Seminole County, GO Sports Extend ECNL Partnership, New Event Starts December 2026

The Greater Orlando Sports Commission and Seminole County announced an extension of their partnership that will keep two Elite Clubs National League Regional League events in Seminole County and add a new ECNL event beginning December 2026, GO Sports said in materials released Feb. 13, 2026. GO Sports’ announcement names Seminole Soccer Club and Seminole County Leisure Services as local partners and says the new addition will expand Central Florida’s calendar of elite youth soccer competition.

Officials gave differing timelines for the extension. Jason Siegel, President & CEO of the Greater Orlando Sports Commission, said the ECNL will return “for at least five more years” in a quote carried by MySanfordHerald and GO Sports social posts. Seminole County Commissioner Andria Herr is quoted on the GO Sports site saying, “Seminole County is thrilled to extend our partnership with ECNL through 2031,” while a GO Sports LinkedIn post frames the new national event as running “from 2026–2030.” The releases do not provide a single definitive contract end date; GO Sports and Seminole County communications supplied the varying language.

The county’s ECNL relationship stretches back more than a decade. GO Sports and Seminole County materials state the partners have hosted ECNL Girls events since 2010 and ECNL Boys events since 2017, and ECNL President Christian Lavers told MySanfordHerald that “Seminole County has been a home for ECNL and ECNL RL events for more than 15 years.” The 2019 Orlando-area press release documenting an earlier multi-year agreement confirmed longstanding hosting in Sanford and the Greater Orlando region.

Historic economic and participation figures cited by the 2019 press release underscore why the county courts these events. The July 31, 2019 release said the Boys & Girls ECNL Florida National Events showcased more than 350 youth teams, 7,000 participants and “hundreds of college coaches,” and that those two events generated over 5,000 room nights and more than $4 million in economic impact for local businesses, language attributed in 2019 to Seminole County Chair Brenda Carey.

GO Sports and ECNL leaders framed the extension as a vote of confidence in county facilities. Siegel said the league’s “continued investment in our community speaks to the quality of our facilities,” and Christian Lavers noted, “The investment in facilities and infrastructure, and the great relationships we have with so many organizations in the area will make these events a great choice for teams in the ECNL and ECNL Regional League moving forward.” Those statements place Seminole County Leisure Services and local hoteliers among the stakeholders expected to support tournaments beginning with the December 2026 addition.

The announcements also carry public-service implications for Seminole County. Officials forecast the new event will “bring thousands of visitors from across the country” in Andria Herr’s words, a surge similar to the 5,000-plus room nights and $4 million impact documented in 2019; county services including Leisure Services, local lodging and medical and emergency providers will need coordination as event schedules firm up. The next confirmed milestone in the releases is the new event’s launch in December 2026; GO Sports and ECNL have been asked to confirm the official event name, exact dates, and the final contract term for the extension.