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Houston Dash

Houston Dash to Open Girls' Development Academy for Fall 2017 Season

August 17, 2016 - National Women's Soccer League (NWSL)
Houston Dash News Release


HOUSTON- The Houston Dash will launch a Girls' Development Academy which will begin play in the Fall 2017 season, the club and U.S. Soccer announced today.

The introduction of the Dash Academy makes the Dash and Dynamo organization one of only three in the United States to operate an MLS club, an NWSL club, a boys' developmental academy and a girls' developmental academy. The other two such organizations are the Portland Timbers and Thorns and Orlando City FC and the Orlando Pride.

"It's a very exciting day for the Houston Dash. I've wanted a girls club since I came onboard, so I think it's great that the club has made this investment in Houston. We want to develop the next generation of players," Dash head coach Randy Waldrum said. "We are going to develop some young talent here in Houston that will someday play for the Dash. We now have a path for that and it begins today." The Dash Academy is one of 22 additional clubs that will be a part of the Girls' Development Academy, bringing the total number of clubs to 74. The program is designed to accelerate the development of world-class female players and will begin play in the fall of 2017.

The following 22 clubs will join the Girls' Development Academy along with the initial groups of 25 and 28 clubs (San Juan and Davis Legacy have since merged Academy clubs) that were announced on June 30 and July 8, respectively.

* U.S. Soccer Announces First 25 Clubs for Girls' Development Academy

* U.S. Soccer Announces 28 Additional Clubs to Be Included in Girls' Development Academy

In addition to the Dash U.S. Soccer welcomed the following clubs: Cedar Stars Academy - Monmouth (Tinton Falls, N.J.)

Indiana Fire (Westfield, Ind.)

Real So Cal (Woodland Hills, Calif.)

Empire United (Rochester, N.Y.)

La Roca Futbol Club (Kaysville, Utah)

SC del Sol (Phoenix, Ariz.)

FC Fury New York (Bay Shore, N.Y.)

Burlingame SC - MVLA (Burlingame, Calif.)

Sereno Soccer Club (Phoenix, Ariz.)

FC Kansas City (Prairie Village, Kan.)

Nationals (Royal Oak, Mich.)

Sporting Blue Valley (Overland Park, Kan.)

FC United (Northfield, Ill.)

Oakwood Soccer Club (Glastonbury, Conn.)

Texas Rush Soccer Club (The Woodlands, Texas)

PSV Union (Palo Alto, Calif.)

PA Classics (Manheim, Pa.)

West Coast Futbol Club (Laguna Hills, Calif.)

Houston United (Houston, Texas)

Pateadores (Costa Mesa, Calif.)

Western New York Flash (Elma, N.Y.)

Club applications were evaluated and accepted by U.S. Soccer's technical staff based on the following criteria:

* Leadership of the club and quality of the coaching staff

* Desire to embrace and promote the core values of the program

* U.S. Soccer license levels of coaching staff

* Infrastructure of the club and the resources currently being invested in development (facilities, scholarships, staff to player ratio, etc.)

* History of player production for Youth National Teams, the senior Women's National Team and professional leagues

* Market and depth of the player pool, geographic location and proximity to other elite clubs

The Academy program will focus on positively impacting everyday club environments to maximize elite female youth player development. Increasing the training to game ratio, playing fewer but more meaningful games and providing assistance for coaching education and development are just some of the standards and best practices the program will promote.

The program will feature three combined age groups: U-14/15, U-16/17 and U-18/19. Clubs will be expected to train a minimum of four times per week. The combined age groups will require clubs to form teams with a balanced roster of players from two distinct birth years and encourage clubs to provide "play up" opportunities. The games will be scouted by U.S. Soccer and the program will serve as the primary pathway to U.S. Soccer's Youth National Teams. ABOUT THE HOUSTON DASH The Houston Dash are a National Women's Soccer League club that began play in April 2014 for the start of the league's second season. The Dash were the first expansion club in the NWSL, joining the eight original members that launched the league in 2013. The NWSL is supported by the Canadian Soccer Association, Federation of Mexican Football and the United States Soccer Federation. It is the top-flight women's professional soccer league in North America, featuring many of the top players from the United States, Canada and Mexico, as well as talent from around the world. The 20-game regular season runs from April through September. The team trains at Houston Sports Park (HSP), the premier training facility in Southeast Texas, and plays at BBVA Compass Stadium in downtown Houston. For more information, visit www.HoustonDashSoccer.com or call (713) 276-GOAL. -Dash On- --_000_DM5PR2001MB1083EA6C3D33C87F1753B285D8140DM5PR2001MB1083_

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