A German citizen of Ethiopian descent, Zelalem moved with his family from Berlin to the United States in 2006. He is currently a U.S. permanent resident—not a citizen—but is applying for a passport, and would apparently be eligible to become an American citizen through family ties in two years time.
Zelalem has trained with the U.S. Under-15s as well as the German youth system (he attended successive camps for both countries last winter). Per international regulations, Zelalem is unable to play in games with the U.S., but he can still train with the team.
While it has always been his dream to play for the Mannschaft, the arrival of Jurgen Klinsmann to the U.S. managerial post, and the exuberance he has brought with him, has the youngster thinking hard about his future. He apparently had a terrific time at an elite U.S. U-15 national team camp he attended in the past year.