To view the latest Academy information, including schedules, standings, player rosters
and contact informationplease visit the U-15/16 and U-17/18 Academy Team Pages.

To view the latest information on the Development Academy,
please visit the Development Academy Home Page on ussoccer.com

Please click here to learn more about the origins of the U.S. Soccer Development Academy program.

U.S. Soccer’s Development Academy program is driven by the game and its players, coaches and referees. This game-centric approach allows for long-term development to occur through a deep understanding of what makes players successful around the world. As the sport of soccer grows in the United States, young players in our country need the proper environment to compete against the world’s elite. The U.S. Soccer Development Academy program provides the optimum developmental environment for the nation’s top youth soccer players, coaches and referees by emphasizing development through quality training and limited, meaningful competition.

Academy teams spend a greater amount of time focused on training to improve as individuals and as a team. The teams and players receive direct feedback and evaluations from National Team Staff and ProZone video analysis. To round-out the complete training environment, Academy teams are tested in their physical capabilities using the SPARQ testing methodology and their hydration levels by Gatorade. They also receive a SPARQ training curriculum for soccer-specific athletic training and Nutrition and Hydration recommendations from Gatorade’s Sports Science Institute. Each athlete then gains a greater understanding of how they compare physically against their peers and what they need to do to achieve their optimal performance levels.

The Academy program features teams from the top youth clubs from around the country. Each Academy team plays approximately 30 regular season games to ensure all games are meaningful. Games are also played according to FIFA’s Laws of the Game and officiated by a pool of the nation’s top young referees in order to prepare players for the next level of competition. National Team Scouts regularly attend Academy games, so players are evaluated over the course of the season and in their natural positions allowing for better player assessment.

As the program enters its second year, it has already dramatically impacted the player development process in the United States. In 2008, more than 100 players from Academy clubs were included in U.S. Youth National Teams and almost 800 graduates from the inaugural Academy class participated in college soccer the following fall. Virtually all college programs use the Academy program as a scouting vehicle and the program has received increased attention from professional scouts representing domestic and international clubs. Visit ussoccer.com to view the top Academy teams in action.

Find out more about the Development Academy by watching these following videos:

Development Academy: What’s Next

Development Academy: What is it?

Bob Bradley Speaks to Academy Members at the 2008 Winter Showcase (Frisco, TX)

Further questions about the Development Academy can be answered in this U.S. Soccer FAQ.

Atlanta United Fire and USSF Academy Overview

The USSF Academy league is the pinnacle of youth soccer in the US for young men and Atlanta Fire United is proud and honored to be one of only three Georgia members of this prestigious groundbreaking league. The league held its very successful inaugural year in 2007/08. The US Federation initially selected 64 clubs, of which AFU was one, from around the country to participate in this league and the list consists of the who's who in US youth and MLS club soccer. 10 more elite clubs have now been added taking the total to 74 and the competition looks set to be taken to another level.

The reason the Academy league was born was to elevate youth soccer and place carefully selected elite clubs on a level that is basically an extension of the youth national program in Bradenton, Florida. Players will follow a controlled schedule of 30 games where each game will be of the highest caliber against top players and teams from around the nation. Emphasis within the academy is placed on 'more quality training with fewer meaningless games with the games that are played of the absolute highest quality. Competition and substitution rules are modeled after international soccer regulations while requiring Clubs to assure participation of each member of the roster on an overall match basis.

Twice a year all teams are required to attend 'showcases' where each team plays three games in four days and gets the opportunity to be exposed to not only the u-17 national team staff but also an extraordinary list college coaches. College coaches have now made the academy and especially these 'showcases' the main emphasis of their recruiting.