FRISCO, Texas – This Sunday is the opening day of the 32nd annual Dallas Cup, the oldest and most prestigious international youth soccer tournament in the United States. For the second year in a row the FC Dallas U-18 Academy team will be participating in the Gordon Jago Super Group, the most elite level of competition at the tournament.
“The Dallas Cup is one of the most prestigious youth soccer competitions in the world,” said FC Dallas Youth Director of Coaching Chris Hayden. “For more than 30 years, top international and domestic clubs have come to Dallas to participate in this annual event.”
The U-16 Academy team will also be competing in this year’s Dallas Cup, playing in the U-17 bracket of the tournament, as will the FC Dallas 94 Boys Premier team. FCD’s 95 Boys Premier team will compete in the U-16 bracket, the 96 Boys Premier team will play in the U-15 bracket and the 97 Boys Premier team will take part in the U-14 bracket.
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The FCD Academy action kicks off on Opening Day, Sunday, April 17. The U-16s will play Costa Rican side Barrio Mexico that morning, and that afternoon the U-18s will be facing off against FC Barcelona on the Pizza Hut Park stadium field.
The next day it will be the U-18’s turn to take on a Costa Rican opponent when they play Club Sport Cartagines following the U-16’s match with the Jacksonville Fury. Both of those matches will take place on the fields north of the stadium here in Frisco.
Wednesday, April 20 will be the final day of group play, and it will see the U-18s take on the U-18 national team from Japan before the U-16s wrap up against West Side Metro Premier of Oregon.
If the U-16s advance out of their bracket, they’ll play in the U-17 quarterfinals midday Friday. The U-17 semifinals are set to take place Saturday morning, and the championship match will be played at 12:30 p.m. on the Pizza Hut Park stadium field on Sunday, April 24.
If the U-18s win their bracket, they’ll face the winners of Bracket C in the semifinals on the stadium field on Friday. The Gordon Jago Super Group championship game will be the final match of the tournament, and it will be played on the Pizza Hut Park stadium field at 6:00 pm Sunday night.
“We are extremely proud to have our U-18 and U-16 FC Dallas Academy teams represent the club during this year’s competition, which allows us the opportunity to measure ourselves against many of the top clubs and youth systems around the world,” said Hayden.
“In addition to our Academy teams, we are very excited that our 94 Boys Premier, 95 Boys Premier, and 97 Boys Premier teams have qualified for this year’s tournament.”
The 94, 95, 96 and 97 Boys Premier teams will also be playing their group games on Sunday, Monday and Wednesday. The championship games for all of their age brackets will also be held on Sunday, April 24.
There are a couple other notable games soccer fans should be aware of next week as part of the Gordon Jago Super Group. Next Wednesday evening fans can watch England’s Arsenal FC take on Bolivia’s Club Bolivar, followed by Brazilian club SC Corinthians facing Mexican side Tigres. Both matches will be played on the Pizza Hut Park stadium field at 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. respectively.
FCDallas.com will be your source for FC Dallas Academy coverage and results from every Super Group match. For full FC Dallas and Super Group schedules, visit our Dallas Cup coverage headquarters.