Soccer Champs Will Represent United States At the Volkswagen Junior Masters World Finals in South Africa, May 2010 Fox Soccer Channel to Highlight Thrills from U.S. Finals with Special Documentary

After a weekend full of tough matches, cold winds, and heavy rains, New Jersey’s PDA Pele U12 boys soccer team (Zarephath, NJ) has been crowned the U.S. Champions of the Volkswagen Junior Masters Tournament (www.vwjrmasters.com). Following the team’s 2-0 win over the Lower Merion Magic (Lower Merion, PA) at RFK Stadium in Washington D.C., the next stop for the PDA Pele will be Cape Town, South Africa in May 2010 – just prior to the FIFA World Cup – where they will battle to become World Champions. The team’s once-in- a-lifetime trip will be provided by Volkswagen of America, the presenting sponsor of the Junior Masters in the U.S. and the official automotive partner of Major League Soccer (www.mlsnet.com). The Volkswagen Junior Masters is a 20-country, international youth soccer tournament created by Volkswagen AG, and is the first competition of its kind for teams here in the United States.

Below are the full results from this weekend’s inaugural U.S. Finals matches:

Final Rank / Team Name City / State:
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1. PDA Pele Zarephath, NJ
2. Lower Merion SC Magic Lower Merion, PA
3. TAP FC Milan Alexandria, VA
4. Arlington Impact Red Arlington, VA
5. Baltimore Bays Hurricanes Baltimore, MD
6. Lee Mt. Vernon Soccer Patriots Alexandria, VA
7. Lehigh Valley United 97 Whitehall, PA
8. Penn Legacy 97 Black Landisville, PA
9. PA Classic Panther Revolution Lititz, PA
10. Lake Norman 97 LNSC Black Mooresville, NC
11. FCCA Huntersville 97 Highlanders Huntersville, NC
12. Soccer Domain Royals Montclair, NJ

“The team has shown amazing character and perseverance throughout the entire Volkswagen Junior Masters tournament,” said Samuel C. Nellins, head coach of the PDA Pele. “All of the other teams were nothing short of fantastic, and each player should be proud for what he has been able to do. But the Pele were able to stick it out and play some phenomenal soccer, despite the difficult weather, to move on to the World Championships. This kind of opportunity is something I couldn’t even imagine when I first played.”

“The Volkswagen Junior Masters has offered youth soccer teams both in the U.S., and the world, a challenge unlike any they could have ever experienced before,” said Tim Ellis, Vice President of Marketing for Volkswagen of America, Inc. “Volkswagen is proud of the PDA Pele’s teamwork and determination, which not only brought them to the U.S. Finals, but will now place them into the world spotlight as they head to South Africa for the World Championships. This team represents the nation’s best, and the soccer stars of tomorrow.”

Fox Soccer Channel captured all of the action and spotlight moments from the U.S. Finals weekend, and will premiere a special documentary on the Volkswagen Junior Masters Tournament at www.vwjrmasters.com, starting later this month. A special five part series highlighting the Tournament will also be televised nationally on Fox Soccer Channel, beginning in early November.

The Volkswagen Junior Masters Tournament began in the U.S. back in July, with a series of six preliminary regional tournaments that qualified twelve teams (the winner and runner-up from each tournament) for this weekend’s inaugural U.S. Finals. All of the participating teams had to meet the specified U12 age requirements in order to compete in the Volkswagen Junior Masters. The U.S. Finals team matchups for Saturday’s quarterfinal round were determined via a special, random drawing. The semi-final match occurred today, and was followed by the final match between the PDA Pele and the Lower Merion Magic.

Globally, Volkswagen has been a long time supporter of soccer. The brand is the title sponsor of Volkswagen arena in Wolfsburg and owns the VFL Wolfsburg football club at its global headquarters. In the U.S., Volkswagen of America is the official automotive partner of Major League sponsor and is a sponsor of D.C. United. The brand also launched this year the Footballers’ Clubhaus, presented by Volkswagen and MLS: A 19-city mobile marketing tour showcasing Volkswagen’s product family at local youth soccer tournaments.

For more information on Volkswagen, visit media.vw.com. For more information on the Volkswagen Junior Masters, visit http://www.vwjrmasters.com/.

Source: Volkswagen of America, Inc.