ADIDAS AND MLS TO HOST NATION’S TOP YOUTH SOCCER PLAYERS FOR 2008 ADIDAS ELITE SOCCER PROGRAM AND SUM U-17 CUP

Portland, Oregon (June 12, 2008)- adidas and MLS are excited to announce their collaboration for the 2008

adidas Elite Soccer Program (ESP) and Soccer United Marketing’s second annual SUM U-17 Cup. These premier

youth soccer events are aligning for the first time to provide an enhanced experience of US Soccer’s future stars.

The combined programs will host more than 350 of the nation’s top high school soccer players July 3-8 at Dick’s

Sporting Goods Park in Denver, Colorado.

Sanctioned by the U.S. Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program, adidas ESP was founded in 1997. ESP has

become the premier youth development program designed to identify America’s best high school soccer players

and provides a platform for them to showcase their individual skills. The program helps the participants prepare to

achieve their academic and athletic goals by supplementing a top level training program with a diverse off-field

educational curriculum. The adidas ESP event in July 2008 features MLS Player Development Director Alfonso

Mondelo as Technical Director and includes MLS Ambassador Mark Santel, former Men’s National Team and

MLS coach Bob Gansler and Former MLS and National Team standout Chris Henderson.

“Together, adidas and MLS are striving to elevate the status of soccer in North America by promoting the game

from the grassroots to the professional level,” said Antonio Zea, Director of Soccer, adidas America. “adidas ESP

has become an integral part of the development of the elite soccer player. The program has helped many of these

players realize their dreams of playing in a professional soccer league.”

2008 is the second year for the SUM U-17 Cup. The program features 14 MLS U-17 Youth Development teams,

each representing a Major League Soccer club. These elite youth players go head to head in tournament play and

are given the opportunity to interact and learn from MLS coaches, players and administrators. The SUM U-17

Cup champion will represent MLS at the Trofeo Quixote youth tournament in Madrid, Spain in 2009.

“We continue to work to develop the game through our partnership with adidas, and our collaboration on the

SUM U-17 and adidas ESP. Both organizations believe that our efforts in developing young players will form the

foundation for the game’s future success,” said Alfonso Mondelo, MLS Player Development Director. “We are

very excited to be part of the adidas family as we develop the process of identifying and developing the best

young players in North America.”

Past adidas ESP and MLS U-17 Cup participants have gone on to play at the collegiate, professional and World

Cup levels of soccer. Notable alumni include: Pat Noonan (New England Revolution, US Men’s National Team),

KC Wizards), Michael Parkhurst (NE Revolution, 2007 Rookie of the Year) and Jonathan Spector (West Ham,

US Men’s National Team).  In addition, nearly have of the top twenty draft picks at the 2006 MLS SuperDraft

attended ESP.

adidas is a global designer, developer and marketer of athletic footwear, apparel and accessories with the mission

to be the leading sports brand in the world. Brand adidas is part of the adidas Group, a corporation that includes

brands such as Reebok, TaylorMade and Rockport. Some of the players in adidas’ roster of athletes include:

Reggie Bush, Tim Duncan, Ryan Howard, David Beckham and Allyson Felix.

For more information please visit www.adidas-esp.com