Ballaz Win Top Honours in US Youth Competition

Ballaz Academy’s Under-11 team was the pick of the bunch at the USA Cup Week tournament at the National Sports Centre in Blaine, Minnesota.

They created history by becoming the first Jamaican team to win top honours at North America’s largest youth football competition.

The team defeated Illinois-based Jahbat SC 5-3 in an exciting final in Bracket A of the Gold Category.

Twenty one Jamaican teams took part in the tournament.

The Ballaz Under-11 team also made it to the final of the warm-up USA Cup Weekend tournament, losing to top-ranked team Los Amigos 5-2 before rallying in the USA Cup Week main event.

The Ballaz U-13 team, which also competed in the Gold Bracket A category, made it to the quarter-finals of the competition, suffering a close 1-0 defeat to the eventual champions.

Director of Ballaz Academy, Andre Virtue, says they met their objectives for competing in the tournament.

Andre Virtue.

Over 1,200 teams from 17 countries participate in the competition.

Khyel Dale was the overall leading goal scorer for the Ballaz Under-11 team scoring a total of 7 goals in the weeklong tournament and a further 6 in the weekend tournament.