Welcome to the Girls' Pepsi Showdown

 

Five years after the boys version of the Pepsi Showdown broke onto the scene and became the largest high school boys soccer tournament in the Midwest and third largest in the country, the Pepsi Showdown added a girls version in 2007.

 

The 2010 field consists of 48 teams, making it the largest high school tournament in the country. When the tournament kicks off April 6th, it will feature 32 teams looking to advance in the seeded bracket along with the top 16 teams earning first-round byes but squaring off in showcase games unlike any other tournament in Illinois.

 

On back-to-back Saturdays in April, all 48 teams will play at Olympic Park in Schaumburg, allowing college coaches and fans a unique opportunity to see more than 1,200 players from surrounding private and public schools at one site. And for the third consectutive year, the Pepsi Showdown championship will take place at Toyota Park. It has been the only tournament in Illinois to host its title game as part of a doubleheader with the Chicago Fire since the $100 million complex opened in 2006. 

Considered by many to be one of the strongest showcases around, this year's field consists of programs from all regions of the Chicagoland area. While other tournaments continue to ignore the middle class/rising programs, the Pepsi Showdown provides an opportunity for players and teams from all areas a chance to shine. The two-week, 100-game tourney will feature more than 150 communities. In total from the 2009 girls tournament, there were more than 42 million media impressions in surrounding broadcast and print media outlets such as the Chicago Tribune, Daily Herald, Chicago Sun-Times and St. Louis Post-Dispatch. ComcastSports broadcasted taped highlights of the girls title game from Toyota Park.