Major League Soccer today announced the details for the 2018 Generation adidas Cup hosted by FC Dallas, which kicks off its 11th iteration on Friday, March 23 at the Toyota Soccer Center at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas. The nine-day, elite youth competition will feature 30 total games streaming live on MLSsoccer.com, with the semifinals and finals incorporating video review.

 

The future of MLS Homegrown talent will be on display as 20 MLS Academy teams participate in the U-17 competition, and 12 premier international clubs partake in the Generation adidas Cup.

 

The 2017-18 tournament features top international clubs, including the likes of Spanish giants Real Madrid C.F., and Mexican powers Tigres UANL, C.F. Monterrey, Pachuca and Club Tijuana. Also competing are A.S. Monaco FC, Argentine forces C.A. River Plate, Germany’s Eintracht Frankfurt, and rounding out the international contingent are Ecuadorian side Independiente d. Valle, Brazilian clubs Flamengo and Atletico Paranaense, and Japanese team Matsumoto Yamaga FC.

 

“The industry leading partnership between adidas and Major League Soccer continues to drive the evolution of player development in North America through the growth and success of programs like the Generation adidas Cup. With all MLS Academy teams participating, along with renowned international clubs such as Real Madrid and River Plate, the Generation adidas Cup provides a world class platform for North America’s best players to measure themselves,” said Aaron Maines, Director of Soccer Sports Marketing for adidas.

Since the tournament’s inception in 2007, D.C. United has won the title a record three times (2007, 2009, 2010), while Real Salt Lake (2008), LA Galaxy (2011) and Philadelphia Union (2012) have each won once. International clubs have taken home the top prize four times, with the English Premier League’s Stoke City winning in 2014 and Argentina’s River Plate claiming the Champions title in 2015, 2016 and 2017. New York City FC, meanwhile defeated Tigres UANL last year to claim the Premier title.   

 

“The Generation adidas Cup is a world-class competition that offers MLS Academy teams the opportunity to compete against some of the most talented youth players. With the addition of the scouting seminars this year, we are excited to see the continued evolution and growth of this event,” said MLS Technical Director of Competition Alfonso Mondelo. “The level and quality of the competition continues to rise year after year and provides a platform in which to display and evaluate the growth of MLS’ youth development system across North America.”

 

Tournament play began with three regional tournaments (East, Central and West) featuring U-17 academy teams from 20 MLS clubs. Each team competed in two regional qualifying events from October 2017 to February 2018, with the top two finishers in each region and the two highest third-place teams advancing to the Champions Division of the GA Cup finals and sorted into the following four groups:

 

 

 

The remaining MLS Academy teams will compete in the Premier Division, consisting of the following four groups:

 

 

 

The 2017-2018 Generation adidas Cup will also feature the fourth annual U-12 tournament, featuring current MLS Academies in addition to expansion club Los Angeles Football Club (LAFC). Both LAFC and Atlanta United received their first academy action in the 2016 tournament. The small-sided 7-v-7 competition will be held at the Toyota Soccer Center from March 29-31 and will feature 20 MLS Academy teams (Atlanta United, Chicago Fire, Colorado Rapids, Columbus Crew SC, D.C. United, FC Dallas, Houston Dynamo, LA Galaxy, LAFC, Minnesota United FC, New York City FC, New York Red Bulls, Orlando City SC, Philadelphia Union, Portland Timbers, Real Salt Lake, San Jose Earthquakes, Seattle Sounders FC, Sporting Kansas City, Toronto FC).

 

Generation adidas group play begins on Friday, March 23 with the two division tournament finals set for Saturday, March 31. A full Generation adidas Cup competition and live stream schedule, and further information on the tournament can be found HERE.

 

For the second consecutive year, an educational coaching symposium, featuring presentations and lectures from Swansea City AFC, A.S. Monaco FC, and Pachuca, as well as representatives from the Philadelphia Union and Seattle Sounders FC, will be held on non-playing days in the afternoons of March 26 and 28.

 

Additionally, MLS technical staff and scouts have the opportunity to participate in a scouting seminar new to Generation adidas Cup. The U.K.-based Professional Football Scouts Association (PFSA) and their coursework has been selected by Major League Soccer to provide participants with additional scouting tools and insights both in a classroom and on the field.  

 

For the second consecutive year, the Generation adidas Cup will incorporate Video Review in select matches. Video Review was successfully implemented in 154 games during the second half of the 2017 MLS Regular Season, with a Video Assistant Referee (VAR) joining officiating crews to check and analyze more than 1,400 plays for “clear and obvious errors” or “serious missed incidents.” Utilizing video review in 2017, 36 clearly wrong decisions were changed to the correct final outcomes. More information on video review can be found on MLSsoccer.com.