Tacoma Defiance have announced the signing of 19-year-old forward Mark Bronnik from USL League One side Union Omaha. Bronnik joins Defiance as the third signing of the offseason — and the second for whom they paid an undisclosed transfer fee — after earning USL League One Young Player of the Year honors in 2025, a season in which he scored 6 goals in 942 minutes, making 12 starts in 28 appearances.
Bronnik is a Brooklyn, New York native who came up through the Barca residency academy and signed with Omaha ahead of the 2025 season. He seems to have played primarily on the wings during his first professional season, and has been listed as a forward by Defiance.
Across all competitions he played 1,165 minutes between League One, U.S. Open Cup and the USL Cup. He added 1 assist in USL Cup to his 6 League One goals, and showed a strong knack for getting on the ball in dangerous spots (6.11 touches in the opposition box per 90 minutes, per Fotmob, in League One) and turning those touches into shots (4.11 shots per 90), which in turn powered his 6 goals (0.57 goals per 90). His 4.68 recoveries per 90 and winning 1.05 possessions in the final third per 90 also suggest that he’s got the instincts required in an organization and system that prizes defending from the front. His underlying numbers were good too, averaging 0.45 xG per 96 minutes according to American Soccer Analysis, the 12th highest mark in League One among players who played 1000 minutes or more last season. His goals added (g+) of 0.17 per 96 was the 3rd best in the league for players with at least 1000 minutes.
There are plenty of weak spots in his game – despite being listed at 6’, he only won 28% of his aerial duels and only won 0.48 aerial duels per 90 last season – but at 19 he’s still got plenty of room to develop, and every opportunity to do it in a team with a great track record of doing just that.
Bronnik’s signing is another in a line of recent Defiance signings that perhaps suggests a slight tweak to the way the team is built, predicated on the success of the previous approach. Where previously Defiance looked to fill the team from “three buckets” as Henry Brauner once described, focusing first on players working their way up from the academy in Seattle’s internal pipeline, followed by homegrown players who can play for the first team but need to play to progress, and finally largely filled out by “second chance” players looking to restart or kickstart their young careers in some capacity. That’s now begun to include highly-rated young players from around the American lower leagues like other MLS Next Pro sides and USL Championship and League One teams. The ability to move players on and up has opened up new pathways to improve Defiance and the first team as well.
The details of Bronnik’s signing were not made public at the time of his announcement, but according to Union Omaha a release clause in his contract was triggered by Defiance. This move brings Defiance up to 11 signed players.
TRANSACTION: Tacoma Defiance signs forward Mark Bronnik to an MLS NEXT Pro contract on February 13, 2026. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Full Name: Mark Bronnik
Position: Forward
Height: 6-0
Weight: 156
Hometown: Brooklyn, New York
Date of Birth: November 8, 2006 in Brooklyn, New York
Nationality: United States
Acquired: Signed to Tacoma Defiance on February 13, 2026
