Atlanta United launches Unite Youth Cup

Atlanta United today launched Unite Youth Cup, a tournament featuring club teams throughout Georgia at the U-14, U-15 and U-17 levels that will run from October 2020 to May 2021. A total of 13 club teams from MLS NEXT, Elite Clubs National League (ECNL) and the United States Youth Soccer (USYS) National League platforms will be represented with Group Stage matches to begin this month. In addition, the semifinals and finals of each age group will be held at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta Training Ground.

“With the recent changes across the youth development structure, we felt it was imperative to use our resources at Atlanta United to ensure all soccer clubs in the state of Georgia have an opportunity to play each other, regardless of their platform,” Atlanta United Academy Director Tony Annan said. “We also wanted to ensure the quality of the tournament could be maintained, so we made the decision to run the tournament over a longer period of time, instead of cramming multiple games in a weekend. This tournament is intended to encourage club interaction throughout the state, while also eliminating financial barriers to play meaningful matches – and we’re truly excited that 13 clubs have chosen to participate.”

Matches are slated to kickoff later this month across each age level. As Unite Youth Cup will coincide with each team’s regular season, each match will be scheduled at the convenience of participating teams, with teams playing one Unite Youth Cup match monthly, beginning in October. The U-14 tournament consists of 12 teams split into two groups, while the U-15 and U-17 tournaments each consist of 10 teams split into two groups. However, at all levels, the top two teams from each group will advance to the semifinals. The Unite Youth Cup is sanctioned in partnership with Georgia State Soccer Association. For more information on Unite Youth Cup, visit atlutd.com/uniteyouthcup.