North American Finals Format
10th Anniversary North American Finals to feature top 140 youth teams in North America
USL News Release
Friday, June 6, 2008
TAMPA – United Soccer Leagues announced today the format for the Super Y-League’s 10th Anniversary North American Finals. As has been the case in each of the past four seasons, the North American Finals will be held as one half of USL’s SoccerFest from Friday, November 21 to Tuesday, November 25. The second half of SoccerFest, USL’s Annual General Meeting, will be held in downtown Tampa, Florida, and will represent one of the largest annual gatherings of North American soccer officials, executives and administrators.
“There is a tremendous amount of excitement for the Super Y-League finals in November,” said Senior Director of Youth League Development, Jeff McRaney. “Last year’s event was a big success and this year’s should be even better.”
The 2008 version of the Super Y-League finals culminates a ten-season journey towards the establishment of an elite-youth development program in North America. The 1999 USL initiative that began as a 16-team, exclusively East Coast league, has expanded rapidly from the start.
 The SYL jumped to 75 teams in just a year, 200 the following season, and as more and more adult clubs and professional franchises delved into youth development, the league saw exponential growth. In 2005, the league contained an astounding 780 teams from across North America. And more recently the principles and standards established by the Super Y-League ten seasons ago have been adopted by U.S. Soccer’s Development Academy, a program that will lead to future success at the National Team level.
Last season, the North American Finals brought together clubs who would otherwise never compete. Far off places such as Vancouver, Canada competed against clubs from Miami, Florida. Clubs from Los Angeles faced the best New Hampshire had to offer. Teams also represent the youth academies of some of the top professional clubs in North America.
The Super Y-League includes youth teams organized by Major League Soccer’s Chicago Fire, Red Bull New York and Real Salt Lake (Florida), as well as youth sides of future Women’s Professional Soccer clubs, the Washington Freedom and Jersey Sky Blue. The SYL also includes WPS affiliated clubs FC Indiana, the Chicago Gaels and MPS Boston Renegades.
A total of 140 teams will attend the Super Y-League North American Finals. Four berths in the finals are the most delegated to any one division. On the boys’ side, 16 teams will clash at every age level in the league’s U13-U17 divisions. On the girls side 12 teams will meet from each of the five age divisions.
|
U13 Divisions
|
Boys
|
|
U15 Divisions
|
Boys
|
|
U17 Divisions
|
Boys
|
|
Mid Atlantic
|
3
|
|
Mid Atlantic
|
3
|
|
Mid Atlantic
|
4
|
|
Midwest
|
3
|
|
Midwest
|
2
|
|
Midwest
|
3
|
|
New England
|
2
|
|
New England
|
2
|
|
New England
|
2
|
|
Northwest
|
2
|
|
Northwest
|
2
|
|
Northwest
|
0
|
|
PNC
|
2
|
|
PNC
|
2
|
|
PNC
|
1
|
|
PSC
|
0
|
|
PSC
|
1
|
|
PSC
|
0
|
|
South Atlantic
|
2
|
|
South Atlantic
|
2
|
|
South Atlantic
|
2
|
|
Southeast
|
2
|
|
Southeast
|
2
|
|
Southeast
|
4
|
|
TOTAL
|
16
|
|
TOTAL
|
16
|
|
TOTAL
|
16
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
U13 Divisions
|
Girls
|
|
U15 Divisions
|
Girls
|
|
U17 Divisions
|
Girls
|
|
Mid Atlantic
|
2
|
|
Mid Atlantic
|
3
|
|
Mid Atlantic
|
3
|
|
Midwest
|
2
|
|
Midwest
|
2
|
|
Midwest
|
2
|
|
New England
|
1
|
|
New England
|
1
|
|
New England
|
2
|
|
Northwest
|
2
|
|
Northwest
|
1
|
|
Northwest
|
0
|
|
PNC
|
2
|
|
PNC
|
1
|
|
PNC
|
2
|
|
PSC
|
0
|
|
PSC
|
1
|
|
PSC
|
0
|
|
South Atlantic
|
2
|
|
South Atlantic
|
2
|
|
South Atlantic
|
1
|
|
Southeast
|
1
|
|
Southeast
|
1
|
|
Southeast
|
2
|
|
TOTAL
|
12
|
|
TOTAL
|
12
|
|
TOTAL
|
12
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
U14 Divisions
|
Boys
|
|
U16 Divisions
|
Boys
|
|
|
Mid Atlantic
|
4
|
|
Mid Atlantic
|
3
|
|
|
Midwest
|
2
|
|
Midwest
|
2
|
|
|
New England
|
2
|
|
New England
|
2
|
|
|
Northwest
|
3
|
|
Northwest
|
2
|
|
|
PNC
|
1
|
|
PNC
|
2
|
|
|
PSC
|
0
|
|
PSC
|
1
|
|
|
South Atlantic
|
2
|
|
South Atlantic
|
2
|
|
|
Southeast
|
2
|
|
Southeast
|
2
|
|
|
TOTAL
|
16
|
|
TOTAL
|
16
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
U14 Divisions
|
Girls
|
|
U16 Divisions
|
Girls
|
|
|
Mid Atlantic
|
3
|
|
Mid Atlantic
|
2
|
|
|
Midwest
|
2
|
|
Midwest
|
2
|
|
|
New England
|
1
|
|
New England
|
2
|
|
|
Northwest
|
2
|
|
Northwest
|
1
|
|
|
PNC
|
1
|
|
PNC
|
2
|
|
|
PSC
|
0
|
|
PSC
|
1
|
|
|
South Atlantic
|
2
|
|
South Atlantic
|
2
|
|
|
Southeast
|
1
|
|
Southeast
|
0
|
|
|
TOTAL
|
12
|
|
TOTAL
|
12
|
|
|
