TAMPA, Fla. (September 5, 2024) – The United Soccer League (USL) announced today the launch of the USL Pathway Classic, a new national Academy and Youth competition set to begin in 2025. As the only unrestricted youth tournament hosted by a US Soccer professional league organization, the USL Pathway Classic invites clubs from across the country to apply, creating a unique competitive platform for young players to showcase their talent. This event will replace the USL Academy Cup, offering increased exposure and opportunities for youth players across the country.

The inaugural tournament will take place from April 24-27, 2025, at the Tournament Sportsplex of Tampa Bay in Tampa, Fla. Future editions of the event will be held in various markets of USL professional teams, with the first event showcasing the USL Championship’s Tampa Bay Rowdies and the USL Super League’s Tampa Bay Sun FC.

Sanctioned by the US Soccer Federation as a Talent Identification and Olympic Development Program event, the USL Pathway Spring Classic will feature three age groups for boys and girls: U14, U16, and the U20 Academy group. For the U14 and U16 groups, any club that is a USSF member organization or affiliated with USL can participate.

“The USL Pathway Spring Classic is a game-changer, as it enables us to connect the entire player pathway, no matter where a player begins their soccer journey,” said Joel Nash, USL SVP of Youth and Pre-Professional Properties. “By removing common barriers, this open tournament provides young athletes the opportunity to compete at the highest level and set themselves up for success for the rest of their soccer career whether as a player, coach, or executive.”

The U20 Academy groups will feature USL member clubs competing against the best young talent in the country. Within each age group, teams will be placed in a competitive and developmentally appropriate bracket, giving players and clubs the best possible experience. As a USSF-sanctioned event, clubs will also be able to use players in current high school seasons on the rosters, ensuring clubs face minimal resistance in showcasing elite talent.

“As we continue to expand our Academy footprint with more clubs across the country, the USL Pathway Spring Classic is a natural evolution of the previous USL Academy Cup,” said Carrie Taylor, USL Technical Director, Women’s Pathway. “By bringing these events to more communities and inviting men’s and women’s U20 teams to showcase their players in a highly competitive environment, our ultimate goal is to provide more opportunities for these top players to embark on their professional pathway.” 

With nearly 600 teams and over 10,000 players, USL Youth is a high-level national platform that complements existing youth soccer infrastructure by creating opportunities for clubs to face different opponents. Established in 2021, the USL Academy provides an elite pre-professional environment for players through regionalized competition and creates professional pathways in both new and previously overlooked communities across the country.

Clubs can register for the first event in Tampa here.

About USL
Impacting more than 200 communities, the United Soccer League (USL) is the largest professional soccer organization in North America. The USL is the first and only soccer organization in the United States to build a youth-to-professional pathway for both women and men within one ecosystem. That structure includes three professional leagues: USL Championship (men), USL League One (men) and USL Super League (women), which begins in August 2024.