Another Academy season is officially in the books. As the youth soccer scene continues to explode across the nation, Republic FC’s academy teams reaffirmed the Indomitable Club’s spot as one of the top programs in American soccer.
Across all competitions, Sacramento’s six teams combined for a stellar 99-17-17 record in league play and for the first time in club history, Republic FC qualified five teams for the postseason, the most by any club in California.
Led by Head Coach Brian Willey, a day-one academy coach, Republic FC’s youngest players dominated the field. They posted a 19-1-1 record and finished 14 games with a goal differential of at least three. Based on their Quality of Play ranking – a new metric for the U-13 and U-14 age level that utilizes technology to assess performance scores instead of traditional win/loss/draw records – Republic FC finished the year in the top three out of 132 teams. Making their first-ever MLS NEXT Cup appearance, the team reached the Round of 16, where they took Inter Miami CF to a penalty shootout.
The U-14 squad also earned a spot to compete for a National title after finishing second in their division with a regular season record of 18-1-3. In league play, they posted 10 clean sheets and earned some impressive scorelines (9-1 vs. ALBION SC Merced, 6-0 vs. San Francisco Seals, 7-0 vs. Atletico Santa Rosa). Under Head Coach Axel Duarte, multiple players earned opportunities to compete in National Team programs, most notably defender Patrick Collins who was selected to the U.S. Soccer National ID Camp in May. Duarte will switch over to coaching the U-17 team next season, while also serving as the Head of Talent ID and Player Development.
Longtime academy technical staff member David Jimenez returned to coach Republic FC’s U-15 and U-16 teams. The U-15s finished the regular season with a record of 11-4-6 and topped their group in the MLS NEXT Flex tournament, where they didn’t concede a single goal, to punch their ticket to the playoffs. The U-16 squad reached the postseason by winning the Pacific Northwest Division and winning their group in the Flex tournament with a fantastic 2-0 victory over Chicago Fire. Jimenez will continue coaching the U-15 team in 2026-27 while also supporting Axel Duarte as an Academy Scout.
Republic FC’s oldest academy teams represented the Indomitable Club well in highly competitive divisions. The U-17s posted a 14-5-4 regular season record and defeated two MLS clubs at the NEXT Flex tournament, but unfortunately missed out on the playoffs by just one point. The U-19s won their division with 18 wins, three losses, and two draws and made the deepest postseason run of any team this year – reaching the MLS NEXT Cup Quarterfinals. Five players joined the First Team on USL Academy contracts, while many others will graduate to play for collegiate programs. Coach Juan Aguilar will continue as the U-19 coach next season, while also taking on the U-16s.
Adding to the club’s long-standing track record of setting players up for the next steps of their soccer careers, 15 Quails have committed to playing at Division I colleges.
