About Elite 64
USYS National League Elite 64 features year-round competition in six age groups (13U, 14U, 15U, 16U, 17U and 18/19U) for the top 64 boys clubs and top 64 girls clubs in the country. The annual competition calendar includes the league season, national showcases and the Elite 64 National Finals.
Thanks to partnerships with world leaders in their respective fields, Elite 64 players have access to tools and technology to capture key information that can be shared with college coaches and professional scouts — making every game a recruitable moment.
As the elite club-based platform in the USYS National League, Elite 64 clubs have access to other USYS and National League competitions, such as the National League Conferences and National League P.R.O., to create a complete developmental pathway within a single organization.
The USYS National League debuted in 2007 and has provided a competitive national platform for several professional and international players, including Morgan Gautrat (née Brian), Rose Lavelle, Samantha Mewis, Emily Sonnett, Daryl Dike, Jeremy Ebobisse, Jack Harrison, Jordan Morris and Walker Zimmerman.
Elite 64 Competition Formats
LEAGUE PLAY
Teams play up to 14 league games over a 10-month season, with a schedule created to aid the players' periodization and involvement in high school soccer. Multiple scheduling options are available to accommodate travel concerns and allow for clubs to complete their league season in the most sensible way possible.
ELITE 64 SHOWCASES
The Elite 64 Showcases present an unmatched recruiting opportunity for college coaches and scouts, as the best players from the National League’s top club-centric model (Elite 64) play each other in a single event alongside league games from the National League’s top team-centric model (National League P.R.O.). Elite 64 players enjoy competing at best-in-class facilities against high-level competition with diverse matchups.
ELITE 64 NATIONAL FINALS
All teams attend the Elite 64 National Finals. Top finishers from the league season play in the top-tier bracket to compete for the title of Elite 64 Team Champion in each age group. Teams that do no play in the top-tier bracket still enjoy meaningful competition, as every result from the other brackets contribute points to the clubs' race to become the overall Elite 64 Club Champion.
For information on the format of the Elite 64 National Finals, see the section below on this page.
Elite 64 Team Champions & Club Champions
The Elite 64 Team Champions and Elite 64 Club Champion will be decided at the Elite 64 National Finals, which take place at the end of each seasonal year. Click the headers below for more information.
Seeding & Event Scheduling
SEEDING & EVENT SCHEDULING
Within each gender age group, teams will be placed into four different bracket tiers, based on regular season standings from each of the eight Elite 64 groups:
- Finals Bracket – 1st- and 2nd-place finishers from the regular season
- Tier 2 Bracket – 3rd- and 4th-place finishers from the regular season
- Tier 3 Bracket – 5th- and 6th-place finishers from the regular season
- Tier 4 Bracket – 7th- and 8th-place finishers from the regular season
For each gender, the 16U, 17U and 18/19U age groups will play early in the event, and the 13U, 14U and 15U age groups will play later in the event. Each team will compete over three days (three games). The teams that advance to the title match in the Finals Bracket will play their final match (fourth game) on their fifth day of the event following a rest day.
>> Click here to see a sample event schedule
Elite 64 Team Champions
ELITE 64 TEAM CHAMPION
Featuring the top two regular season teams from each group, the Finals Bracket allows teams to compete to become the Elite 64 Team Champion in each age group.
The Finals Bracket follows a format similar to the World Cup knockout rounds, beginning with a Round of 16, followed by Quarterfinals, Semifinals and Finals. Teams win to advance in the pursuit of the Elite 64 Team Championship.
Teams who do not advance past the Round of 16 (Day 1) or Quarterfinals (Day 2) play games on the subsequent days against equivalent competition that count toward Club Champion points (giving them 3 games total).
>> Click here to see a sample day-by-day Finals Bracket
Elite 64 Club Champions
ELITE 64 CLUB CHAMPION
The Club Champion recognizes the club with the best cumulative performance across all age groups at the Elite 64 National Finals. All tiers (Finals, Tier 2, Tier 3, Tier 4) contribute to the overall Club Champion point totals — adding meaning to each game played at the Elite 64 National Finals.
For each game, teams can earn 3 points for a win; 1 point for a tie; and 0 points for a loss. Those points will be added to the Club Champion point totals, with a multiplier applied to points earned in each tier:
- Finals Bracket (4x points earned)
- Tier 2 (3x points earned)
- Tier 3 (2x points earned)
- Tier 4 (1x points earned)
The multiplier gives added weight to the higher tiers and adds importance and meaning to every regular season game, as each individual spot in the group standings holds an impact.
Once all games are complete, the overall point totals will be compiled and the club with the highest cumulative point total across all age groups will be crowned the season’s Elite 64 Club Champion.
Technology Partners
The USYS National League and Elite 64 are excited to have partnerships with some world-class companies that will help to enhance the experience for all players and clubs, while helping to make each games a recruitable moment.