FRISCO, Texas (Sept. 5, 2019) — The 2019-20 US Youth Soccer Desert Conference kicks off on Friday, Sept. 13, in Salt Lake City with 60 12U-14U Boys and Girls team competing at the Salt Lake Regional Athletic Complex.

Teams participating in this year's Desert Conference will be competing for a spot at the 2020 US Youth Soccer Far West Regionals in Boise, Idaho, and the opportunity to qualify for the 2020-21 US Youth Soccer National League.

In total, 131 12U-19U Boys and Girls teams will be participating this year from Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, and Utah.

Teams that participated in last year's Desert Conference had a strong showing at the 2019 US Youth Soccer Far West Regional Championships in Boise. Fourteen teams advanced to the quarterfinals, eight teams advanced to the semifinals, four teams finished as the runner-up, and eight teams earned Far West Regional Championships.

Six of the eight Desert Conference teams that advanced to the 2019 US Youth Soccer National Championships are set to participate in this year's Desert Conference. The returning teams: LVSA 05 Red Boys (NV), Downtown LVSC 04 Gold Boys (NV), LVSA 03 Silver Boys (NV), Utah Celtic FC 04 Girls (UT), LVSA 03 Girls (NV), Celtic FC Premier JR 01 Girls (UT).

The opening weekend on the 2019-20 US Youth Soccer Desert Conference marks the first of three weekend events for the 12U-14U teams. The second conference event will be held in Phoenix in November and the final event will be held in Las Vegas in 2020.

Visit the Desert Conference homepage for more information on the conference, schedules, standings and more.