The New York City Football Club Boys Academy U15 and U17 teams have finished top of their GA Cup qualifying groups and advanced to the top brackets of the 2020 Generation adidas Cup Finals, where they will go toe-to-toe with the rest of the best from the United States as well as the top international competition invited to the tournament.
The U15 side entered the weekend with some ground to makeup to keep their finals dream alive, sitting in fourth place on five points. They did just that, winning Group D outright on 14 points after beating Columbus (2-0), Toronto (2-0), and Atlanta (2-1) consecutively to lock up the top spot.
Even more impressive, it was another young group of players that got the job done, with many U15s playing at the U17 level, as has become customary for New York City academy teams when challenging in tournament play.
The U17 side entered the final qualifying stage leading Group D with eight points. The squad went from strength to strength, finishing the job with a penalty shootout victory over Atlanta (4-2 after a scoreless draw), a penalty shootout loss to Columbus (1-3 after a 2-2- draw), and a 2-0 victory over Orlando to close things out.
Similar to the U15s, this U17 team featured many 2005 and 2006 born players – making it one of the youngest teams to qualify.
Next up: the 2020 Generation adidas Cup kicks off on April 4 from Frisco, Texas, featuring the best of MLS academy teams in addition to 15 premier international clubs, making it the largest field in the 13-year history of the tournament. Top international clubs from Argentina (Boca Juniors, River Plate), Brazil (Sao Paulo), England (Southampton), Greece (Olympiakos), Mexico (Chivas de Guadalajara), Serbia (Red Star Belgrade), and Spain (Real Betis), among others will headline U-17 division play.
For the second consecutive year, the U-15 International Challenge will feature Liga MX vs. MLS – with Atlas FC, Club Tijuana, Monterrey, and a fourth yet to be determined team playing in both the U-15 and U-17 age groups.
Congratulations to all of the players and staff on this fantastic achievement, and we look forward to supporting all of our boys in their quest for more trophies this April.
Full qualifying tables and results at MLSSoccer.com
