Sporting Kansas City Youth Soccer is proud to announce the addition of a new Academy Affiliate, Sporting Michigan. Formerly known as Michigan Wolves-Hawks East, the new Affiliate club serves players and families in Oakland, Macomb, Lapeer and surrounding counties.
Sporting Michigan prides itself on aiming to offer a high-quality soccer experience with a dedicated and highly motivated team of coaches and administrators that truly cares about teaching and developing players.
“We’re excited and proud to join the Sporting Kansas City Academy Affiliate family,” said John Phillips, Sporting Michigan’s Director of Player Development. “Our evolution as Sporting Michigan will no doubt have tremendous benefit for our players, families and staff, and creates a bright future for our club. We have worked hard over the past 10 years to build the culture of our club, and it is obvious our values align well with those of Sporting KC. We look forward to the growth of our relationship, and the opportunities provided as a member of the Academy Affiliate network.”
Sporting Kansas City’s Academy Affiliate program strives to provide its members with the best possible resources, education and developmental opportunities both on and off the field while also giving members unparalleled access to Sporting Kansas City and Sporting Club.
Nathan Hunt, Sporting KC’s Academy Affiliate Director of Coaching, said, “I am excited to work with the Sporting Michigan staff as they join the Sporting Kansas City family. Providing additional resources that will help the technical staff and coaches improve while giving their players new opportunities and experiences will only help them grow as individuals and as a club overall. We look forward to working with all the staff to create an enhanced environment and connection to Sporting Kansas City and their community.”
The Academy Affiliate program aims to consistently provide exclusive events, programs and opportunities to help further player and coach development. Some of those opportunities stem from the connection and collaboration the Academy Affiliate program has with Sporting Kansas City’s Academy. Jon Parry, SKC Academy Director, comments, “We are excited to add Sporting Michigan as an Affiliate Club and continue the pipeline of players from Michigan to Sporting KC.” The Affiliate program continues to search for new opportunities to further link the Academy Affiliate program to the SKC Academy.
Sporting Kansas City’s Vice President of Youth Business Development, Dan Popik, also commented on the new addition to the Academy Affiliate family. “It’s with great excitement to formally announce the addition of Sporting Michigan to the Sporting Club Network and Academy Affiliate Program,” Popik said. “As we look to strategically expand our affiliate program, we identified Michigan as a priority because of its deep tradition of producing professional men’s and women’s soccer players. This affiliation with Sporting Michigan offers us a fantastic opportunity to partner with a top-level professional youth soccer club committed to player development, coaching education and having a positive influence in the community. Through Sporting Michigan, players in the Detroit area have an opportunity to be part of a professional pathway to Major League Soccer.”
Sporting Michigan will provide an opportunity to continue the expansion of the Sporting Kansas City Academy Affiliate program, in an effort to collectively provide more resources and support towards growing the game and supporting player and coach development in the region. We welcome Sporting Michigan into our family and are excited for what this new partnership will bring to our Academy Affiliate program.
To learn more about Sporting Michigan, please visit www.sportingmichigan.com.
For more information on how to become an Academy Affiliate, or to learn more about Sporting KC Youth Soccer, please visit our website and follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
