won the Swedish first-division title, putting them in the qualifying rounds for the UEFA Champions League and the Svenska Cup, Sweden’s knockout tournament. The team didn’t advance and went instead into the Europa League, where it reached the group stage and then got soundly thumped, losing all six games. But Totland was able to get in 11 matches in the two tournaments.
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Totland has played for Norway’s youth national teams at the under-18, -20 and -21 levels and played for Norway at the 2019 U-20 World Cup. He played one season in Norway’s first division, with Tromso Idrettslag, with five goals and three assists in 28 games across all competitions.
Totland is a right back, though he can play on either side. He has also played on the left and the right in midfield.
His three-year contract also has a club option for 2027. According to , the team paid a fee around $500,000.
Totland gives City SC five Nordic players, joining Joakim Nilsson and Rasmus Alm from Sweden, Isak Jensen from Denmark (who is currently on loan to a club in his native country) and Nokkvi Thorisson from Iceland. The only Nordic country not represented on the roster is Finland.
Since City SC’s inaugural season ended, the team’s moves have largely revolved around the defense. The team acquired Chris Durkin, a defensive midfielder, in a trade with D.C. United and now has signed Totland, along with drafting a midfielder who has played extensively on the back line, Hosei Kijima. The team did not re-sign left back John Nelson, didn’t pick up the option on defender Jonathan Bell and traded center back Lucas Bartlett to D.C. United in the Durkin deal. That trade also included attacking midfielder Jared Stroud going to D.C.
“He comes to our team with experience at a high level, including playing in both Champions League and Europa League matches this season,†said City SC sporting director Lutz Pfannenstiel in a statement released by the team. “Along with his experience, he is well-rounded in both the attacking and defending phases.â€
City SC has 26 players under contract, with a maximum of 30. That 26 doesn’t include Isak Jensen and Selmir Pidro, who are currently on loan, and the team’s two unsigned draft picks.