Revs' Club One of 12 New Academy Teams

Development Academy Starts Second Season Saturday

September 6, 2008

CHICAGO � The New England Revolution�s youth club is one of 12 new teams joining the U.S. Development Academy in its second season.

The Academy, which kicks off its second season ever this weekend, also returns all 62 clubs from last year, including the four from the New England area (FC Greater Boston, Oakwood SC, Seacoast United and South Central Premier).

The first matches will take place on Saturday, Sept. 6, with six South Conference games taking place in the Under-15/16 and Under-17/18 age groups. The Academy�s second year will build upon the successful foundation that was built during the inaugural eight months in 2007-08, looking to improve upon one of the most comprehensive overhauls of American player development in history.

�From the beginning of the Development Academy, our goal was to do everything possible to provide players, coaches and referees with an environment to help them develop and we definitely accomplished that during our inaugural year,� said Development Academy Technical Director John Hackworth. �We know we can improve and we�ve implemented some positive changes to our programs that we feel everyone can benefit.�

With 74 clubs, the conferences have been realigned into four conferences with nine divisions to provide a schedule that will necessitate fewer flights for each team to help reduce costs.

During the 2008-09 Academy season, more than 2,000 games are scheduled across the country, including two Showcase weekends in December and May. The Winter Showcase will be held at the Lancaster National Soccer Center in Lancaster, Calif., from December 5-8, and the Spring Showcase will take place on Memorial Day Weekend, May 22-26, at the Sarasota Polo Grounds in Clearwater, Fla.

The 10-month season will build into a playoff weekend in June, The top three teams in each division, along with the top five fourth-place teams, will qualify for the 32-team Academy Playoffs at Bryan Park in Greensboro, N.C. The top eight teams from each age group will then qualify to compete at the Academy Finals Week in July. In 2008, Finals Week was broadcast live from The Home Depot Center on ESPNU.

The Academy league will continue to serve as a platform to provide educational opportunities to players, coaches and referees to enhance their development. Referee development and identification will continue to be a key component of the Academy program.

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