Licensed coaching
A licensed coach on every side, all working to one club curriculum.
National platforms
Ventura County, CA · Non-profit since 1987
U11 – U19 · Boys & Girls
The academy
The highest level is now a local drive.
Oaks FC fields teams in four national academy platforms — MLS NEXT Academy Division, the Elite Academy League, EA2 and the DPL. All of it inside Ventura County. None of it requires you to move.
2026/27 placement open · Conejo Valley · VC Oaks · Lompoc
The platforms we play in
4
28
Academy sides
U11–U19
Age groups
3
Regions, one club
1987
Non-profit since
20 min
To a pro first team
The pathway
Where your player fits.
Four platforms. Three of them form one ladder; the fourth is its own thing entirely. Find where your player fits, then read that section.
The ladder · EA2 → EA1 → MLS NEXT AD
-
01
MLS NEXT Academy Division U13–U19 · Boys
The top of the ladder. National standards, regional travel, and high school soccer still on the table.
Read more ↓ -
02
EA1 — Elite Academy League U11–U19 · Boys
Southwest Conference. Every fixture feeds a national qualifier — there are no friendly weekends.
Read more ↓ -
03
EA2 U11–U19 · Boys
The proving ground, run to EA's own standards. Clubs and players climb out of it on merit, every season.
Read more ↓
Below U11, players come through Competitive Club and the Juniors programme. See the youth pathway →
What academy actually means here
The badge is the easy part. The season is the standard.
All four platforms publish technical standards. We meet them at every level, in every region — and every session points at the weekends where it counts.
One standard, three regions
Conejo Valley, VC Oaks or Lompoc — the drive changes, nothing else does.
Video on every match
Full capture plus individual reels — a library a coach opens in one link.
Where the season leads. Training and league weekends aren't the destination — they're how a team gets to the events scouts actually attend.
01
Weekly training
In your own region, set by your age-group coach.
02
Conference matches
Regional league play, filmed in full. Results decide what comes next.
03
National qualifiers
MLS NEXT Cup Qualifiers, EA National Qualifiers, DPL Regionals.
04
Showcases & nationals
Fest and Cup, the EA National Championship, the DPL Summit and Nationals — where the scouting happens.
01
MLS NEXT · Academy Division
The shield on
your kid's sleeve.
The top of American youth soccer — 230 clubs under one set of MLS standards. We joined in 2025–26, the same season we opened VC Oaks.
- High school soccer is allowed. The season is built around it. Play for your school in winter, a national league in spring.
- Conference play is regional. Most weekends are a drive, not a flight.
- The season ends at MLS NEXT Cup. Conference → one of eight regional qualifiers → Fest and Cup.
- Scouted by design. College staff, pro clubs and national team scouts go to those qualifiers on purpose.
Conference
Southern CaliforniaAge groups
U13 – U19High school
PermittedSeason ends at
MLS NEXT Cup2025/26 · our first MLS NEXT season
First season. No warm-up lap.
2025/26 was Oaks FC's first season in MLS NEXT. Five of our six sides finished it with something to show — three of them at MLS NEXT Cup in Utah. Age groups below are as they stood in 2025/26; those players have all moved up a year since.
At MLS NEXT Cup
3 sidesRegional Qualifier titles
2Division won
U14Undefeated
U13Qualified for MLS NEXT Cup
Utah
Won the Regional Qualifier
Arizona → MLS NEXT Cup, Utah
Won the Regional Qualifier
Arizona → MLS NEXT Cup, Utah
Won the division
First place, inaugural season
Unbeaten all season
Inaugural season
Two of those Regional Qualifier titles came in Arizona, against clubs that have been in this league since it started. We had been in it for a few months.
02
Elite Academy League · Southwest Conference
Where every game
counts.
That's the league's own line. From 2026/27 every EA event is a national qualifier — so there are no dead weekends left in the calendar.
- U11 to U19 boys, in the EA Southwest Conference.
- We stepped up to EA1 in 2025, when the club expanded across the county.
- Every match is filmed on Hudl for the league's Talent ID programme.
- Players get watched all season — a scout doesn't have to be standing on the touchline.
Conference
EA SouthwestAge groups
U11 – U19Video
Every matchTalent ID
Season-longThe EA season
Every event is a qualifier
Fall Qualifier
U13 & U14
Winter Qualifier
U13 – U19
Spring Qualifier
U15 – U19
EA National Championship
The finish line
Every event is a qualifier. Every qualifier leads to the same place.
03
EA2 · The proving ground
Not the B team.
The next team.
Same standards as EA1. Different stage.
