Today we unveil our latest update to TeamRank, the comprehensive ranking system for elite club soccer teams nationwide. Today we release the initial standings for U13, U14 and U15 Boys in the 2012-2013 club soccer season. Next week, we will update the older age groups on the girls’ side. We will update our ranking of National Top 50 teams from each age group at least once per month.

The times they are a-changin’ at U13

It seems like yesterday when the U13 age group was full of small tournaments, “festivals”, and 8v8 scrimmages.  Those days have gone away and have been replaced, especially on the boys’ side of youth soccer, with pre-Academy and regional leagues, where development can be better managed and potential burnout better avoided. Our debut rankings for the U13 Boys reflect this transformation, as each of the top 5 are from a USSF Academy club.

BW Gottschee 99 (formerly Cosmos Academy East) debuts at #1 in our rankings and is off to a stellar start in the Northeast Pre-Academy League. BW Gottschee began the 2012-13 season with a quarterfinal finish at Surf Cup, where they were knocked out by the eventual champion, and our second-ranked team, Pateadores LA.  The Pats compete in the National Premier League division of the Southern California Developmental League, and recently suffered a defeat to LA Galaxy Academy, our #3, in league play.

Rounding out the top five are Chicago Magic PSG at #4, which is 3-0 so far in the Midwest Development League’s Great Lakes Division, and New York Red Bulls 99 at #5.  The Red Bulls are off to a 5-0 start in the Northeast Pre-Academy League and have scored an unbelievable 30 goals in just those five games.

United FC just can’t lose at U14

United FC Gold begins the 2012-13 season at #1, and is the epitome of consistently strong play. We’ll see if this So Cal squad lives up to its billing from last season (where they finished at #1), but they are off to a strong start and are undefeated so far in Southern California Developmental League and Far West Regional League play. Coming in at #2 this month is the ever-consistent New York Red Bulls, who are off to a 4-0 start in the Northeast Pre-Academy League where they have scored a whopping 27 goals, with only 2 against.

It’s extremely early in the long 2012-13 season, but the Pateadores club looks to become a dominant force in Southern California youth soccer. The Pats’ Costa Mesa based team is at #3 in our rankings, recently had a semifinal run at Surf Cup, and is currently undefeated in the Far West Regional League and SCDSL play. In fact, Costa Mesa’s tie in the SoCal DSL came at the hands of newly-affiliated (the team was with Nomads SC last year) Pateadores San Diego (#6) in the very first match of the season. The Pats SD squad is also undefeated on the year.

We’ll head to the northwest for the team at #4, and then to the Midwest for #5. Washington Premier FC B98 Black narrowly missed being Region IV champion in June thanks to a lone goal from #1 United FC, and are currently at 2-0 in the Western College Development Association’s North Pacific Flight. WPFC is challenging itself in league play as well by competing in the U15 age group of the Washington Regional Club League.  Michigan Wolves 99 debut at #5 this month based on a 4-0 start in Midwest Developmental League play.

FC Dallas 97 Pre-Academy debuts at #1 in U15

As we reach the older half of the age group spectrum, we see a holdover of non-Academy clubs who are performing well, and we actually have three of them in our top five to begin the season. In terms of strength of schedule, you can’t beat a pre-academy league (in the National Premier Leagues set up) for tough matches week after week, so we debut at #1 FC Dallas 97 Pre-Academy, the National Premier League Champions Cup winner from last season.  FC Dallas has begun play for the fall in the Texas Pre-Academy league and has a wins over Solar SC and Classics Elite in the early going.

Sunrise Elite debuts at #2 this season and is currently leading Region III’s Southern Premier League.  Sunrise will begin US Youth Soccer National League play after Thanksgiving. Coming off a US Youth Soccer National Championship in July, Santa Barbara SC White starts off at #3 for 2012-13, with a 3-0 record in the Southern California Developmental League.  Sunrise and Santa Barbara duked it out at US Youth nationals last season, with Sunrise edging SBSC in group play, and Santa Barbara getting the last laugh with a 1-0 defeat in the final, so they should probably be ranked “2a” and “2b” instead. Since we don’t have that designation in our system, we’ll let them fight over who should be on top with their play.

Rounding out the top five is Albertson Academy, #4, who has sprinted out of the gate in the Northeast Pre-Academy League with a 5-0 start and already has added a defeat of New York Red Bulls to its resume. Finally we have Manchester Academy Elite (Cuellar), from Southern California at #5. Manchester Academy, since August, has racked up a Surf Cup championship, a NHB Cup championship, a first place standing in group play in the Far West Regional League, and a 4-0-0 start in the SCDSL. 

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