FC Dallas has made one more big splash in the winter MLS transfer market on Wednesday by acquiring midfielder Kaick via a transfer from Brazilian club Gremio.

He has signed a U22 Initiative four-year contract with a one-year club option. Kaick will occupy an international roster slot, pending receipt of his P-1 visa and International Transfer Certificate.

He arrives for the fourth-highest transfer fee in FC Dallas history, and the club's second-highest for a midfielder.

Kaick made his senior team debut for Grêmio in the 2025 Campeonato Gaúcho against Ypiranga FC on Feb. 25, entering in the 82nd minute. He spent most of his career with Grêmio’s U-20 squad, scoring three goals in 33 matches from 2022 to 2024. In 2023, Kaick won the Campeonato Gaúcho U20 title with Grêmio’s U20 side.

BDS Take

We already gave a good amount of thought on this one when it was in the rumored stage a bit ago. My thoughts haven’t changed a lot since then.

Interestingly enough, the club listed him in the transaction details of their media release as a defender instead of a midfielder. If he is indeed more of a defender than a midfielder in the club’s eyes, then I may be a bit more inclined to get on board with this move. I was told through sources that the club was still targeting another center back, so maybe Kaick is that guy. We'll certainly have to wait and see.

FC Dallas’ short history with the U22 roster slot
So far, it hasn’t been great.
Big D SoccerDrew Epperley

Either way, it is another dip into the Brazilian talent pool by FCD’s André Zanotta. Before his injury, Geovane Jesus was on target to be a pretty good U22 signing by the club. Zanotta is hoping that Kaick can not only stay healthy, but be the club’s entry into the good side of the league’s U22 signings from abroad. That history league wide isn’t great so far according to a couple of quality posts from Backheeled and our pal Arman Kafai this week.

I think the idea here with Kaick is to probably give him a long runway to develop, maybe even a bit with North Texas SC this season in a similar way that they did last year with Enes Sali. Given the depth of the roster at the moment, that is probably a fair place for him to begin his US journey.