RICHARDSON, Texas (June 30, 2005) – US Youth Soccer is proud to announce the 2005 US Youth Soccer Southern Regional Champions and acknowledge their quest to pass the final test of the National Championship Series, the country’s most prestigious national youth soccer tournament - The US Youth Soccer National Championships.

2005 US Youth Soccer Southern (Region III) Regional Champions

Under-19 Girls Regional Champion | Dallas Texans Red 86 (TX N)

Under-14 Boys Regional Champion | Tulsa Soccer Club 91 (OK)

“What a great week of play and a tremendous event by host North Texas State Soccer Association," said David Messersmith, president of US Youth Soccer. "Each year, the nation’s top players look forward to the country's best competition as teams earn their way from state to regional champions, striving to be one of the top 48 teams in the country playing for the National Championship. Congratulations to all of the 180 plus teams who advanced to represent their state at the regional competition and to those who will continue their quest to lift the National Championship trophy high.”

The 2005 US Youth Soccer National Championship Series is the country’s most prestigious national youth soccer tournament, providing approximately 129,000 players on 7,200 teams from US Youth Soccer’s 55 State Associations the opportunity to showcase their soccer skills against the best competition in the nation while emphasizing teamwork, discipline and fair play.

The US Youth Soccer National Championships cap a yearlong series of competitions for boys and girls teams in multiple age brackets as teams earn their way from the top teams in their state to the regional championship tournaments. State Cup champions and selected wildcard teams in most age groups are eligible to compete in one of four US Youth Soccer Regional Championships. The champions in the Under-14 through Under-19 age brackets from each regional event will converge on the Disney’s Wide World of Sports® Complex, July 26-31 to enjoy the world-class facilities and the nation’s top competition.

2005 marks a special year for the four teams in the Under-19 Boys age group at the US Youth Soccer National Championship as the National Champion will hoist the James P. McGuire Cup, the oldest trophy in youth sport dating back to 1935 with the inaugural youth championships, on the 70th anniversary of the storied cup. This year also marks the 25th anniversary of the Under-19 Girls Ross Stewart Cup and 20th Anniversary of the Under-16 Girls Patricia L. Masotto Cup. The U.S. Soccer Federation initiated youth championships with the James P. McGuire Cup (Under 19 Boys) in 1935. Since its creation in 1974, US Youth Soccer has added 11 divisions to the National Championship tournament, most recently with the Under-14 and Under-15 Boys and Girls divisions in 2001 to create the series current format.

Annually the US Youth Soccer National Championship Series provides the nation’s top collegiate coaches with the premier stage to identify and scout the most coveted players in the country. In 2004, over 500 coaches attended the US Youth Soccer Regional Championships including the majority of the top 25 men’s and women’s programs based on the final 2004 NSCAA/adidas National Rankings for NCAA Division I schools.