Youth soccer clubs in Nevada
Nevada youth soccer is really two scenes that barely touch.
Club soccer in Nevada
The Las Vegas valley, including Henderson and North Las Vegas, holds the vast majority of the state's players and almost all of its national-league clubs. Reno sits roughly 440 miles north, and its clubs mostly look west to Northern California for competition.
The Nevada Youth Soccer Association is the US Youth Soccer state member. It runs the Nevada State Cup and the Northern Nevada Championships, and its find-a-club page lists eight clubs, most of them in Las Vegas. Beyond that, the national picture is crowded for a state this size. MLS NEXT's 2025-26 Academy Division list includes three Nevada names, ALBION Las Vegas, Downtown Las Vegas SC and Las Vegas Sports Academy, and they compete in the Desert Division with clubs from Arizona and Utah. On the girls side, Albion Las Vegas has been tied to Girls Academy, and Las Vegas Heat Surf SC is a member of both ECNL Girls and ECNL Boys.
The pro tie-in is Las Vegas Lights FC, which plays in the USL Championship at Cashman Field. Las Vegas also hosts big ECNL Boys events each January, with the 2026 edition set for the Bettye Wilson and Kellogg Zaher complexes, so top teams from across the country come through the valley every winter.
In Reno the story is different. Reno APEX Soccer Club lists ECNL Regional League, NPL, N1 and NorCal Premier on its site, and NorCal Premier announced it's moving into the ECNL Regional League for the 2026-27 season. Players there play a lot of games in California.
Heat is the other constant. Summer in the valley is brutal, so most serious club calendars run fall through spring, with indoor and futsal work filling the gaps. The clubs below are the ones Nevada parents most often compare.
Popular clubs in Nevada
These are the clubs Nevada families ask about most. League badges show what we could confirm for the 2025-26 season, so check each club's own site for current teams, tryout dates and fees.
Las Vegas Heat Surf SC
Heat Surf is the Henderson club listed as an ECNL Girls and ECNL Boys member, and it's part of the Surf Nation affiliate network. The website lays out Platform teams for U13 to U19, Pre teams for U11 and U12, Select for U9 and U10 and a Sparks entry program for the youngest players. A recreational program runs from age 3 to 18. Its roots go back to the Southern Nevada Soccer Association, formed in 1998.
Albion SC Las Vegas
Albion Las Vegas is the local arm of the national Albion network and appears on MLS NEXT's 2025-26 Academy Division list in the Desert Division. The site points to a Girls Academy League path and an Albion GA and MLS program, plus a younger Albion Juniors and Albion Academy track for development. The club also runs a fall futsal league in Las Vegas that starts in mid-September.
Downtown Las Vegas Soccer Club
Downtown LVSC is a community-focused club with a Valley View Boulevard address and an MLS NEXT Academy program. Its site says funded teams from U13 to U19 play in the Desert Division against clubs from Nevada, Arizona and Utah, with access to MLS NEXT Fest and MLS NEXT Cup. It also lists the Las Vegas Club Soccer League and a National 1 League program, and the examples shown there are boys teams.
Players Soccer Club
Players SC started in 1989 as Neusport-Tabagators, founded by former pro player Saeed Bonabian, and its first year included two girls teams. Today it runs a Junior Academy for U5 to U10, a competitive program, a college ID program, goalkeeper training and the Players Showcase tournament. Tryouts are listed for U11 to U19. The site mentions pre-MLS NEXT teams and shows both boys and girls squads.
Villarreal Las Vegas
Villarreal Las Vegas calls itself the only official Villarreal CF Academy in Nevada and is on the NYSA club list. It runs boys and girls competitive teams from U7 to U19, with boys in the Elite Academy platform and girls in National 1. Other programs include a college prep track for U14 to U19, a Mini Submarines program for ages 4 to 6 and selected trials in Spain.
Reno APEX Soccer Club
Reno APEX is the northern Nevada club to know. Its site lists ECNL Regional League, N1, NPL, NorCal Premier Soccer, GBYSL and US Club Soccer, and NorCal Premier named it one of five girls clubs promoted to the ECNL Regional League for 2026-27. It serves ages 4 to 18, runs summer and college ID camps, and hosts the Reno Nevada Cup, the Reno Spring Cup and a Spooktacular 3v3.
From Nevada clubs to college soccer
For a lot of Nevada families, club soccer is also the road to playing in college. These pages cover the next step, from ID camps close to home to emailing college coaches.
College ID camps in Nevada
Every college soccer program in Nevada, with a link to its official camp page.
See the camps ›Recruiting guideHow college recruiting works
Timelines, divisions, scholarships, coach emails and showcases, explained for players and parents.
Read the guide ›RecruitlyEmail college coaches from your own inbox
Find programs by division and conference, reach every coach, and see who opens your email and watches your film.
Meet Recruitly ›Choosing a club in Nevada
Pick your metro first. If you're in the Las Vegas valley you have real choices, and the main trade is drive time against league level. Henderson, Summerlin and the northwest all have strong programs, so look at where your birth year trains instead of the club's main office.
Next, think about travel. MLS NEXT in the Desert Division sends teams to Arizona and Utah, ECNL and Girls Academy mean longer trips, and Reno families can expect regular drives or flights into California. Ask for an estimated season travel budget in writing.
Third, ask about the lower tiers. Several clubs here run entry programs for the youngest ages and N1 or state-league teams that stay closer to home, and those can be a better fit than a national platform for a 10 year old. Lastly, check tryout dates, which clubs post on their own sites, and don't skip college ID camps if your player is U15 or older.
Our guide to choosing a club has the questions worth asking at a tryout, and the costs page explains what a season in Nevada might add up to.
Nevada club soccer FAQ
Which Nevada clubs are in MLS NEXT?
MLS NEXT's 2025-26 Academy Division list names ALBION Las Vegas, Downtown Las Vegas SC and Las Vegas Sports Academy for Nevada, all in the Desert Division. The division is run by Cobalt Sports and includes clubs from Arizona and Utah, so expect regular road trips.
Is there ECNL in Nevada?
Yes. Las Vegas Heat Surf SC in Henderson is listed as an ECNL Girls and ECNL Boys member, and Las Vegas hosts a large ECNL Boys event each January. In Reno, Reno APEX was promoted into the ECNL Regional League for girls for the 2026-27 season.
Who runs the Nevada State Cup?
The Nevada Youth Soccer Association, the US Youth Soccer state member, runs the Nevada State Cup and the Northern Nevada Championships. Its find-a-club page lists eight member clubs, mostly in the Las Vegas area, and it posts league and cup information on its programs page.