Crossfire Adds Funding to ECNL Program
In our continuing effort to improve the program offerings at Crossfire Premier, the club will now fund travel costs for the U-13 and U-16 ECNL teams. Beginning in the 2018-19 season, players on these two teams will travel for free to ECNL conference games and ECNL events. This includes the cost of airline tickets, ground transportation, accommodations and meals for each trip.
The club is making this investment first and foremost because we want to deliver the best possible development environment for our young female athletes. By removing any financial burden associated with the cost of league travel for these teams, we also hope to incentivize players to commit to the entire development pathway Crossfire offers. The U-13 and U-16 ECNL programs were chosen for funding because these are the two top teams at their respective age groups. In other age groups, the top players at Crossfire will play for our Girls Development Academy teams.
The U-13 ECNL team marks players’ entry into an elite national league, while the U-16 ECNL team forms a single-age bridge between the U-15 Girls DA team and the U-16/17 GDA, which is a fully-funded program. All told, from U-13 through U-19, Crossfire offers players the opportunity to compete at the highest possible level in the nation, and as this travel funding shows, the club strives to make that opportunity available to every capable player, regardless of cost.
