Event Preview: U13/U14 State Cup Finals

In the culmination of an event that started all the way back in August, the U13 and U14 NorCal Premier Soccer State Cup is set to conclude this weekend at Davis Legacy Soccer Complex.

Just two teams remain in each division, with all coming down to the wire in a series of finals on Sunday.

“These U13-U14 years are a special window before high school changes everything,” said NorCal State Cup Coordinator Brian Voltattorni. “It’s important they take in moments like this to simply enjoy the game.”

Overall, 30 different champions will be crowned, with the four State Division champions earning the right to call themselves NorCal’s true State Cup champion, while also qualifying for this summer’s US Club Soccer National Cup, which will kick off in July in Denver.

The NorCal State Cup kicked off in August with group stage matches before each team was placed in a knockout round bracket based on how they finished in their first three games.

From there, most teams had to win four consecutive matches in February and March to reach Finals Weekend.

This is the second year NorCal has paired the U13 and U14 age groups together–previously the U13s competed alongside the U11 and U12 ages, while the U14s were grouped with the older teams.

The change in the schedule has allowed for teams to continue competing throughout the winter without the necessity of the high school break that the U15-U19 teams require.

“As part of aligning State Cup with the overall NorCal competition calendar, we made key adjustments to better support the U13-U14 teams,” Voltattorni said. “The response has been extremely positive and we’ll continue to find a way to raise the standard moving forward.”

For more information on the NorCal State Cup, click here.