First wave of additions and promotions within ECNL Regional Leagues announced

RICHMOND, Va. – The ECNL announced a multitude of additions to several different ECNL Regional Leagues on both the boys and girls side for the upcoming 2023-24 season.

The first round of additions includes movement from the Florida, NTX (North Texas), USC (South Texas), and Texas Conference ECNL Regional Leagues.

In Florida, four boy’s clubs (Doral Soccer Club, Florida Celtic, Florida Elite – Tallahassee, Florida Premier – Wesley Chapel) and three girl’s clubs (Florida Celtic, Jacksonville Futbol Club, FC Prime – Miami) will be promoted from the Florida National Premier League (NPL) into the ECNL Regional League – Florida next season.

In Texas, DKSC will be promoted into the ECNL Regional League – North Texas on both the boys and girls side, and AYSES will be promoted into the ECNL Regional League – North Texas on the boys side.

In addition to these moves, Avanti Soccer Academy will be promoted from the ECNL Regional League – North Texas into the ECNL Regional League – Texas Conference on the boys side, while on the girls side, FC Westlake will be promoted from the ECNL Regional League – USC to the ECNL Regional League – Texas Conference.

Doral Soccer Club
Doral, FL

Doral Soccer Club joined the Florida Club League for the purpose of further developing their player pool in Dade County. Doral SC is a vital part of the city of Doral which produces high level players and teams. The club makes it a priority to develop their players on and off the field for the good of the game. It is a testament to the hard work and dedication of the staff and players who have worked to earn their way into the ECNL Regional League for the 2023-24 season.

“Doral Soccer Club is honored to have been promoted to ECNL-RL for the 2023-2024 season, the nation’s top youth soccer development platform. We value the importance of surrounding our players and our community with the best opportunities, clear pathway, and the highest level of competition,” said Kevin Piraquive.

Florida Celtic Soccer Club
Largo, FL

Established in 1979, Florida Celtic Soccer Club joined the Florida Club League in the 2020-21 season to utilize the pathway created for the development of youth players. Florida Celtic players (boys and girls) have worked extremely hard over the seasons with solid results to earn their way into the ECNL Regional League.

“We at Florida Celtic Soccer Club are excited to be part of the ECNL family. We look forward to taking on this new challenge and to continue to provide our players in the community with the best possible development opportunities,” said Robbie Milner, Florida Celtic DOC & Girls Director.

Florida Elite Soccer Academy – Tallahassee
Tallahassee, FL

Florida Elite Tallahassee is the first club from the Florida Panhandle to join the ECNL Regional League – Florida. The Florida Elite Tallahassee boys earned their place in the ECNL Regional League with top results in the National Premier League for the past two seasons. The club has fostered a player-centric approach with the goal of developing its players from the youth level and beyond.

“This is a tremendous opportunity for players in our area of the state to compete in one of the nation’s best soccer leagues,” said Lee Blenman, Florida Elite Tallahassee’s Director of Coaching. “Our advancement to the ECNL Regional League is a recognition of our players’ drive to be the best and our coaches’ commitment to helping them reach their goals… the hard work starts now for them.”

Florida Premier – Wesley Chapel
Wesley Chapel, FL 

The Florida Premier boys’ program at ECNL and ECNL Regional League continue to have stellar results. As the club continues to experience tremendous growth reflective of a deep pool of talent in their boys’ program, the club also continues to use the Florida Club League pathway for the development of their players and the good of the game.

“Florida Premier FC is excited to offer more of our players an opportunity to play at a higher level. With the growth of our talent pool at the club we are happy that we can offer more of our players an opportunity to play at the highest level in the State of Florida,” said CEO Novi Maric.

FC Prime – Miami
Miami, FL

FC Prime has expanded in the Miami market and will be joining the ECNL Regional League – Florida in this area. FC Prime has been instrumental with building their program in Broward County and will look to have the same success in Dade County.

