High Desert Elite FC Joins the NPSL

The National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) is proud to announce that High Desert Elite FC
(Adelanto, CA) has joined the league as an expansion team. The club will begin competition in
the West Region’s Southwest Conference in 2019.

“We continue to see incredible growth in California, one of the hotbeds of the American game,”
NPSL Managing Director Cindy Spera said. “We are excited to see the Southwest Conference
expand with the addition of such a quality organization. We have high expectations for High
Desert Elite and are looking to their contributions on and off the field.”

The leadership of High Desert Elite includes Majority Partner Brad Eckenweiler, Director of
Marketing and Matchday Operations Darrell Courtney, Director of Soccer Operations Fidel
Gonzales, and Director of Facilities and Stadium Operations Aaron Korn.

Eckenweiler, the owner of a major corporation, sought to bring much-needed recreational
opportunities to the High Desert after expanding his business interests into Adelanto.

Gonzales pairs a lifetime of soccer experience with an impressive resume in the media industry.
He spent time with the San Gabriel Valley Tribune and the Santa Clarita Valley Signal before
joining Off-Road.com.

“Though we’re a new club, the business acumen and relationships of the leadership, the
nationally-accomplished technical staff, and the player talent pool we’re assembling from within
our region is slated to deliver a strong showing,” Gonzales said. “Adding an energized fan base
to a robust group of business supporters, we’re aiming to challenge some stiff competition and
shoot toward a top-half finish in the NPSL Southwest Conference.”

Courtney has produced events in the High Desert for over 10 years. He is best known for his
work resurrecting the Adelanto Grand Prix. Partnering with the City of Adelanto, Courtney’s
events also include the city’s rodeo, mud runs, and holiday festivals.

“We’re grateful to be welcomed into the family of NPSL business partners,” Courtney said.
“With the NPSL, great value is placed on professionalism and individual program success.
Indeed, NPSL partners are fierce competitors for 90 minutes on the pitch, but they are strategic
business partners always. This was evident from our first conversations with league
representatives. The library of knowledge and mentoring available through each partner is like
gold to the growth of our program. Nowhere in the world of soccer, at least here in the United
States, have we found such a tight-knit community that is equally vested in your success.”
Korn partnered with Courtney to resurrect the historic Adelanto Grand Prix. His involvement
with Adelanto Stadium and the now-defunct High Desert Mavericks prompted the City of
Adelanto to engage him directly to manage and market the city-owned stadium.

Home matches for High Desert Elite will be played at Adelanto Stadium, which has been home
to the High Desert Mavericks and the High Desert Yardbirds. The stadium boasts 3,808
permanent stadium seats. The facility features two separate concessions, a VIP cocktail deck, a
conference center, two locker rooms and shower rooms for the full roster of home and away
teams, a locker room for game officials, coaching staff offices, a room and amenities for physical
trainers, and administrative offices. The stadium has become a favored venue for major events in
Southern California’s Victor Valley, hosting car shows, festivals, concerts, rodeos, and off-road
races.

More information about the club can be found at http://www.HighDesertELITE.com or by
following the club on Facebook (@HighDesertELITE), Instagram (@HighDesertELITE), and
Twitter (@HighDesertELITE).

“The league is thrilled to be expanding its Southwest Conference’s footprint into the High Desert
Region of California,” NPSL Director of Membership Development Dina Case concluded. “High
Desert Elite will put the NPSL on the map in a community that has never been home to this level
of soccer and we expect this will translate into an extreme amount of excitement and support
from the community. High Desert Elite will play their home games at Adelanto Stadium which
we also expect to provide a very unique experience to both the fans and opposing teams.”

More information about expansion opportunities in the NPSL can be found at
http://www.npsl.com/expansion-application.