SAN DIEGO — The new Major League Soccer squad coming to San Diego in 2025 is set to become the first professional sports organization to have a dedicated professional training facility on a tribal reservation, team officials said.
Right To Dream Academy will be a residential youth development establishment that will be located in El Cajon on Sycuan tribal land, San Diego MLS said in a news release Sunday. The 28-acre site will be surrounding a portion of the Pine Glen Golf Course and the Singing Hills Hotel.
“We couldn’t ask for a more perfect location for our training facility and Right to Dream Academy,” said Tom Penn, CEO, San Diego MLS. “This land is absolutely beautiful – rich with tradition and heritage – which will give us the foundation to achieve our vision to become the epicenter of football excellence and innovation in North America. We are grateful for the unwavering support of our Club ownership Mr. Mohamed Mansour and Sycuan.”
Students between the ages of 11- 18, from grades 6 through 12, will be provided education on campus, according to the team, while ten existing hotel buildings will be repurposed for student housing.
Mohamed Mansour, chairman of Man Capital and Right to Dream, and the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation are owners of the San Diego expansion team.
“From the moment we first became involved in the San Diego MLS project, we have made a commitment to the people of San Diego: that we would bring the world-leading Right to Dream academy model to this great city and county. Today we make good on that commitment,” Mansour said. “This model has already transformed lives and yielded great results in Africa and Europe, and for San Diego, with such a deep pool of soccer talent, we are excited to see the impact it will bring..”
The team will play at Snapdragon Stadium in Mission Valley, which is also the home field for the San Diego Wave FC and San Diego State University football.
A groundbreaking ceremony for the new training facility is scheduled for November, the team said.
On Oct. 20, the new San Diego MLS team will unveil its name, colors and crest.
