Looking for Ways to Help My 8-Year-Old Train for Travel Soccer Tryouts – Recommendations Near Falls Church, VA?

[Anonymous]

Hi everyone,

My DS is 8 years old and recently tried out for a U9 travel soccer team. We were honestly surprised by both the number of kids and the high level of skill at the tryout. While we realized he may not make the team this year, he's still really enthusiastic about soccer and wants to keep improving for next year's tryouts.

We’re looking for ways to help him develop his skills over the next year — ideally something fun but effective that keeps him motivated and growing. Are there any training programs, soccer academies or clinics you’d recommend in or near the Falls Church, VA area?

Any suggestions — or stories from parents who’ve been through something similar — would be really appreciated!

Thanks so much!

[Anonymous]

HP elite near Dulles airport has good programs. Also, any club offers special training. Just get your kid active and see if they enjoy it. Summer camps and the like. Kids start playing soccer at 1-2 years old now.

[Anonymous]

Honestly, go back to all the tryouts. They do take new kids and place them on lower teams. He will improve the most this way vs almost any other way.

If not, make sure he does rec soccer spring and fall. You can also Look at Capstone training. It more for advanced players, but it might be an option for you guys down the road.

[Anonymous]

If he's good enough to make a lower team and you're willing to pay, take the spot. He will get more time playing with better competition, which will make him a better player. If he doesn't get a spot, sign up for rec then look in to camps and clinics throughout the year. Golden Boot is decent. He doesn't need 1 on 1 training, he just needs more reps and more time. Work on juggling as much as possible at home. Try out again next year, rinse and repeat.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hi everyone,

My DS is 8 years old and recently tried out for a U9 travel soccer team. We were honestly surprised by both the number of kids and the high level of skill at the tryout. While we realized he may not make the team this year, he's still really enthusiastic about soccer and wants to keep improving for next year's tryouts.

We’re looking for ways to help him develop his skills over the next year — ideally something fun but effective that keeps him motivated and growing. Are there any training programs, soccer academies or clinics you’d recommend in or near the Falls Church, VA area?

Any suggestions — or stories from parents who’ve been through something similar — would be really appreciated!

Thanks so much!

. My son would go to you tube and learn skills from videos. Let him watch soccer whenever he can. Lastly have him do soccer camps in the summer near your house. For an 8 year old he can do any of them. Coervor is one that I would recommend.

[Anonymous]

Try out for a dufferent team.
Or do rec

[Anonymous]

Some coaches from PAC also run fieldlabathletics.com and their training is great (my DD hasn’t been in a few years, so assuming they are still around)

[Anonymous]

Second PAC- the coaches are some of the best in the area.

[Anonymous]

PAC is looking to fill their U9 roster. Really good coaching.

[Anonymous]

Tryout for other clubs. You can also try ADP or MDP & continue to play Rec. More touches on the ball will help with development.

[Anonymous]

You might want to take a look at the Growth programs for the larger clubs. They are a good bridge to possibly get your child to travel from rec.
https://www.arlingtonsoccer.com/programs/adp
https://alexandria-soccer.org/programs/agp/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PAC is looking to fill their U9 roster. Really good coaching.

+1

[Anonymous]

So nice to randomly open a positive thread. All great advice and recommendations. Lots of good summer camps, Capstone has camps, Coerver is great for skills. PAC is known for good training, nice perspective at younger ages.
I’d do Golden Boot over HP at this point. HP is great, it’s meant to be intense though and right now it doesn’t sound like you are there.
Golden Boot is perfect, good training, less intense.
I have a 17 year old boy and my advice is do what’s fun at 8. I’ve seen a lot of stories play out a lot of ways. You don’t realize how young 8 is when you are living it.

[Anonymous]

If you have a little outdoor space at home, one of the best things you can get for him is a rebounder. He can practice kicking the ball against the rebounded which will improve his touch and focus. We got one during COVID when soccer shut down for the spring season and it was a good investment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So nice to randomly open a positive thread. All great advice and recommendations. Lots of good summer camps, Capstone has camps, Coerver is great for skills. PAC is known for good training, nice perspective at younger ages.
I’d do Golden Boot over HP at this point. HP is great, it’s meant to be intense though and right now it doesn’t sound like you are there.
Golden Boot is perfect, good training, less intense.
I have a 17 year old boy and my advice is do what’s fun at 8. I’ve seen a lot of stories play out a lot of ways. You don’t realize how young 8 is when you are living it.

+1 for summer soccer camps. The number of reps they get in a week can really improve skills (my own kids found the training at Golden Boot better than Coerver, fwiw).