Virginia FC and Golden Ball Soccer Academy partner to create Virginia Futbol Alliance

Newport News, VA – Virginia FC (VAFC) and Golden Ball Soccer Academy (GBSA) have announced a partnership which will integrate their programs on and off the field.

The partnership will merge their training curriculum, technical staff, player pools and access to facilities, leagues, national and international academies as well as minor league professional teams as the top of the Alliance pyramid. The new collaboration will increase the focus on grassroots development programs in addition to fielding teams to compete under the banner of Virginia Futbol Alliance (VFA).

“This alliance between VAFC and GBSA is a great example of forward thinking Club Directors looking to provide their clubs with the best player developmental opportunities possible in their communities,” stated Mayowa Owolabi, CCL National Conferences Director. “By these clubs aligning their efforts they will be able to develop stronger player pools, utilize a larger platform of resources, and educate more players, parents, and coaches within their community at the same time. As a club based league we cannot wait to see how these clubs band together to create a great experience for their club members and our current league members during upcoming matchdays!”

With this new initiative VFA will not only enhance its grass roots development but will expand its overall programming with access to appropriate competition in Club Champions League (CCL), Elite Development Program (EDP) and Virginia Soccer League (VSL). In addition, the alliance will bring more qualified coaches along with senior teams in the UPSL Semi-Pro (Men), UWS League 2 Pro/Am (Women), NLP Futsal (Men) and U23’s in EDP national leagues.

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“Player development has always been the primary focus for both clubs and this partnership will expand those initiatives while providing endless access to resources and levels not afforded to most club players and staff,” said Kevin Darcy VAFC Technical Director. “We are excited about the opportunities the alliance will provide in addition to the consistency and quality of coaching for our players under the Virginia Futbol Alliance banner.”

“We are very proud to form this alliance and are excited about the future of our organizations,” said GBSA Technical Director Jonathan Baca. “The possibilities with this partnership are endless and the opportunity to create the best environment for the players is our goal.”

The creation of Virginia Futbol Alliance between VAFC and GBSA brings together administrative support, coaches and technical staff to build one of Virginia’s top player development academies serving players of all ages and levels.

VFA will have access to two indoor facilities and several soccer training centers from Suffolk to Yorktown. In addition, the Alliance will have international partnership in:

• England, Southampton FC Academy (English Premier League)
• Ecuador, Liga Deportiva Universitaria Quito (LDU) (Ecuadorian Professional League) • Bolivia, Dios es Amor (Bolivian Futbol Federation)
• Brasil, Sociedad Esportiva Salepolense (Sao Paolo Soccer Federation)