LAFC U-13 boys academy team win Nexen Man City Cup

It’s been a pretty good couple weeks for Los Angeles Football Club’s boys academy.

The headline comes from the U-13 squad, which won the 2005 Super Group at the 2018 Nexen Man City Cup, a youth tournament held last weekend in Oceanside, Calif. The young black-and-gold defeated Los Angeles Unified 4-0 in the final to take the crown, against a selection of MLS, local Southern California academies and the Club Tijuana academy.

LAFC’s U-12s, meanwhile, also reached the Super Group final in their age group, but they lost the title game, 1-0 to Xolos academy.

The U-14s, which got some major exposure when they played against Club America on a Univision Deportes Network broadcast during their tournament play, did not end the competition quite as well, as they fell 3-2 in the bronze final game against Seattle Sounders’ U-14s.

The Man City Cup performance from LAFC’s academy comes on the heels of a notable honor from Top Drawer Soccer, the premier youth soccer coverage site in the United States, which ranked LAFC’s U-13s and U-14s each the best in the country for their respective age groups.

“The current team ranking is recognition to our owners, management, and coaching staff for outstanding support and quality work throughout the process so far. Our academy continues to stay humble and grateful for our amazing beginning,” LAFC academy director Todd Saldaña told LAFC.com.

Of course, keep in mind that we’re still talking about boys just entering their teenage years, so they have some ways to go before they reach true pro prospect status for the best among them. Also, the LAFC boys academy hasn’t yet entered the fully competitive section of the U.S. Soccer Development Academy, with standings only kept from the U-15 level on. Plus, it’s important to remember that while academy results and website rankings and title wins are great, the ultimate goal is to produce pros for the first team.

But all that said, it’s a good sign to see the wins pile up and the national recognition for the baby black-and-gold. Well done to everyone involved, and keep up the good work!

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