Breaking: Kévin Cabral Waived by the Colorado Rapids

Commerce City, CO – Colorado Rapids announced Friday afternoon the waiving of designated player Kevin Cabral. The 26-year-old Frenchman was in the final year of his contract with the Rapids. He was set to make $2.1 million this year, about 50% of that coming from his former team, the LA Galaxy. The Rapids acquired the winger from the Galaxy in the 2022 winter window for $1 million in General Allocation Money. It had been a rocky two and a half years for Cabral in Colorado. He has played 77 games for the Rapids, scoring eight goals and providing one assist. He has had no goal contributions in 2025 in 20 matches.

Cabral may have had an abysmal 2025, but the high point of his play in Colorado was the 2024 season. He played a critical part in Armas’s first year. It was also his statistical best year in the league. He scored five goals and assisted one in 25 games before he suffered an unfortunate elbow injury late in the season. It wasn’t quite designated player numbers, but he was looking like a valuable piece of the puzzle in Colorado.

This did not translate to 2025. After a 20-game stretch with no goal contributions from Cabral, he was released by Colorado. Even in 2024, he was the leading player in a disappointing winger room since his arrival in Colorado. As a designated player, it was not good enough.

Kevin Cabral had felt like he was on the way out of Colorado. The writing was on the wall for the last couple of weeks. He was a healthy scratch for the Vancouver game, as the team brought one fewer player than they could to fill the bench. He was a healthy scratch in Seattle as well, along with missing out on the Meet the Team Party in between the two games.

It is a surprising but positive move from the Rapids. The deal will immediately open up a DP slot that can be filled in the summer transfer window. This deal was an expensive one, however, as the Rapids will have to pay out an undetermined percentage of Cabral’s remaining wages. Despite the cost, this is a move of intent from the Rapids Front Office. It felt like the Rapids’ thing to do was to run out the remainder of Cabral’s contract, hurting the team in the short term but saving a buck by keeping the player. This is not the case for Cabral.

With the summer transfer window looming and the team with a DP-sized hole to fill, it will become important for the Rapids to find the best replacement. The front office may have already found their guy. It is rumored that the Rapids are finalizing a deal to sign Colombian youth international winger Alexis Manyoma from Estudiantes.

Whether it is Manyoma or another player who comes in and fills the hole that Cabral has left, Rapids fans can feel good about this move from the front office. It is a signal of intent for a team that usually doesn’t spend “unnecessary” money. Teams that are pushing to be contenders in MLS would make this move, and the Rapids have done just that. It will all fall on the Rapids front office to find the right guy to replace Cabral to elevate the ‘Pids.

Despite Cabral’s disappointing stint in Colorado, he remains a great guy with a great smile, energy, and passion for the game. Some of Cabral’s best moments as a Rapid came from how much he was a great teammate. It always felt like he was the first guy to celebrate a goal with the goalscorer, even if he didn’t play a part in the build-up. His smile was contagious, and his passion outside of this recent year was an example for others. Kevin was a joy to have in Colorado. Thank you, Kevin Cabral, and good luck in your next adventure!

Photo Credit: Mark Shaiken

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