Soccer America released its annual rankings of the top 30 clubs for both boys and girls today,
and ten highly successful Cal South Clubs – four boys, six girls – were named to the lists. Soccer America annually selects the top 30 clubs based on their overall success in national youth championships over the previous three years, as well as any national recognition the players from these clubs received during the last year.Four Cal South boys’ clubs made the list, including two in the top 10: Arsenal FC at #4 and Real So Cal at #6. Los Angeles FC (LAFC) was named the #12 boys team, while West Coast FC came in at #20. On the girls’ list, six Cal South Clubs were touted, which also included two in the top 10: So Cal Blues at #3 and Slammers FC at #4. San Diego Surf (#12), Eagles SC (#17), Real So Cal (the only club to make both lists, #20) and the Irvine Strikers (#23).
Here is what Soccer America said about these Cal South clubs in their rankings:
2009 Top 30 Boys Clubs
4. Arsenal FC - The Alta Loma, Calif., club celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2008. Its best finish at the National Championships was second in the U-14 division, but it marked the fifth straight year it had at least one team reach the final. Arsenal (with no direct affiliation to the English club of the same name) finished second in its U-17/18 division in the Development Academy.
6. Real So Cal - The Southern California powerhouse is one of only three teams to win three straight U.S. Youth Soccer national titles (2005-07 in U-14s to U-16s). Its best performance in 2008 was a second-place finish in the U-16 division.
12. LAFC - Los Angeles FC swept both Development Academy divisions - the U-17/18s finished second and the U/15-16s were sixth at the championships - and has partnered with Chelsea. The coaching staff is headed by former MLS pros Dan Calichman and Ted Chronopoulos.
20. West Coast FC - West Coast was alone among Southern California clubs with two players in U-17 residency last fall: midfielder Jonathan Canales and forward Jaime Gutierrez. More prospects are on the horizon. West Coast's U-13s are one of the nation's up-and-coming teams.
2009 Top 30 Girls Clubs
3. So Cal Blues - The club began almost a quarter a century ago with one team, the U-19 Harbor City Bluejacks. The Blues have become a national powerhouse, winning national titles in 2000, 2005 and 2007. Program director Tab Bobak is the U.S. U-15 national team coach. Rising Stars: Haley Rosen, 15, is the Blues' hot prospect. The high school sophomore is a member of the U.S. under-16 national team and helped the Blues reach last year's under-15 final at the National Championships.
4. Slammers FC - The Slammers, another Southern California giant, sent six teams to the '08 Region IV championships and came away with three regional titles, one more than they won in 2007. Four seniors are ranked among the top 30 recruits in the country: Courtney Garcia (USC), Mariah Nogueira (Stanford), Zakiya Bywaters (UCLA) and Kylie Bono (Tennessee).
12. San Diego Surf - The Surf has been a force on the national girls scene for more than a decade, producing Olympic gold-medalist Rachel Buehler and Notre Dame star Carrie Dew among other defenders. The program's top young defender is Maya Theuer, a member of the U-15 national team.
17. Eagles SC - The Southern California club won its second national title when it captured the 2007 U-17 Laura Moynihan Cup. Six months later, 15 Eagles signed letters of intent to play college soccer in the fall. Rising Stars: Christina Murillo was a key member of the Eagles U-16 team that won the annual "North vs. South Premier Tournament" of California teams and was called into the combined U-17 and U-15 mega-camp in late January in Florida.
20. Real So Cal - The Southern California club sent teams to the Region IV U-15 and U-16 championship games in 2008. Sam Johnson represented the USA at the 2008 Under-17 Women's World Cup.
23. Irvine SC Strikers - The Strikers won their first girls U.S. Youth Soccer title in 2006 when they captured the U-14 division. By September, 16 girls from the Southern California club had committed to D1 programs for next fall or the year after.
Soccer America's Top 30 Boys Clubs
1. Baltimore Bays
2. Dallas Texans
3. Andromeda
4. Arsenal FC
5. Chicago Magic
6. Real So Cal
7. FC Delco
8. Solar FC
9. Michigan Wolves
10. Schulz Soccer Academy
11. CASL
12. LAFC
13. PDA
14. Concorde Elite
15. Chicago Fire
16. FC Milwaukee
17. Javanon SC
18. Real Colorado
19. Carmel United
20. West Coast FC
21. Sockers FC
22. NJSA 04
23. Columbus Crew
24. Vardar SC
25. St. Louis Scott Gallagher
26. Blau Weiss Gottschee
27. Bethesda SC
28. Colorado Rush
29. D.C. United
30. Kansas City Wizards
Soccer America's Top 30 Girls Clubs
1. Dallas Texans
2. Eclipse Select
3. So Cal Blues
4. Slammers FC
5. Sting SC
6. PDA
7. McLean Premier Soccer
8. Colorado Rush
9. Force FC
10. San Juan SC
11. Albertson SC
12. San Diego Surf
13. Carmel United
14. Scorpions SC
15. Real Colorado
16. Michigan Hawks
17. Eagles SC
18. FC Pennsylvania Strikers
19. FC Stars of Massachusetts
20. Real So Cal
21. Pleasanton Rage
22. Crossfire Premier
23. Irvine SC Strikers
24. Internationals SC
25. Challenge SC
26. Lonestar SC
27. Mustang Soccer
28. Bethesda SC
29. Vardar SC
30. D'Feeters
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