“We are extremely excited for the opportunity to fill the void for elite female players in Miami-Dade by bringing the ECNL platform to the county. The main goal is to provide a pathway to collegiate soccer, to mirror the success of our club in Broward County. FC Prime – Miami Is committed to making a positive impact for girls’ soccer in Miami, we are proud to be a part of ECNL Regional League expansion in Dade County,” said Executive Director Alan Hough and COO Andres Camacho.

Jacksonville FC
Jacksonville, FL 

Jacksonville FC is joining the Florida Club Leagues and the ECNL Regional League – Florida girls for the 2023-24 season.

“We are thrilled on our return to the girls ECNL-RL. The structure and clubs within the league make this the best playing environment for our players. We are looking forward to challenging ourselves against the best clubs in Florida,” said Executive Director Patrick Cannon.

AYSES
McKinney, Texas

AYSES SC, based in North Texas, is a club that is truly dedicated to the overall development of players. The focus on commitment to overall well being of the player and excellent customer service to our members, has served us well over many years. Our way of doing things has given us longevity, helped us grow, and enabled us to develop players who have played at the highest levels of national teams, clubs and colleges.

“We are excited about the opportunity to be part of ECNL Regional League NTX,” said Ben Clarvis, Director of Coaching. “We believe that our players will have the opportunity to play in a quality league that will give them a platform to continue to showcase their abilities and open more opportunities for them in the future.”

DKSC
Farmers Branch, TX

Established in 1978, D’Feeters Soccer Club was one of the premier clubs in North Texas and one of the original 40 clubs to join the ECNL. Dallas Kicks Soccer Club, established in 2005, quickly became one of the top clubs in the area. In 2018, the two clubs merged to form D’Feeters Kicks Soccer Club (DKSC). The club is known for its diversity from all socioeconomic backgrounds.

“We are excited to join ECNL RL-NTX,” said Executive Director Juan Martinez. “At DKSC we are fully committed to developing our players to their full potential. ECNL RL-NTX gives us a platform to achieve our vision of Building A Different Type of Player (BADTOP)”.

“I am very excited about the addition of AYSES and DKSC into our ECNL RL – NTX league for the 2023-24 season. Both clubs have a long-standing history of developing talent in North Texas. They will be an exciting addition to our league,” said ECNL Regional League – NTX Director Aaron Gordon.

Avanti Soccer Academy
Dallas, Texas

 Avanti Soccer Academy was established by Technical Director Francisco Molina with the idea of focusing on the personal and leadership growth of our young players and staff by creating a lifelong passion for the sport of soccer. In only its second year, Avanti has grown to 36 teams and over 500 players.

“We are excited and honored to be promoted from the ECNL Regional League – NTX into the Texas Conference Regional League. We look forward to the new challenge as we continue to work hard to provide the best opportunities for our players,” said Technical Director Francisco Molina.

“It is a testament to the quality of our league that Avanti Soccer Academy has been promoted to the Texas Conference,” said Gordon. “North Texas has historically developed the largest pool of players and teams in the country. This promotion clearly illustrates the pathway and proving ground based upon performance merit.”

FC Westlake
Austin, Texas

Established in 2012, FC Westlake has grown into one of the largest and most successful clubs in central Texas. Having been accepted into the ECNL Regional League boys program one year ago, and enjoying a tremendously positive experience, having the girls program now join the ECNL Regional League platform continues the club’s goal of competing at the highest levels in youth soccer.

“FC Westlake is honored and excited to be accepted into the ECNL Regional League. We have been working tremendously hard to establish an elite girl’s program in Austin and couldn’t be more proud of our players and staff. We are thrilled that our teams will now have the opportunity to compete in the nation’s top development league and join the ECNL family,” said Stephen Ferguson, FC Westlake Executive Director.

“FC Westlake’s promotion to the ECNL Regional League – Texas is an outstanding example for the clubs in our league who are committed to the ECNL pathway. The ECNL Regional Leagues are a proving ground for clubs who demonstrate they are ready to move up based on merit. FC Westlake has earned the right to move into the ECNL Regional League – Texas, and we are excited for their players, coaches, and parents,” said ECNL Regional League – USC President Pat O’Toole.