SAN JOSE, Calif. – The San Jose Earthquakes announced today a significant growth in their youth development programs with the creation of club teams from the Under-9 level through Under-16. The new Quakes program will add a full development pathway to their current U.S. Soccer Development Academy (USSDA) teams at the Under-14, Under-16 and Under-18 levels. They have added seven age groups for the 2014-15 season that will be designated as the Earthquakes Pre-Academy. Additionally, the Quakes will now have a recreational program, Earthquakes Elite Player Development, for ages 4-11.

“The growth of our youth development programs comes from our vision to establish the premier soccer organization in Northern California from the youth ranks all the way to our first team at the professional level,” said Earthquakes Academy technical director Chris Leitch. “We are committed to building an integrated youth soccer organization with coaches that have a passion for player development in a positive, affirming and fun environment. We believe that this model gives players a full development path from child to adult, benefiting players, parents, and coaches alike, while providing players the tools to reach college and the professional level.”

The Earthquakes Player Development system will now consist of five levels – Earthquakes professional team (Major League Soccer), Earthquakes Under-23 team (Premier Development League), Earthquakes Academy teams (U14, U16, U18 – USSDA), Earthquakes Pre-Academy teams (U9-U16), Earthquakes Elite Player Development teams - recreational teams for ages 4-11. All Earthquakes Pre-Academy and Elite Player Development programs will train in San Jose.

Tryouts for the upcoming 2014-15 season for the Quakes club teams will be held in the coming weeks in San Jose. Quakes age groups and tryout dates are listed below.

• SJ Earthquakes U16 Premier (98 & 99 Birth Years) - CLICK HERE

• SJ Earthquakes U14 Pre-Academy (00/01) - CLICK HERE

• SJ Earthquakes U13 Pre-Academy (01/02) - CLICK HERE

• SJ Earthquakes U12 Pre-Academy (02/03) - CLICK HERE

• SJ Earthquakes U11 Elite (03/04) - CLICK HERE

• SJ Earthquakes U10 Elite (04/05) - CLICK HERE

• SJ Earthquakes U9 Elite (05/06) - CLICK HERE

• SJ Earthquakes U8 Elite (06/07) - Nov 2014

• SJ Earthquakes U7 Elite (07/08) - Nov 2014

*Birth year denotes August 1st – July 31st: Example U11: 8/1/03-7/31/04