Academy team heads to Dallas for Generation Adidas Cup finals

The Philadelphia Union Academy will open play in the final group stage of the Generation Adidas Cup on Sunday afternoon with a match against a youth team from Brazilian club Palmeiras at 4:30 p.m.

The team will turn around a day later to play German club Eintracht Frankfurt at 3 p.m. and close Group C play Wednesday afternoon against San Jose Earthquakes at 3 p.m. The winner of the group will automatically advance to the knockout round on April 2 and the top overall second place finisher will also advance.

Group A includes Toronto FC, Sporting Kansas City, Argentine club River Plate and Aspire Academy from Qatar. Group B has hosts FC Dallas, Real Salt Lake, Athletic Club Bilbao from Spain and Pumas UNAM from Mexico.

The final will be played on April 4.

Win or lose the team will play five games at the tournament being hosted by FC Dallas in Frisco.

MLS will be live streaming two matches a day from the group stages of the tournament, which includes another grouping of clubs in a Premier division. The Union, which don't have any live stream games scheduled, are competing in the Champions division.

A Union youth team with Zach Pfeffer, Zack Steffen and Connor Maloney won the Generation Adidas Cup in 2012.

The Union nearly missed out on advancing to the Champions Division in the second leg of qualifying in Orlando in February when Raheem Taylor-Parkes scored a last second goal that beat the New York Red Bulls and put the Union through to the Champions Division with a second place finish in the East regional behind Toronto FC.

A Union Academy team featuring Zack Steffen, Connor Maloney and Zach Pfeffer won the annual Generation Adidas Cup U-17 competition in 2012 when it was only domestic teams competing. Last year, Stoke City won the cup in the first year international teams were invited to participate.