Philadelphia Union
Report: Olwethu Makhanya closing in on transfer to Rangers
According to multiple reports, Philadelphia Union center back Olwethu Makhanya is on the verge of joining Scottish side Rangers for a fee around $4.5 million. The deal will also include performance-based incentives and a sell-on clause.
Makhanya missed the first two Union games after the World Cup due to “personal reasons.”
The 22-year-old had been gaining interest from overseas before his inclusion in the South Africa World Cup squad. Despite not playing any of his nation’s four games, his stock continued to rise.
Makhanya had suitors in Belgium and Scotland, with Rangers winning the race to sign the center back. He will become the third player to suit up for both the Union and Rangers, joining current club captain Alejandro Bedoya and former USMNT midfielder Maurice Edu. Makhanya will also join Stuart Findlay (Hearts) and Auston Trusty (Celtic) as former Union center backs playing in the Scottish Premiership.
Rangers finished third in the SPL last season, 10 points behind winners Celtic. They last won the league in 2021. Rangers will begin their hunt for European football this season with a two-leg affair against former Union midfielder Leon Flach and Jagiellonia Bialystok in the third round of Europa League qualifiers in early August.
The Union will make a significant profit on Makhanya, whom they originally bought from Stellenbosch FC in South Africa for around $500,000. Makhanya became the club’s first U-22 Initiative signing in 2023 after winning Defensive Rookie of the Year in South Africa’s top flight.
Makhanya spent his first two seasons with the club playing for Union II in MLS Next Pro. He made 31 appearances and helped lead Union II to the Next Pro Cup Final in 2024. He made his Union debut in 2025, starting 30 of 36 matches, scoring twice. He and Jakob Glesnes formed a strong center back partnership that anchored the league’s best defense en route to winning the MLS Supporters’ Shield.
This season, Makhanya played 17 games between MLS and the Concacaf Champions Cup. He will finish his Union career with 53 first-team appearances.
The Union gained a boost at the center back position after Neil Pierre returned from his loan with Lyngby in Denmark, making the departure of Makhanya an easier pill to swallow. The 18-year-old USYNT defender scored his first MLS goal in the team’s 3-1 home win over Red Bull New York on Wednesday, July 22, and made his first MLS start in a 1-0 shutout win over the Seattle Sounders on Saturday, July 25. The team also has Nathan Harriel, Japhet Sery Larsen, Geiner Martinez and Finn Sundstrom as center backs.
