STATESBORO, Ga. – Tormenta FC Academy is excited to announce Jay Peake as the club’s new MLS NEXT Director. In this new role, he will command the program organization, which includes the MLS NEXT curriculum, league schedule, training schedule, collegiate and professional playing opportunities, and numerous other daily tasks that will lead our program to on- and off-field success.
Within the role, Jay will coach the Academy U13 and U14 MLS NEXT teams providing them with the knowledge to compete in the most challenging league in the United States.
“We are so excited to have Jay Peake lead the MLS NEXT program for Tormenta FC Academy,” Brad Nein, TFC Academy Vice President, said. “As a club, Tormenta FC Academy is extremely lucky to have such a talented professional in this role as Jay Peake.”
Peake studied for four years at the University of Worcester in England, graduating with a B.Sc. in Sports Coaching Science & Physical Education. Upon graduating, he worked with Coventry City Football Club in their community programs as well as coaching the U15 Midland Junior Premier League Team.
Peake came to the United States in 2015 before moving to the southeast in 2016 with GPS Coastal. In 2020, he joined Tormenta FC as the Boys U12-U15 Boys NPL Director. Since then, Peake has helped the Academy earn numerous accolades, including: 2021 Piedmont Champions with the 2008 Boys team, 2021 NPL Champions with the 2008 Boys team, 2021 NPL National Runners-Up with the 2008 Boys team and 2022 MLS NEXT Cup Qualification with the 2006 Boys team.
“I am extremely proud and honored to work with Tormenta FC as the MLS Next Director,” Peake said. “When moving to the area in 2016, I saw so much potential and talent in the area, but I didn’t believe we would be at this point so quickly in terms of competing with the very best clubs in the country both at MLS NEXT and USL Academy. I look forward to continuing to push our players to strive for excellence both on and off the field. We don’t just want to create good soccer players at Tormenta FC, we also want to help develop good people. By challenging our players every day and putting them in the most competitive league in the country, we really do believe that we can follow through with our motto: Pros Start Here, Pros Are Here.”
TFC is set to begin its third season in MLS NEXT, kicking off play against Southern Soccer Academy on Sept. 16 in Marietta, Georgia. To view Tormenta FC’s entire MLS NEXT schedule, click here.
ABOUT TORMENTA FC ACADEMY
Committed to raising the level of soccer locally and across the country, Tormenta FC Academy has programs available from age four all the way up to age 19 and provides a pathway to the professional ranks. Over the years, TFC Academy has helped many talented players on their paths to higher levels of the game, whether it be Indiana Vassilev in Major League Soccer or Paolo Alcocer in the Bolivian Primera División with Club Aurora. In 2019, midfielder Tristan DeLoach became the first TFC Academy talent to sign a USL Academy contract with the professional USL League One team, followed by his peers midfielder Grant Hampton and goalkeeper Stephen O’Hearn in 2020, defender Brittain Gottlieb and forward Tyler Bisseck in 2021 and Aidan Miller, Renzo Andreucetti and Esteban Quintero in 2023.
