The fifth edition of the EDP Winter Showcase will take place this weekend, February 17-18 on five fields at Capelli Sports Complex in Tinton Falls, NJ. Established as one of the top showcases in the country, the invite-only event will have 50 Boys teams from 16U-19U, featuring top teams in the country. College coaches from prestigious Division 1, Division 2, and Division 3 schools are registered and will be lining the sidelines taking advantage of this unique recruiting opportunity. EDP Soccer has partnered with Signing Day Sports for the event to enhance the recruiting experience for players and college coaches.
Top teams from MLS NEXT, National Academy League, National League, and ECNL will face off against each other to create a unique best vs best atmosphere. Clubs in attendance will be Philadelphia Union, PDA, BW Gottschee, Cedar Stars Academy North, Met Oval, FC Westchester, Cedar Stars Academy Monmouth, FC Boston Bolts, IFA, Manhattan SC, World Class FC, STA, Hex FC, SAC, AC Connecticut, CT Rush, FC Copa Academy, New York Premier FC, NY Hota, PSA, SJEB FC, Sporting PA, Western United Pioneers, YMS, New York Elite Alleycats, CSHH BW Gottschee East, and CJFA.
Across all 50 of the top matchups over the weekend, here is look at a few of the most intriguing:
17U Boys
BW Gottschee U17 MLS Next comes in as one of the top teams in the nation, and is currently unbeaten in MLS Next with a record of 13-0-2. On Saturday, they will take on PDA Vistula Lewandowski on Saturday, ranked #2 in the Nation, having recently won their National League Playoff Group, and participating in USYS Nationals last season.
FC Westchester U17 MLS Next enters the event as one of the hottest teams in the country, winning their last two games of the MLS Next Fall season by a total of 12-2, including a 5-1 win over New York City FC. In their first match of the event, they will face off against Hex FC 07 ECNL, who finished first in their ECNL Conference last season.
19U Boys
PDA U19 MLS Next is currently second in their MLS Next Division, and will be tested by one of the highest-scoring National League Teams in the country. CT Rush Select 2006 Boys scored an unbelievable 26 goals at the National League Playoffs, and were USYS Eastern Regional Finalists last season.
IFA U19, the Massachusetts State Champions return to the event for the second straight year to prove they are one of the best teams in the region. Last year, they fell just short against PDA MLS Next 3-2, and defeated Baltimore Armour MLS Next 4-1. This year, they will take on Met Oval U19 MLS Next and BW Gottschee MLS Next, two of the stronger teams in the MLS Next Northeast Division.
New York Premier FC 06, the USYS National Semi-Finalist starts their weekend off against one of the top youth MLS Club Academies in the country, playing Philadelphia Union Development Squad, and will be tested again on day two against PDA MLS Next U19.
The full schedule of games for the weekend can be found here.
Check out the video highlights from last year's event below.