When the Cincinnati based Ohio Elite Soccer Academy team found itself without a home field for its 2004 Super-Y League games, Pete Robinson, board member of Middletown’s Youth Soccer Association asked the Middletown CVB to partner in bringing this high level soccer competition to Middletown.

The Ohio Elite Soccer Academy Super-Y teams consist of top players age 13 to 19 – both boys and girls - who compete with other soccer clubs from the Midwestern U.S. including teams from Illinois, Michigan, Indiana and northern Ohio.  During June and July, 46 games will be played at Smith and Jacot Parks in Middletown, bringing 25 separate teams to the area.

Most teams will stay over night in Middletown hotels and eat in Middletown restaurants. Middletown CVB expects to assist the local soccer group with about $4,000 in expenses incurred in attracting the event to Middletown. The estimated economic impact is about $40,000 per event or a total of $240,000 over six dates to the local economy. Players, coaches, parents and grandparents along with spectators attracted to the high level games will help boost the local economy through their purchases in the Middletown area.

The Super Y-League is a “professionalized” system that is the first step for developing youth soccer players in North America. Affiliated with US Soccer and partnered with US Club Soccer, the league is designed for talented young players destined for professional or international careers. Through Olympic Development (ODP) status programs such as the SYL North American Finals and Regional Select Team weekends, the nation's top players are selected for U.S. National Team Programs. The league is made up of a series of regional leagues within the framework of a North American League containing the top clubs and players from the United States and Canada.

It is expected that these particular games will also attract those interested in the highest level of high school soccer.  Middletown hopes the short-notice arrangements go well enough that the Ohio Elite/Super Y league will want to use Middletown as its home field in future years.

The free admission games will be played at Smith Park on June 5, 6, 15, 18 and 20, and at Jacot Park on July 1, 7, 16, 17, 18, 24 and 25.

Ohio Elite is a non-profit organization formed to provide elite level players with professional coaching, best-of-class facilities and top competition. The Ohio Elite mission statement says in part, “[we want] to create an elite training and competition environment for boys and girls that strives to reach the highest level of success through first achieving excellence: providing a life enriching experience in an academy atmosphere that seeks to develop the complete player on and off the field of competition."

In addition to their Academy, Ohio Elite has an outreach arm, SOCKs, Soccer Outreach for City Kids aimed at taking soccer into the inner-city communities where soccer often doesn’t exist. SOCKs engages the Ohio Elite players and staff with the kids offering the mutual reward of camaraderie, team work and “give back”. 

Soccer fans may want to visit www.ohioelite.com for more information about the Ohio Elite and Super Y league soccer system. Players in these games would be likely to win spots on college and professional teams in the future. This league is seen as a “feeder system for the semi pro and professional teams of the country, according to Rick Bowling, Boys Coordinator for Ohio Elite Soccer Academy.  Teams in this league are typically nationally ranked drawing players from the top 3% of the nation’s soccer players.  Bowling mentioned that a large percentage of Ohio Elite soccer players sign to play college ball well before graduation from high school.  In fact, every Ohio Elite graduating senior is off to play college soccer next year--35 graduates have been accepted into soccer programs across the country.

Jeff Beckham, president of the Ohio elite Soccer Academy Board of Directors said, “We are committed to providing our players the best competitive situations possible. Super-Y provides not only our players, but also players from outside our club, competition at the highest levels with the best players across the country. This is a huge commitment for our club and our families, but in order for us to achieve our goal of providing the best for our players; we must continue to bring opportunities such as Super-Y League to the area.”

Story submitted by Ann Mort