U.S Soccer today announced that the SAFC Pro Academy has been formally accepted into the U-17 age group of the Development Academy for the upcoming season. The DA is the top tier of youth soccer in the country.

“We are thrilled to be notified of this decision by U.S. Soccer and we are pleased to expand our SAFC Pro Academy program to provide more opportunities for our players,” SAFC Pro Academy Director Nick Evans said. “This decision takes us closer to the completion of our Phase 1 five-year project to establish a full-time Youth Development Pathway at our club from U-12 through to the first team.”

With the addition of the U-17 group, SAFC will field five full-time teams playing in the DA alongside the club’s Elite Training Program, which serves to identify and offer training opportunities to players who are not within the age range for the academy’s DA teams.