USL News Release
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
TAMPA, Fla. - United Soccer Leagues announced today that the sixth annual Super-20 League North American Finals presented by Umbro would take place July 21-24, 2011 in Tampa, hosted by the Brandon Flames of the USL Super Y-League. The Thursday-Sunday event will bring together the top 17- to 20-year-old men’s and women’s talent from clubs throughout the United States and Canada.
The North American Finals will be contested at the Brandon Flames’ J.C. Handley Sports Complex, located just minutes from downtown Tampa. The nine-field complex recently underwent a multi-million dollar upgrade to become one of the preeminent soccer complexes in Florida. Brandon was selected through a bid process involving several USL youth clubs.
“We are extremely excited to bring the 2011 Super-20 North American Finals to the Tampa Bay area,” USL Senior Director of Youth League Development Brian D’Amico said. “The J.C. Handley Complex offers first-class facilities for the teams that will be competing for national championships, and we are confident the Brandon Flames will raise the level for the event.”
There are currently six geographic divisions in the men’s Super-20 League with 55 teams hoping to earn spots at the North American Finals, while the women’s Super-20 League features 29 teams in five divisions. Teams in those divisions will qualify during the regular season to earn the right to compete in the finals. Bid allocations for the Super-20 Finals will be announced later this week.
As the only U20 men’s and women’s North American amateur league and a member of the U.S. Adult Soccer Association, the USL Super-20 League provides the platform for top 17- to 20-year-olds in the United States and Canada to compete at the elite level. While serving as a reserve team system for many W-League and Premier Development League teams, the USL Super-20 League features teams competing in regional divisions, consisting of 8-10 regular season matches throughout the summer months.
Teams must battle through the arduous Super-20 League regular season to earn spots at the North American Finals where they will face competition from the Mid Atlantic, Midwest, New England, Pacific Southern California, Rocky Mountain, South Atlantic, and Northwest divisions.
USL Super-20 League Champions Men Women
2010 Columbus Crew Juniors Princeton
2009 New York Red Bulls Triangle FC
2008 Chicago Fire Triangle FC
2007 PDA Parsippany SC
2006 West Kendall Washington Freedom