Ballou Tabla

BIOGRAPHY

Ballou Jean-Yves Tabla was born on March 31, 1999. He is a winger in Major League Soccer. 

Tabla was born in Abidjan, Ivory Coast and he moved as a child to Canada. He was raised in Quebec. Tabla first joined the Montreal Impact Academy in 2012. On December 9, 2013, he left the club to join local amateur team CS Panellinios. In April 2015, he returned to the Impact as part of the team's U18 side which finished the 2014/15 U.S. Soccer Development Academy in first place in the overall standings. He also played for Jets Pointe-aux-Trembles, another local amateur team. 

On November 10, 2015, it was announced that Tabla had signed for FC Montreal. On October 20, 2016, the Montreal Impact announced they had signed Tabla to a two-year contract as a Homegrown Player, which would begin in the 2017 season. On January 25, 2018, Tabla signed with FC Barcelona B on an initial three-year deal, with an optional two-year extension. His buyout clause was set at €25 million for the first three years, which would rise to €75 million if his contract option is picked up. 

Tabla returned to Montreal on loan through to the end of the 2019 MLS season on August 7, 2019. In January 2020, Tabla signed with Montreal on a permanent transfer. 

On October 17, 2018, Tabla made his senior national team debut, in a 2019–20 CONCACAF Nations League qualificationmatch against Dominica. Tabla was named to the Canadian U-23 provisional roster for the 2020 CONCACAF Men's Olympic Qualifying Championshipon February 26, 2020. He was named to the final squad on March 10, 2021