Crossfire Premier Soccer Club (formerly Crossfire Sounders) is a non-profit, youth soccer organization based in

Redmond, WA Redmond is a city in King County, Washington, United States, located east of Seattle. The population was 73,256 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Redmond is best known as the home of Microsoft and Nintendo of America. The city h ...

affiliated with the Lake Washington Youth Soccer Association. Originally founded in 2000, the club has since become nationally recognized with boys and girls teams competing in the

Elite Clubs National League The Elite Clubs National League (ECNL) is a national youth soccer developmental league in the United States. It was founded in 2009 as a girls' league and added a boys' league in 2017. Competition format The ECNL is divided by age groups from U- ...

, winning several national titles. The club is also affiliated with

Crossfire Redmond Crossfire Redmond, previously the Seattle Wolves and Washington Crossfire, is an American soccer organization based in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 2009, the team plays in the National Premier Soccer League, the fourth tier of t ...

, a semi-professional team that plays in the

National Premier Soccer League The National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) is an American men's association football, soccer league. The league is officially affiliated to the United States Adult Soccer Association (USASA) and has automatic qualification for the U.S. Open Cup. ...

. The current Coaching Director is

Bernie James Bernie James (born November 25, 1958, in Coventry, England) is a former U.S. soccer player and current youth soccer coach. James spent twenty-four years as a professional, both beginning and ending his career with different versions of the Seat ...

who has served as director for over 20 years. Recently however, after an investigation into allegations of racial and sexual harassment, James had his license suspended by U.S. Soccer and his status is uncertain at this time while the investigation by U.S. Soccer continues.

Notable players

Some notable former players of the club that have gone on to play

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest division of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athlet ...

soccer or professionally (domestic or international) include: * DeAndre Yedlin *

Ellis McLoughlin Ellis McLoughlin (born July 8, 1990, in Seattle, Washington) is an American soccer player. Club career Youth McLoughlin began attending Bishop Blanchet High School in Seattle, Washington, in 2004, where he was named All-Area and team MVP as a f ...

Nick Downing Nick Downing (born January 25, 1980, in Redmond, Washington) is a retired American professional soccer player who is currently the strength and conditioning coach for New England Revolution in Major League Soccer. Biography Early career The ...

Preston Zimmerman Preston Mark Zimmerman (born November 21, 1988) is a retired American soccer player. Personal life Zimmerman was born in Auburn, Washington. He attended McLoughlin Middle School in Pasco, Washington. Club career Hamburger SV As an 18-year-old ...

* Hassani Dotson *

Ethan Bartlow Ethan Andrew Bartlow (born February 2, 2000) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a defender for Major League Soccer club Houston Dynamo. Youth career Playing for USSDA side Crossfire Premier SC, Bartlow scored seven goals ...

Kelyn Rowe Kelyn Jaynes Rowe (born December 2, 1991) is an American former professional and current semi-professional soccer player who plays as a midfielder. Early life Rowe grew up in Federal Way, Washington. He attended Federal Way High School, becomi ...

Solidarity Payments

Crossfire Premier gained national attention when it brought a petition before FIFA's Dispute Resolution Center arguing that the club is entitled to collect solidarity payments for its contributions to Yedlin's development. Ultimately the panel ruled against Crossfire's claim though not for its merits, saying instead that the

USSF USSF may refer to: * United States Servicemen's Fund, a support organization for soldier and sailor resistance to the Vietnam War and the U.S. military * United States Soccer Federation, governing body of soccer in the United States * United States ...

claimed at the time that solidarity payments were illegal in the United States. Later, MLS announced that it would begin enforcing solidarity payments for its youth academies when players go on to sign a professional contract

History

Prior to the club's founding,

Alan Hinton Alan Thomas Hinton (born 6 October 1942) is an English former footballer who played at the top level of English football from 1961 to 1975. He famously wore white football boots. Playing career Wolverhampton Wanderers Hinton started his career i ...

coached the original Crossfire Sounders U13 boys team in 1992 until 1997, winning four state championships and reaching the regional semifinals twice. It was while coaching Crossfire that Neil Farnsworth, a top executive with Microsoft and player's parent, discussed with Hinton the idea of reviving the Seattle Sounders professional team, which he coached for their first two years. Shortly after coaching the Crossfire Sounders boys, Crossfire Premier was founded and Hinton became their first Advanced Development Program Coaching Director. He was succeeded as Coaching Director first by

Jimmy Gabriel James Gabriel (10 October 1940 – 10 July 2021) was a Scottish football defensive midfielder and defender who earned two caps with the Scotland national football team. Chiefly associated with English clubs Everton and Southampton, Gabriel pla ...

then later by

who has served as director for over 20 years.

References

{{reflist

External links

Official Site
Soccer clubs in Washington (state) Redmond, Washington 2000 establishments in Washington (state) Association football clubs established in 2000