Qualification Parameters Announced
The US Youth Soccer National League has announced its qualification parameters for the 2015-16 season, as teams will once again qualify for the league through success in the previous year’s US Youth Soccer National League, US Youth Soccer Regional Leagues and US Youth Soccer Regional Championships — integrating the organization’s most competitive club team programs.
The National League is designed to reward teams for developing elite talent that can earn success in US Youth Soccer Regional Leagues and Regional Championships, as the top finishing teams in these competitions directly qualify for the National League.
The league’s qualification format provides teams with an opportunity to test themselves against some of the toughest competition in the country, as each team has to earn its place in the National League based on league or cup success.
“The current qualification system helps to ensure the US Youth Soccer National League is the best and most competitive league for male and female athletes in the United States,” US Youth Soccer National League Commissioner Paul Luchowski said. “As the National League and US Youth Soccer Regional Leagues continue to evolve, we look forward to our ninth season of play commencing this coming December.”
With the US Youth Soccer Southern Regional Premier League joining the Region I Champions League, Midwest Regional League (MRL) and Far West Regional League (FWRL) in featuring the Under-13 age group, the National League Under-14 Boys and Girls age groups will each feature eight Regional League qualification spots in 2015-16 — two more than the previous season.
In addition to the eight teams who advanced to the National Championships via the National League and Regional Championships, the allocation of National League slots to Regional League finishers will be as follows.
In the Boys and Girls Under-16, Under-17 and Under-18 age groups, the 16 available slots in each gender age group shall be filled as follows*:
| Team’s Origin | Category | Competition Result from 2014-15 (As U15-17 Teams) | |
| 1 | National League | NL | 2014-15 First Place Team–Blue Division |
| 2 | National League | NL | 2014-15 Second Place Team–Blue Division |
| 3 | National League | NL | 2014-15 First Place Team–Red Division |
| 4 | National League | NL | 2014-15 Second Place Team–Red Division |
| 5 | Region I | RL | 2015 Champions League Division I Champion |
| 6 | Region I | RL | 2015 Champions League Division I Playoff Runner-up |
| 7 | Region II | RL | 2015 MRL Premier I Division Red (Boys) or 2014 Fall Champion (Girls) |
| 8 | Region II | RL | 2015 MRL Premier I Division Blue (Boys) or 2015 Spring Champion (Girls) |
| 9 | Region III | RL | Fall 2014 SRPL First Place |
| 10 | Region III | RL | Fall 2014 SRPL Second Place |
| 11 | Region IV | RL | 2014-15 FWRL Representative |
| 12 | Region IV | RL | 2014-15 FWRL Representative |
| 13 | Region I | CUP | Regional Cup Representative to 2015 Nationals |
| 14 | Region II | CUP | Regional Cup Representative to 2015 Nationals |
| 15 | Region III | CUP | Regional Cup Representative to 2015 Nationals |
| 16 | Region IV | CUP | Regional Cup Representative to 2015 Nationals |
In the Boys and Girls Under-15 age group, the 16 available slots shall be filled as follows*:
| Team’s Origin | Category | Competition Result from 2014-15 (As U-14 Team) | |
| 1 | National League | NL | 2014-15 First Place Team–Blue Division |
| 2 | National League | NL | 2014-15 Second Place Team–Blue Division |
| 3 | National League | NL | 2014-15 First Place Team–Red Division |
| 4 | National League | NL | 2014-15 Second Place Team–Red Division |
| 5 | Region I | RL | 2015 Champions League Division I Champion |
| 6 | Region I | RL | 2015 Champions League Division I Playoff Runner-up |
| 7 | Region II | RL | 2015 Spring MRL Premier I Division Blue Champion |
| 8 | Region II | RL | 2015 Spring MRL Premier I Division Red Champion |
| 9 | Region III | RL | 2014-15 SRPL Representative |
| 10 | Region III | RL | 2014-15 SRPL Representative |
| 11 | Region IV | RL | 2014-15 FWRL Representative |
| 12 | Region IV | RL | 2014-15 FWRL Representative |
| 13 | Region I | CUP | Regional Cup Representative to 2015 Nationals |
| 14 | Region II | CUP | Regional Cup Representative to 2015 Nationals |
| 15 | Region III | CUP | Regional Cup Representative to 2015 Nationals |
| 16 | Region IV | CUP | Regional Cup Representative to 2015 Nationals |
In the Boys and Girls Under-14 age group, the 16 available slots shall be filled as follows*:
| Team’s Origin | Category | Competition Result from 2014-15 (As U-13 Team) | |
| 1 | Region I | RL | 2015 Champions League Division I Champion |
| 2 | Region I | RL | 2015 Champions League Division I Playoff Runner-up |
| 3 | Region II | RL | 2015 Spring MRL Premier I Division Blue Champion |
| 4 | Region II | RL | 2015 Spring MRL Premier I Division Red Champion |
| 5 | Region III | RL | 2015 SRPL East Champion |
| 6 | Region III | RL | 2015 SRPL West Champion |
| 7 | Region IV | RL | 2014-15 FWRL Representative |
| 8 | Region IV | RL | 2014-15 FWRL Representative |
| 9 | Region I | CUP | Regional Cup Representative to 2015 Nationals |
| 10 | Region II | CUP | Regional Cup Representative to 2015 Nationals |
| 11 | Region III | CUP | Regional Cup Representative to 2015 Nationals |
| 12 | Region IV | CUP | Regional Cup Representative to 2015 Nationals |
| 13 | Region I | OPEN | From Open Applications |
| 14 | Region II | OPEN | From Open Applications |
| 15 | Region III | OPEN | From Open Applications |
| 16 | Region IV | OPEN | From Open Applications |
*If a team opts out of the earned slot or if a team earns a second guaranteed slot then the slot becomes an OPEN category slot.
For a list of 2015-16 National League qualifiers, click here.
Should any team opt out of its earned slot, or if a team earns a second guaranteed slot, then the initial slot becomes an ‘open’ slot. Due to no returning National League teams in the Under-14 Boys and Girls age groups, those slots will be open. Teams can apply for any open slots, which will be filled by the National League Committee selection.
The application period for all qualified teams and those teams wishing to apply for open slots will begin around June 9, and the deadline for submitting an application will be July 3. All teams that qualify for the 2015-16 National League are required to submit an application to claim their slot. Information on the 2015-16 National League season, including team fees will be posted soon at USYouthSoccer.org/National_League/.
The National League provides an avenue for teams to play in meaningful matches against top competition from across the country for continued development and opportunities for exposure at the collegiate, professional and National Team levels. In addition to recruiting opportunities, the top two finishers from each division (Blue and Red) will earn a ticket to the US Youth Soccer National Championships, making each match valuable and creating an added element of pressure as players compete for a chance to play for the National Championship.
The US Youth Soccer National Championships are the oldest and most prestigious youth soccer national championships in the country. Through the first seven years of play, National League teams have gone on to claim 31 of 48 possible National Championship titles.
