“WHO ARE YA? WHO ARE YA?”

The Boys ECNL recently announced an impressive class of new Member Clubs set to start league play in August, with clubs stretching all across the country.  To help get to know these clubs, take a look below to see what makes each new member of the Class of 2019 unique!

Charlotte Soccer Academy:

• Includes more than 6,500 players formed in 2009 by the merger of South Charlotte Soccer Association and Charlotte Soccer Club
• CSA alum Jaylin Lindsey signed as a Homegrown Player with Sporting KC of Major League Soccer in January 2015; on May 7, 2016, he became the first American player born in 2000 or later to appear in a professional match
• CSA alum Tomas Hilliard-Arce selected #2 overall in the 2018 MLS SuperDraft by LA Galaxy after helping lead Stanford to three straight NCAA National Championships in his final three seasons with the school
• Club partnership with PUMA provides access to English Premiership club Arsenal’s youth academy, and most recently, 2005 Devin Branch spent time at Arsenal as part of a PUMA all-star team

Discoveries Soccer Club:

• Won the USYSA Under-18 Boys National Championship in 2009
• Only club in South Carolina to actively participate in the ECNL, DA, NPL, USYSA, WPSL, and USL
• Has a sister club located in Monrovia, Liberia named Discoveries FC
• Recently joined Carolina Rapids and Lake Norman Soccer Club in a merger with Charlotte Independence

Loudoun Soccer Club:

• 150+ college commitments over the last six years alone
• 2016 Loudoun 99B Under-16s won the US Youth Soccer National Championship
• Developed two members on the US Under-19 YNT squad, Sam Golan and Colin Shutler;  Sam Golan has played with Brighton & Hove Albion

Minnesota Thunder Academy:

• Founded in 2008 through a merger of Bangu F.C. and Wings S.C.
• Impressive list of players advanced into NCAA, Youth National Teams, and professional ranks including the likes of Leo Cullen and Tom Presthus
• Director Steve Bellis was a member of the Manchester United Under-14 coaching staff from 1995 to 1999

Pacesetter:

• Based out of Toledo, OH
• Own a 5 acre all-grass training complex and an impressive 28 grass-field Pacesetter Park
• Developed Michigan State standout and MLS draftee Adam Montague
• Hosts annual Memorial Day event that attracts over 300 teams

Rockford Raptors:

• Began as a professional men’s (USISL) and women’s (W-League) club in 1993, eventually leading to the formation of Rockford Raptors FC in 1996
• Have hosted the massive PUMA Champions Cup Series Tournaments in the first two weekends of April for 20 years, with 800+ teams involved
• Have produced 3 US National Team players at different age levels:  CJ Klaas, Pari Marosevic, Victor Zamora
• MLS players coming from Rockford Raptors include Greg Klazura, Chris Dunsheath, Ryan Howe, CJ Klaas, Brian Namoff, Mark Simpson, RT Moore

Manhattan SC:

• Largest soccer club in New York City, with players from all five boroughs and surrounding areas
• Games played in the heart of New York City on newly renovated Randall’s Island, where Pele played his first soccer for the New York Cosmos in 1975
• Club offers chaperoned buses to practices on Randall’s Island from the east and west sides of Manhattan

STA:

• Based out of Morris County, NJ
• Have placed 67 boys into colleges across the NCAA spectrum in the last three years
• One of the first 46 clubs in the country to be awarded with US Club Soccer’s Players First licensing
• First club in the country to partner with Beyond Pulse for player monitoring and coach development

Crossfire Premier:

• Based out of Seattle, WA
• Long-regarded as one of the most successful clubs in the United States
• Every year, a top team in the club travels to Europe for competition
• In the 2019 MLS SuperDraft, two Crossfire Academy products were drafted, Hassani Dotson and Nathan Aune
• Crossfire alum DeAndre Yedlin is currently playing in the English Premier League with Newcastle United and the US Men’s National Team
• Each year, several Crossfire Under-17 to Under-19 players go on trial with various European professional clubs

Eastside FC:

• Developed US National Team and Seattle Sounders striker, Jordan Morris, who was with the club from Under-11 through Under-17
• First club in the Pacific Northwest to open a Futsal facility, the Eastside Futsal Center
• Club pays for all aspects of the coach licensing process, with 10+ coaches taking A or B licenses in the past two years
• Seattle Sounders Affiliate Club

Pacific Northwest Soccer Club (PacNW):