- Same match-day standards, framework and referees as the division above.
- Promotion is real. Clubs are ranked U13–U19 on points per game, and the top one is put forward for EA1.
- We climbed it ourselves — Oaks FC came up out of EA2 in 2025.
- Who it's for: a player who is close, and better off with ninety minutes here than twenty above. We move players up mid-season.
Division
EA SouthwestAge groups
U11 – U19Promotion
Points per gamePost-season
Playoffs & CupThe EA2 record
The climb works.
U17
Champions
EA2 League Cup — Southwest Conference Champions
Last season
01
Play the season
To EA standards, with the same requirements as the division above.
02
Ranked on merit
Points per game across every age group, U13 through U19.
03
Considered for EA
The top-performing team is considered for promotion the following season.
A separate national platform · Girls
Nothing given.
Everything earned.
The largest girls' development platform in the country — ten conferences, six national events, more than sixteen thousand players. It is the whole of our girls' academy, U13 to U19.
- Its own platform, not a rung. Separate governance and its own route to a national final.
- National football, no relocation. Regionals, the SUMMIT and Nationals, with college staff at all of it.
- Talent ID built in. The Emerging Talent Pathway, DPL Perform, and college ID camps run by the league itself.
Platform
Girls, nationalAge groups
U13 – U19Events
Regionals · NationalsSanctioned by
Girls AcademyLast season
Three flights. One club.
Lisbon, Portugal
DPL PerformTwo players selected to represent the league abroad.
Virginia Beach
DPL NationalsOur U16 girls qualified.
Virginia Beach
All-Star GameLucy Campbell named to the squad.
Arizona
Super GroupU16s in the top bracket of the Regional Showcase.
Nicole Higuera
- DPL Perform
- Lisbon
- Chivas trial
One of only three girls her age in Ventura County offered a trial with Chivas Femenil, Guadalajara.
Lucy Campbell
- DPL Perform
- Lisbon
- All-Star
To Lisbon with Nicole, then named to the DPL All-Star Game at Nationals in Virginia Beach.
DPL All-Stars
- All-Star Game
- Virginia Beach
Lucy was named to the DPL All-Star squad and played at Nationals in Virginia Beach — selected out of a league of more than sixteen thousand players.
New for 2026/27
Inside the Girls Academy.
In July 2026 the DPL and The Girls Academy formalised their alignment. From 2026/27 the DPL is sanctioned by The Girls Academy, and the DPL continues to run GA Aspire as its management partner — so the ladder above this league is now published and connected, not implied.
DPL
Where our girls play
GA Aspire
Tier 2, run by the DPL
Girls Academy
Tier 1
One registration standard, one set of health and safety protocols, and a defined route up for a player who earns it.
Before you ask
Questions we get every week.
What's the difference between the Academy and Competitive Club?
Academy is the national-league programme — U11 to U19 in EA1 and EA2, U13 to U19 in MLS NEXT Academy Division and the DPL — with a full season of travel. Competitive Club is regional league play with a lighter commitment. Both are coached to the same club curriculum.
Is the DPL a step below EA1 or MLS NEXT?
No. The DPL is a separate national platform for girls with its own conferences, events and identification programme — there is no promotion between it and the EA ladder — it's a different competition, not a lower tier of one. It is the girls' academy pathway here, U13 through U19.
Can my son still play high school soccer?
In the MLS NEXT Academy Division, yes. The regular season is built around the high school calendar and players are permitted to participate. Talk to your age-group coach about how it fits the rest of the year.
How often will my player train?
That's set by the age-group coach and it varies by level and time of year. Your coach will give you the weekly schedule at the start of the season, and it's built around the region you train in.
My child is younger than U11 — where do they start?
Juniors and Competitive Club, then into the academy at U11. Come to a session either way and we'll tell you honestly where they are.
What if we miss tryouts?
Be on the lookout if a team posts about tryouts. Academies can register players throughout the full season.
How much travel is there really?
Conference play is regional — most weekends are a drive, not a flight. The national events are the trips that require travel, and they're published at the start of the season so you can plan around them.
Do you move players between levels mid-season?
Yes. That's what having more than one team in an age group is for. Movement goes both ways and it is always a conversation with the family first.
What does it cost, and is there financial aid?
Fees cover coaching, fields, referees, registration and video; kit and travel are listed separately. Oaks FC has been a non-profit since 1987 and need-based aid is available at every level — applications are confidential and no coach sees who applied.
What do we bring to a trial?
Boots, shin pads, water, and both feet. Register in advance so the coaching staff know to expect you.