[RobtheAggie]

I have been doing a little thinking about the recent failure of the US U-20s to move out of the first round in Egypt. Much of the criticism has fallen on the MLS dropping its reserve league. That got me thinking about the youth teams in Switzerland and where they fell.

Here is what I discovered:
ASL clubs highest youth team
YB - 1st League
Xamax - 2nd Interregional League
Basel 1893 - 1st League
Luzern - 1st League
Zürich - 1st League
Sion - 1st League
GC - 1st League
St. Gallen - 1st League
Bellinzona - ??? Lower than 2nd regional League
Aarau - ??? Lower than 2nd interregional League

I guess what this tells us that the teams that are more consistantly near the top are going to be producing youth who have played at a higher level. Granted a part of FC Basel's team is from the old Concordia Basel team, but that team allowed FC Basel youth players to play at the DCL level while other youth were playing against 1st League level due to the restrictions on youth teams in the DCL.

If we look even closer we see the following:
Sion - 5th in 1st Group
YB - 11th in 1st Group
FC Basel - 1st in 2nd Group
FCZ - 2nd in 2nd Group
GCZ - 5th in 2nd Group
FCSG - 12th in 3rd Group
FC Luzern - 13th in 3rd Group

DCL Youth teams in the 1st League:
FC Winterthur - 10th in 1st Group
FC Lugano - 16th in 3rd Group