Portland Timbers announce Academy restructure and expansion

PORTLAND, Ore. – The Portland Timbers announced the addition of a third Academy team and a new Discovery Juniors Program as it restructures its youth development pipeline ahead of the upcoming Academy season.

“This expansion of our professional academy allows us to continue to build on progress made over the last several years. With additional support and investment from ownership, we believe we are well positioned in our attempts to maximize the potential in our player development space,” shared Timbers General Manager Ned Grabavoy. “We are incredibly pleased with the existing academy staff that is in place. Their commitment to strengthening our foundation and culture is a major contributing factor to the strides that have been made. We are also excited to welcome our new staff additions to the Portland Timbers Academy and believe they will play important roles in supporting further growth of our program.”

With the expansion, the previous Timbers Academy U15 and U17 programs will become U16 and U18 sides, while introducing a new U15 team. Three returning Timbers coaches will lead the Academy sides in Jodel Wright (U15), Fernando Pessoa (U16) and Darren Back (U18). Michael Jamieson, who joined the organization in 2023, will begin a new role as Discovery Program Manager. Additionally, the club added Danny González as its new Academy Goalkeeping Coach. For more on the Timbers Academy, including a full list of the staff and individual bios, click here.

In its inaugural season, Discovery Juniors will provide year-round supplemental training for players born between 2013-2016 at the U9, U10, U11 and U12 levels. In addition to the occasional opportunity to train at the Timbers Training Center, the new program will primarily have player placements at four training centers: North (North Portland & Vancouver), East (Gresham), South (Lake Oswego & Tigard) and West (Beaverton & Hillsboro).

Discovery Seniors is an invite-only program, made up of elite players at the U13 and U14 age group already playing at a club level. Notably, since its implementation in 2021, the Discovery Seniors Program has provided over 95% of Timbers Academy players. Jamieson, the Discovery Program Manager, will scout youth events held within the state, such as Discovery Juniors, ODP and local club games. Discovery Senior teams will predominately train at the Timbers Training Center throughout the year with access to the first team’s facilities, such as the gym and auditorium, and will have a full-time athletic trainer on staff.