TAMPA, Fla. – The United Soccer League announced the format and location for the 2024 USL Academy League Finals that will take place at the state-of-the-art IMG Academy facility in Bradenton, Florida starting on Thursday, December 5 and culminating with the championship matches on Sunday, December 8. 

The fourth edition of the USL Academy League Finals will see an evolution of the competition format with the top 16 teams from the USL Academy League regular season being represented. The event will feature three days of single-elimination games beginning on Thursday, December 5 and culminating with the USL Academy League Final championship matches on Sunday, December 8 between the top two teams. 

The division winner from each of the 13 divisions will automatically be given a bid to the USL Academy League Finals. Two wild card bids will then be split between the Mountain, Metropolitan, and Southeast Divisions, with one wild card bid being split between the Great Forest, South Atlantic, Mid Atlantic, Southwest, and Cactus Divisions. The wild card bids will be based on points-per-game (PPG). 

A new seeding structure will be introduced for the 2024 playoffs with the 16 teams separated into four different pots based on the tier they have been placed in. Tiers will be determined by the USL Sporting Committee using a weighted system with the following criteria: 

• Roster Composition (30%) 
  • Determined by the submitted roster to the USL League Office 
• League Results (30%) 
  • Teams are rated in this section solely based on their PPG 
• Strength of Schedule (40%) 
  • Teams are rated in this section on how their division have performed in USL national events (Cups and Finals) 

After the tiered pots have been determined, the USL League Office will perform a live drawing that will determine the Round of 16 matchups. Teams from the same division will not be selected as a matchup in the Round of 16. 

As part of the USL Academy League Finals, there will be a Girls Invitational event to recognize some of the highest performing USL Academy girls programs across the country following the conclusion of their league season. The competition will see three days of group play amongst the invited girls programs before the top two teams from the group face off in the Final with a trophy on the line. More information about those invited clubs will be revealed during the live draw for the boys’ USL Academy League Finals event. 

“We’re incredibly excited to host the USL Academy League Finals and Girls Invitational at IMG Academy this year,” said Lucas Ohlman, USL Academy Operations Director. “In addition to the state-of-the-art facilities being utilized for this event, the competition structure will replicate the experience these players will face in knockout competitions at the Senior Team level in a professional environment. We are also looking forward to bringing more entertainment to our live draw which will seed the teams leading into the event and reveal the girls programs for the invitational.” 

“Our clubs continue to elevate the standard of competition and player on display at each of these USL Academy events,” added Liam O’Connell, USL Men’s Technical Director. “As an example, Bryce Jamison featured at last year’s USL Academy League Finals for Orange County SC II, just weeks after competing at the FIFA U17 World Cup for the US Men’s National Team. While our clubs identify and develop more high-potential young talents like Bryce, we look forward to providing opportunities like this to showcase themselves for the next level.” 

Information about the qualified teams, live draw, event experience and more will be announced in the coming months.