For immediate release SEATTLE (March 10) -- The Emerald City FC board has voted to seek more competitive opportunities under US Club Soccer and the Puget Sound Premier League, in an effort to help inspire a new era and a new vision for youth soccer in Washington state. The decision by the Seattle-based premier soccer club, known for being on the leading edge of player development, follows a recent decision by Crossfire Premier to join the PSPL Development League.

``We are making this decision because it is time to do what is right for young soccer players, what is right for competitive clubs and what is right for the good of the game,’’ said Bobby Howe, director of coaching for Emerald City.

``We want to redraw the youth-soccer boundaries that currently restrict player development in this state and create a more open and diverse system. We want to give the game back to the players.’’

   What’s more, several top Eastern Washington and Northern Idaho’s competitive clubs announced this week they are committing to the PSPL for Fall 2010, boosting the number of committed PSPL clubs to 22 for the fall season that potentially boost the number of teams to well more than 200. There are currently more than 60 US Club members in Washington state and 2,300 nationwide. Since its inception in the spring of 2007, the US Club PSPL league has grown more than 30% each season. Emerald City teams will compete in the PSPL and form the core of a new regional elite Northwest Champions League with some of Oregon and British Columbia’s competitive clubs. US Club, the PSPL and Emerald City encourage other clubs to join them in an effort to redefine and rethink how competitive leagues should be created.

``The Tualatin Hills United Soccer Club is prepared to move forward with the NW Champions League ages in 2011,’’ said Tom Atencio, coaching director for Tualatin Hills.

``We see the NW Champions League as an opportunity for motivated soccer clubs to give back to the players in an economical fashion. We believe that youth soccer leagues, aged appropriately, should have meaning and that clubs should work together beyond state boundaries for the good of the game.’’

Emerald City is being joined by several other competitive clubs in Washington and Northern Idaho. These clubs announced this week they are committing teams to the PSPL: Spokane SC Elite, Idaho Thunder, CB United, River City and Coeur d’Alene Sting. South Hill Revolution, near Tacoma, has registered some teams in the spring league and is considering adding more in the future. They join a growing list of Washington and Idaho clubs -- 35 different clubs -- that have or will compete in PSPL leagues.

``We are excited about the new competitive opportunities being created by the PSPL and US Club Soccer,’’ said Abbas Faridnia coaching director of Spokane Soccer Club.

``Equally exciting is that we now can control our own destiny as a club and one we believe will ultimately benefit our players.’’

The PSPL plans to sanction a US Club Eastern Washington league for select teams that don’t want to travel across the state. The top competitive teams will compete in the PSPL statewide league. Under US Club, Emerald City and the other clubs are free to help redefine the competitive soccer landscape. They have the entrepreneurial flexibility to help the PSPL --the US Club Soccer league in Washington state -- to develop new leagues, set new competitive standards and offer tournaments that pit the best against the best. One of the key tenants of US Club is the emphasis of the club over the association model. That means Emerald City and the other clubs will be in charge of their own governance, their own destiny. With less layers of red tape and the elimination of unnecessary pass-through fees, the clubs will realize significant cost savings and free up more time and resources to devote to developing competitive soccer players.

``US Club Soccer is built on the belief soccer clubs are the key to player development in the U.S.,’’ said Bill Sage, executive director for US Club Soccer.

``We have spent too much time governing competitive soccer rather than encouraging its growth.’’

Sage welcomed Emerald City’s decision, one that has been made by numerous competitive clubs across the country. ``We welcome Emerald City into our national community of competitive soccer clubs, and we applaud its efforts to inspire a new era, a new vision and new opportunities in Washington state,’‘ Sage said.

``With the support of US Club and the Puget Sound Premier League, we are confident that Emerald City FC will be even more successful in the future. But ultimately we are confident that the ones who will benefit the most will be the young players who are so passionate about this game.’’

Immediate benefits to US Club Soccer and PSPL clubs and players: • id2 Player Identification Program: US Club’s national player identification and development program provides an opportunity for the country’s top youth talent to be identified and developed for possible inclusion in U.S. Soccer’s National Team programs.

The program is free for players who are selected. www.usclubsoccer.org.

• US Club National Cup: A national championship competition. U-13 through U-17 winners from each regional cup advance to the National Cup Finals, where national champions are crowned in two competitive divisions. www.usclubsoccer.org.

• Elite Clubs National League: The ECNL is a national youth soccer league for U15 to U17 girls’ teams to provide the highest level of competition and the best developmental environment for America’s female soccer players. Clubs need to apply to be accepted. www.eliteclubsnationalleague.com.

• Northwest Champions League: A regional competition for top US Club teams in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and British Columbia. PSPL league winners would qualify for a series of three-venue based tournaments against league winners from the other states and provinces. Plans are to start the girls league in January 2011 and the boys for summer 2011. ``The Tualatin Hills United Soccer Club is prepared to move forward with the NW Champions League ages U14-U18 women in 2011,’’ said Tom Atencio, coaching director for Tualatin Hills. www.pugetsoundpremierleague.com • Puget Sound Premier League: It is currently the US Club-sanctioned state league for Washington state. It runs Fall and Spring leagues for U11 to U15 teams in two divisions, and can add older age groups if there is demand. First division contains premier-level competition. Since its inception in spring of 2007, the PSPL has grown 30% annually in the number of teams registering for its leagues. The PSPL also runs development leagues for U8-U10. www.pugetsoundpremierleague.com • The Washington Cup: It is a state cup competition organized by the PSPL that will follow an FA-cup style format in the future. Cup winners qualify for two regional California tournaments: The Mustang Stampede and the Santa Clara Invitational. Registration is being accepted for current cup competition, which kicks off Apr 16-18 and Apr 23-25. www.pugetsoundpremierleague.com • PSPL Showcase Team Program: U12-U14 boys and girls players have the opportunity to tryout for one of six showcase teams June 5/6. Selected players will attend a three-day residency camp in July at no cost to prepare to play in the Lake Oswego Cup tournament at the end of July. Teams will receive top-flight coaching and players will be expected to return to their club teams. www.pugetsoundpremierleague.com • Arsenal Showcase Tournament: Arsenal Youth Academy director Liam Brady will be bringing a team of Arsenal scouts to look for American talent Aug. 27-30 at Starfire. A player or two could receive a two-week, all-expenses paid trial at Arsenal’s academy in north London. This will be an invitational showcase tournament for U16 to U18 boys and will include top clubs from the West Coast. Emerald City’s U17 and U18 teams will be guaranteed spots,if eligible. www.pugetsoundpremierleague.com. For more information about US Club Soccer: • Gabe Rood, western regional membership representative, 707-571-1425 This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it For more information about the Puget Sound Premier League: • Stanley Holmes, president, 206-200-2245 This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it