TAMPA, Fla. – The United Soccer League announced today the 30 teams set to compete in the 2022 USL Academy League Finals starting on Thursday, November 17, 2022 at the Tournament SportsPlex of Tampa Bay.
Luis Mendoza, Technical Director: We are happy to be a part of this great event, competing against USL Championship and top USL-Academy clubs. This is a great Showcase for our Reserve players to compete in using players solely from our developmental academy who will gain incredible experience and develop immensely with this top competition. We are excited for the weekend and best of luck to all teams competing.
The Finals will be divided into two brackets: the Playoff Bracket and Showcase Bracket. The Playoff Bracket consists of eight teams that won their divisions over the course of the Academy League season. These eight teams have been sorted into two groups, where they will play round-robin matches within their groups on each day of the Finals. The top teams in each Playoff Bracket group will then play in the Academy League Championship on Sunday, November 20 at 2 p.m. ET.
Playoff Group A: AC Connecticut, Tampa Bay United, New Mexico United, Indy Eleven
Playoff Group B: Queensboro FC, North Carolina FC, San Antonio FC, Chattanooga Red Wolves SC
The Showcase Bracket will contain 22 other teams set to compete against clubs from across the USL ecosystem, to demonstrate the skills of their prospects on a national stage. The 22 teams have been divided into six groups. Four groups contain four teams, while the remaining two each contain three. The Showcase Brackets will feature group-play across all four days, allowing teams to compete against clubs that ranked similarly in the USL Academy League standings and from outside of their respective territories, to encourage quality competition and unique opponents.
Showcase Group 1: Weston FC, Louisville City FC, Orange County SC, AHFC Royals
Showcase Group 2: Cleveland Force SC, Ironbound SC, Wake FC, South Georgia Tormenta FC
Showcase Group 3: Charlotte Independence, Southern Soccer Academy, FC Miami City, Park City Red Wolves SC
Showcase Group 4: Charlotte Eagles, Rio Grande Valley FC, Chicago City SC, FA Euro New York
Showcase Group 5: Houston FC, Lexington SC, Tampa Bay United-2*
Showcase Group 6: VBR Star, Miami Athletic Club, Peachtree City MOBA
*The Miami FC were originally placed in Showcase Group 5 but are unable to attend. Tampa Bay United will field a second team to compete in the Showcase Bracket.
The first session of matches will kick off Thursday, November 17, 2022 at 9 a.m. ET.