Spring is here and so is our latest update to TeamRank, the comprehensive ranking system for elite club soccer teams nationwide. Today we release the latest standings for U13, U14 and U15 Boys. Next Thursday we will update their counterparts on the Girls side of things, with older boys and girls coming in the following weeks. We will update our National Top 50 of each age group at least once per month.

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Pateadores Top U13s

U13 is the youngest age group we rank and Costa Mesa, California-based club Pateadores is leading the pack. Mark Herman’s squad won the top flight of the Southern California Development League, as well as the prestigious Surf Cup. One of the team’s league wins was a 2-1 victory over our #2 ranked team, United FC, also of Southern California.

Watch out for a rising team from the Midwest. Chicago Magic’s U13 squad won both the Midwest Developmental League Great Lakes Division, and the local NISL Premiership campaign, supplementing those accomplishments with a good run last Thanksgiving at the Disney Junior Showcase.

Northern California’s De Anza Force has been a busy group this season, placing well in the Northern California Developmental League, the Western College Development Association Flight A and reaching the final of the NorCal State Cup.

U14 Ranking Looking Magical

That same Chicago Magic club has its U14 team on top of the national ranking. The team won both the Disney Junior Showcase and the Midwest Developmental League’s Great Lakes Division.

Trailing just behind in our system is Southern California club soccer legends Nomads SC. Derek Armstrong’s club has a U14 team that has won both the Surf Cup and the Southern California Developmental League.

Soccer fans may not think of Utah as a hotbed for the game, but they should. Along with top professional and college teams (and a better collection of adults who play than most state), there is a thriving youth soccer subculture. One of the prominent clubs within that is Sparta United. The Utah State Cup champions also fared well in the Far West Regional League and the West Coast Development Academy Flight, plus a semifinal run at the Disney Junior Showcase.

Baltimore Bays has had a number of national champions over the past 10 years, and as the club becomes more immersed in the USSF Developmental Academy system, its teams don’t appear to be missing a beat. Coming in at #4 nationally this month, the ’97 team won the pre-Academy division at the Disney Soccer Showcase after Christmas, having reached the semifinal at the Disney Junior Showcase in November. The squad is also competing at the upper part of the table in the Northeast pre-Academy League.

U15 Race a Tight Battle

Determining the top team in the U15 Boys age group is a bit of a task. We settled on Concorde Fire of the Atlanta area for this month, due largely to their strong performance in the U.S. Youth Soccer National League and winning the crown in the same organization’s Region III Premier League this fall.

Chicago Magic once again are among the contenders in this age group. The club’s pre-Academy team won their division of the U.S. Youth National League and also had a strong campaign in the Midwest Development League Great Lakes Division.

Another Midwestern club, Cincinnati United Premier, sees its Crew Juniors Gold team filling the 3rd slot in the National Top 50 for the U15 age group. Winning the U.S. Youth National League highlights theseason for the squad, which also reached the semifinal of the Annandale Premier Cup. Southern California side Albion SC, active in a host of competitions this season, occupies the 4th spot.

Next Week: U13, U14, U15 Girls

TeamRank is the comprehensive team-ranking system devised by TopDrawerSoccer.com to provide an objective and common-sense approach to determining which elite youth soccer teams are the best in the nation.

The rankings, updated monthly, are primarily results-based, with a nod toward the league and championship competitions that emulate how excellence is determined in leading soccer nations around the world. Tournaments are also included but at a reduced value due to the many mitigating factors involving such events, including attrition and guest players.

A final layer of executive evaluation is provided to account for variables that often impact results, thus ensuring that the monthly lists are not subjective, but are not purely mechanical.