2024-25 MLS NEXT “Double” Champs Invited to Prestigious LIGA MX Invitational Prior to Opening 2025-26 MLS NEXT Campaign
MEXICO CITY, Mexico (Thursday, August 28, 2025) - Real Salt Lake Academy kicks off its 2025-2026 preseason campaign Thursday, participating in the 10th annual Torneo Internacional, just weeks before its official start to the MLS NEXT regular season on September 13th.
Eight world-class Academies gather in Mexico City with hopes of raising an international trophy on September 6. Participating in the 2008-2009 (U18) competition, Real Salt Lake joins Orlando City SC as the lone pair of MLS academies. Uruguayan Primera División side, Club Atlético Peñarol and the U-16 Mexican Youth National Team round out Group 2 alongside the MLS teams, whist four LIGA MX Academies (Necaxa, Rayados de Monterrey, Santos Laguna and Pumas) comprise Group 1.
Each club is guaranteed seven matches in nine days, facing each participating club once throughout the group stage. Upon completion of the first phase, points leaders from each group will face off in a single-match Final. Group play kicks off Thursday, Aug. 28 as the Claret-and-Cobalt take on Club Atlético Peñarol at 12:15 p.m. MT.
“We’re here to work, we’re here to get better,” stated U18 Head Coach Phil Cousins, opening his address to the squad. “This opportunity is a great time to test who we are against international opponents, while simultaneously competing for a trophy and preparing for the season ahead.”
English native Cousins appointed Real Monarchs’ veteran Antonio Riquelme as club Captain ahead of the tournament. “Antonio has proven his brilliant technical abilities time and time again,” Cousins reflected. “As a professional it’s important for ‘Chile’ [Antonio] to lead by example, on and off the pitch, and we believe he has done just that.”
Riquelme turned pro at the start of the 2025 MLS calendar, signing a homegrown contract with Real Monarchs out of RSL Academy. The Chilean midfielder has come up clutch for this U18 squad on multiple occasions, most recently in the MLS NEXT Cup. Riquelme logged two goals in the tournament - both from freekicks well beyond the edge of the box - one on the last kick of the game to force penalties, in which RSL came out victorious. Professionally, Riquelme has one goal with Real Monarchs, scoring an equalizer in the first round of U.S. Open Cup against El Farolito.
Upon returning home from Mexico City, RSL Academy will have one week to prepare for its 2025-26 MLS NEXT opening weekend, hosting Vancouver Whitecaps FC on Sat., September 13, and Colorado Albion on Sun., September 14, at Zions Bank Real Academy in Herriman. The 2025-26 campaign will be RSL Academy’s inaugural season competing in MLS NEXT’s new Homegrown Division. The change comes after last week’s league-wide announcement on August 21.
The MLS NEXT Homegrown Division name reflects its direct connection to the MLS Player Pathway, serving as the top level of competition in the program. Every MLS academy will compete in the Homegrown Division alongside 122 MLS NEXT Elite Academies (non-MLS academies), creating a platform for the most talented young players in North America to test themselves and prepare for the next level in their careers, with many each year going on to sign their first professional contracts as MLS Homegrown players.
Real Salt Lake Academy is the official MLS NEXT affiliate of MLS side Real Salt Lake. After a historic 2024-25 season that saw RSL become the first academy to have a squad win both the Generation adidas Cup and MLS NEXT Cup in the same season, the group now looks to build upon a firm foundation. Leading Major League Soccer in all-time homegrown signings, RSL welcomed Omar Marquez, Aiden Hezarkhani, Owen Anderson, and Gio Villa in January of this year, all RSL Academy products as part of its 42 homegrown signings after inking their deals with the Claret-and-Cobalt.