• Formed in 2012 from a merger of Greater Renton FC and Dos FC
• Includes over 1,100 player
• In their history have helped over 200 players into NCAA soccer, 30+ into MLS Academies, and 10 into US Youth National Teams
• Develop players through the “3 C’s”:  Culture, Curriculum, and Coaching
• Call Starfire Campus home, with 54 acres of incredible soccer fields just minutes from Seattle in Tukwila, WA
• Seattle Sounders Affiliate Club

Seattle United:

• Developed Seattle Sounders midfielder Handwalla Bwana, signed as a Homegrown Player in 2018
• Partnered with two foreign sister clubs:  Livingston Seattle Academy (Zambia) and Gilcock Academy (Ghana)
• Serve approximately 2,200 youth players in club structure
• Club programming takes place on 101 fields throughout Greater Seattle Area
• Seattle Sounders Affiliate Club

Snohomish:

• Located in Snohomish, WA, known as the “Antique Capital of the Northwest”
• Provided over $100,000 in scholarship money in 2018-2019 to provide opportunities to players regardless of socio-economic background
• Own and operate Stocker Fields, 50 scenic acres dedicated to soccer fields in Snohomish, WA
• Welcome 400+ teams, annually, into two club-run tournaments:  Snohomish United Invitational and Snohomish Bigfoot Tournament

Spokane SC Sounders

• Play home games at 27-acre Spokane Shadow Polo Grounds
• First youth club affiliate of the Seattle Sounders of Major League Soccer
• Previously known as Spokane Shadow
• Offers NPSL and WPSL adult  teams in addition to 80+ youth club teams

Washington Premier:

• Based out of Seattle, WA
• Over the past 20 years, the club has won 5 National Championships
• Invested approximately $2 million over the past nine years to develop a beautiful, privately owned complex in the Pacific Northwest
• Over the past three years, the club has produced four boys teams which have earned berths into the US Youth Soccer National Championships
• Technical Director Roy Lassiter was an 8-year veteran standout for the US Men’s National Team who played in the 1998 World Cup in France in addition to a 9-year MLS playing career and still holds the record for most goals in a season (27)

Washington Timbers:

• Directly across the Columbia River from Portland, OR
• Call Harmony Sports Complex ‘home’, a sprawling 40-acre complex in southwest Washington
• Affiliated with the Portland Timbers of Major League Soccer, with alumni on the current Timbers roster (Foster Langsdorf)
• Boys Director Biniam Afenegus is also the Head Men’s Soccer Coach at George Fox University

FC Alliance:

• Located in Knoxville, TN
• Founded in 2008 and has grown to include approximately 1,000 players
• Very high success rate in terms of college placement, with two FC Alliance alums having won NCAA Division I National Championships (Luke and Mark Mishu, University of Notre Dame)

Palm Beach United:

• Developed as a member of the US Development Academy at the Under-12, 13, and14 age groups
• Located in Palm Beach Gardens, FL
• Active working relationship focused upon player development and advancement with Palm Beach Gardens Predators
• Have successfully moved a large number of players into the professional ranks from its USL 2 (formerly “PDL”) team, including the likes of Preston Kilwein (NYRB), Dawin Espinal (New York Cosmos), Ethan Decker (Sporting KC) and Jack Elliott (Philadelphia Union)

FC Golden State:

• Based in Pasadena, CA
• Formed in 2007, currently with over 100 teams between the ages of 5-19 from Los Angeles to San Bernardino and beyond
• Offers FC Golden State Force in USL 2 for elite high school and college aged players
• 5 players recently moved on from FC Golden State programming into Major League Soccer with additional players moving into Mexico (Ascenso MX) and Europe

LA Breakers:

• Since August 2018, LA Breakers 01B team posted an undefeated record of 28-0-1, winning NHB Cup, Surf Cup, and Las Vegas Players Showcase
• Robbie Keane, David Beckham, and Zlatan Ibrahimovic have all had their children involved in LA Breakers
• Known for developing current Schalke 04 and US Under-23 NT forward, Haji Wright

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About Boys Elite Clubs National League: Boys Elite Clubs National League (Boys ECNL) was founded to provide a top class, club-based development, training, and competition platform for youth male soccer players in the United States. The mission of the Boys ECNL is to improve the landscape for players in the United States through innovative, player-centered programming that raises standards of quality and improves the player experience in all aspects of the game.  

The Boys ECNL is sanctioned by US Club Soccer and is sponsored by PUMA North America.

www.boysecnl.com

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