CHARLESTON, S.C. (June 18, 2010) – The Elite Clubs National League (ECNL) has announced the dates and locations of its five regular-season national showcase competitions for the 2010-11 season.
There are several changes to the ECNL competition format for the ECNL’s second season. The ECNL will include 12 new top youth clubs from around the country, bringing the total number of member clubs to 52.
A U-18 age group will also be added to the ECNL for 2010-11. Finally, in addition to the national showcase games played by each age group, every team will also play four regional ECNL games as part of the regular-season schedule. In total, each team in the U-15 through U-17 age groups will play 13 regular-season games and three post-season games, and each team in the U-18 age group will play 10 regular season games.
Every team in the U-15 through U-17 age group, and the top four teams in the U-18 age group, will play their post-season games at the 2011 ECNL National Championship.
“The 2010-11 season will see many exciting changes to the ECNL,” said ECNL president Christian Lavers. “By adding more age groups and more high-quality ECNL games, we are taking steps that allow the member clubs to increase the quality of games they play while reducing the overall number of games on their calendar, increase the training time for their players, and expand the developmental opportunities provided by this platform into more age groups.”
Each ECNL member club must participate in three of the five regular season events listed below. The schedule of games for these events will be announced in early July.
2010-11 ECNL SCHEDULE OF EVENTS:
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ECNL Regular-Season Event #1
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Aug. 27-29, 2010
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Temecula, Calif.
John Blanche Memorial Soccer Complex
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ECNL Regular-Season Event #2
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Dec. 3-5, 2010
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Raleigh, N.C.
SAS Soccer Complex.
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ECNL Regular-Season Event #3
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Dec. 27-29, 2010
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Sanford, Fla.
Seminole Soccer Complex
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ECNL Regular-Season Event #4
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March 4-6, 2011
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San Antonio, Texas
STAR Soccer Complex
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ECNL Regular-Season Event #5
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May 28-30, 2011
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Zarephath, N.J.
PDA Soccer Complex
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ECNL National Championship
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July 14-16, 2011
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TBD
Venue TBD
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In addition, to facilitate enhanced operations and logistics for these events, the ECNL has partnered with C2S Marketing Group, Inc., and Anthony Travel for the 2010-11 season. C2S Marketing Group, Inc., which also provides marketing services to US Club Soccer, will stage the ECNL’s stand-alone events in Temecula, Calif., Sanford, Fla., San Antonio, Texas, and the ECNL National Championship. Anthony Travel will be the official provider of hotel and travel arrangements for the ECNL regular-season events in Temecula, Calif., San Antonio, Texas, and the ECNL National Championship.
“We are excited to add C2S Marketing Group, Inc., and Anthony Travel as partners for the ECNL in 2010-11,” said ECNL Vice President Doug Bracken. “We are confident that these companies will help us continue to improve the services we offer to the member clubs, and that they will help the ECNL towards its goal of providing the premier player developmental platform for girls in this country.”
