Ilay Feingold Bio
Ilay Feingold is an Israeli professional footballer who plays as a right-back or centre-back for the Major League Soccer club New England Revolution. Born and raised in Netanya, Israel, he came through the youth systems of Maccabi Netanya and Hapoel Ra’anana before joining Maccabi Haifa, where he broke into senior football in 2023. A full Israel international, Feingold has represented his country at every age level from the U16 team to the senior side.
He is best known in Israel for his role in the 2022 UEFA European Under-19 Championship final, where he helped the national side finish as runner-up, and for contributing to Israel’s third-place finish at the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Argentina. In January 2025, he moved to Major League Soccer on a U-22 Initiative contract, signing with the New England Revolution through the 2027 season.
Early Life and Background
Ilay Feingold was born on 23 August 2004 in Netanya, a coastal city in central Israel. He was raised in an Israeli family of Ashkenazi Jewish, Romanian-Jewish descent, and through that heritage he also holds a Romanian passport. Holding dual documents has eased his eligibility to register with certain European football leagues.
His father, Avi Feingold, is an electrician. Feingold grew up around the competitive youth football environment of the Netanya area and joined the Maccabi Netanya academy as a young child, beginning the formal part of his football education in 2011.
Path to Soccer
Feingold’s youth pathway began at Maccabi Netanya, where he spent eight seasons developing as a defender. In 2019, he moved across the city to Hapoel Ra’anana for a single season, where he continued to progress in a competitive youth setup.
His most important developmental step came in 2020, when he joined the Maccabi Haifa academy. Haifa’s academy is widely regarded as one of the most productive in Israeli football, and the move gave Feingold access to higher-level coaching and competition. By late 2023, he had earned promotion into Maccabi Haifa’s senior squad, marking his arrival at the top tier of the Israeli Premier League.
Ilay Feingold Career
Early Career (2011–2020)
Feingold began his organized football career in 2011 with Maccabi Netanya. He spent eight years in the Netanya system, learning the basics of the game and developing as a defender capable of playing on either side of the back line. His time there laid the technical foundation that would later support his switch between right-back and centre-back at the senior level.
In 2019, he transferred to Hapoel Ra’anana, where he spent one season before moving on. The brief stop at Ra’anana gave him experience in a new environment and prepared him for the biggest step of his youth career, joining Maccabi Haifa in 2020.
Maccabi Haifa Breakthrough (2020–2025)
Feingold joined the Maccabi Haifa academy in 2020 and quickly rose through the age groups. He became a regular in the club’s youth sides and trained regularly with the senior team during the 2022–23 season, while still eligible for Under-19 and Under-20 international duty.
On 6 December 2023, he made his senior debut for Maccabi Haifa in the 2023–24 UEFA Europa League group stage, playing in an away 0–0 draw against the Spanish side Villarreal. Eleven days later, on 17 December 2023, he made his Israeli Premier League debut in the Haifa derby, starting in a 3–0 league victory over city rival Hapoel Haifa. He remained part of the senior squad through 2024 and 2025 before departing for Major League Soccer.
New England Revolution Era (2025–Present)
On 28 January 2025, Feingold signed with the New England Revolution on a U-22 Initiative contract. The transfer fee was undisclosed, and the deal was structured to run through the 2027 season with a club option for an additional year.
He made his Major League Soccer debut, and his first start for the Revolution, in the 2025 season opener, a 0–0 draw against Nashville SC on 22 February 2025. Feingold scored his first goal for the club on 28 May 2025, opening the scoring in a 1–1 draw with D.C. United, a performance that earned him a place on the MLS Team of the Matchday. He wears the number 12 shirt for the New England Revolution.
Playing Style and Strengths
Feingold is a versatile defender who is comfortable operating at right-back or as a centre-back, a flexibility developed during his years in the Maccabi Netanya and Maccabi Haifa systems. He is 1.78 metres tall and combines sound positional awareness with the ability to step into midfield and contribute to build-up play, traits that have made him a regular starter at a young age.
Notable Events and Milestones
His senior debut in the UEFA Europa League against Villarreal in December 2023 marked him as one of the youngest Israeli players to feature in a major European club competition in recent seasons. His first Major League Soccer goal against D.C. United, combined with a Team of the Matchday selection, underlined his quick adaptation to the North American game.
Ilay Feingold Career Wins
Feingold’s competitive honours to date have been earned at youth and senior international level. With the Israel U19 team, he was a starter in the 2022 UEFA European Under-19 Championship in Slovakia, where Israel finished as runner-up behind England. He then represented Israel U20 at the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Argentina, where Israel claimed the bronze medal after finishing third.
International Highlights
Feingold’s international resume includes the 2019 Israel U16 team, the 2021 Israel U18 team, the 2022–2023 Israel U19 team, the 2023 Israel U21 team, the Israel Olympic squad for the 2024 Paris Games, and the senior Israel national team from October 2024 onward. He played in all three of Israel’s group matches at the 2024 Olympic Games, against Mali, Paraguay, and Japan.
His first senior cap came on 10 October 2024, in a UEFA Nations League match against France. He is also a UEFA European Under-19 Championship runner-up and a FIFA U-20 World Cup bronze medallist.
Other Performances
At club level, Feingold was part of the Maccabi Haifa senior squad that won the Israeli Premier League title in 2023–24, although detailed individual playing-time totals from that championship season are not confirmed in available sources. He contributed to Hapoel Ra’anana’s youth development pathway during the 2019–20 season before moving to Maccabi Haifa.
Ilay Feingold Family
Family Background and Heritage
Ilay Feingold comes from an Israeli family of Ashkenazi Jewish, Romanian-Jewish descent. This heritage gives him Romanian citizenship in addition to his Israeli nationality, a status that can simplify registration with European club competitions. He was raised in Netanya alongside family members who supported his early football development.
Personal Life
Feingold’s father, Avi Feingold, is an electrician by profession. Information about his mother, siblings, or a spouse is not publicly confirmed in available sources. He is focused on his professional football career, having relocated to the United States to join the New England Revolution in 2025.
2025 Season Performance
Feingold’s 2025 campaign began with a high-profile move to the New England Revolution, where he was immediately integrated into the starting line-up. His Major League Soccer debut, a 0–0 draw at Nashville SC on 22 February, marked him as a Day One contributor for the club. He went on to feature consistently in defence through the early months of the season.
His standout moment of the first half of the season came on 28 May 2025, when he scored his first Revolution goal in a 1–1 draw with D.C. United. The performance earned him MLS Team of the Matchday recognition, confirming his quick adaptation to the rhythm and physical demands of Major League Soccer.
With his contract running through 2027 and a club option for 2028, Feingold is positioned as a long-term piece of the Revolution’s defensive project. He is expected to continue as a regular starter while balancing senior national-team duty with Israel.
