FRISCO, Texas - For the first time in club history, FC Dallas is sending three of its Academy teams to the ECNL Girls National Finals beginning July 8 in Richmond, Virginia.
The FC Dallas Girls Academy U-15, U-16 and U-17s all advanced to the Finals via last week's National Playoffs in Seattle, Washington. The National Finals include the eight top teams from each age group playing in a single-elimination tournament to determine the National Champion on July 11.
"This speaks to the quality of our player pool and the organization and development that they are getting year in and year out from our staff," said Matt Grubb, Director of the FCD Girls Academy and head coach of all three teams. "I think the biggest thing for us is the professionalism that's carried out. We're really more professional and more organized, more thoughtful. And that's the main reason why we're making the games that we are. There's five clubs across the country that have sent three or more teams (to the National Finals) and we're one of them."
All three teams begin their tournament on Friday, July 8 with the U-16s kicking things off at 7AM CT against Internationals SC. The U-17s face Slammers FC HB KØGE U-17s at 9AM and the U-15s take on Slammers FC HB KØGE U-15 at 11AM. Winners of the opening round will play in the semifinals the following day, with the finals taking place on Monday, July 11.
The FCD Girls Academy has seen two of its teams become National Champions in previous years. The U-16s team (which included current Mexico international and North Carolina Courage forward Diana Ordoñez) were crowned champions in 2017 and the U-15s followed it up with a National Championship of their own the following year.
