PPA MLS Next Academy Division
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Anonymous
| Any thoughts on previous experience with PPA and their readiness for MLS Next? Will they be able to field strong enough teams? |
Anonymous
No. |
Anonymous
In some age groups they are competitive already and those should only get stronger l. Others will depend on whether they will manage to attract sufficiently strong players from elsewhere. |
Anonymous
MLS Next Academy Division has only been around a couple of years. When first announced, it seemed like it might be a real pathway to the actual MLS Next teams. Now it is abundantly clear that it is just a way to get people to pay more for a shirt with a badge on the shoulder. PPA will probably do fine, but that says more about the low level of the overall competition. |
Anonymous
| Lots of players attended the ID session Saturday at Blair. PPA is certainly getting more looks than they normally would. |
Anonymous
If this is true, it is the one-millionth example of why soccer parents can't have nice things. People should not be drawn to "MLS Next Academy Division" teams. MLS is expanding that division rapidly. The parents will pay more for teams with that badge. But what do they get for it? It's not a pathway to anything. No one is being recruited to anything from that division. There isn't any increased coaching standard. There isn't any promise of a better player experience. It's literally just paying more money for a name, but with no real benefits for kids or their families. People should demand better. |
Anonymous
I would be curious to know what level your kid plays at. Right now, the best players in DC spent a lot more than the $500 a year MLS premium traveling to Bethesda, Potomac, SYC, Alexandria, etc. If you don’t know the quality of the coaching at PPA then this is a shallow respond from the exact type of parent that forced PPA to get the badge in the first place. You are not educated enough to know anything else to look for. That’s why they need any badge just to start to deal with fickle parents. I don’t know enough about PPA but I support all positive moves that allow DC kids to play in DC. |
Anonymous
The PPA coaches have entered the chat! 😂 1. Please understand that "MLS next academy division" is not for the "best players in DC." 2. How does a "$500 a year MLS premium" for the same (or even worse) experience the club already offered help bring soccer to DC? 3. My whole literal point is to criticize anyone who is drawn to a club because of a stupid badge. Families and players should go the club that meets their needs. Right now there are only a handful of clubs in the dc area that can really meet the needs of those players. The expansion of second tier mls next will not change that. This isn't about PPA or intended to be a criticism of the club at all - you guys are just putting yourself in the spotlight here because of all the promotion you are doing on this board. It's about a youth soccer culture that routinely overcharges people under a gloss of fake marketing promises and convinces parents to overpay for empty bragging rights instead of focusing on what is right for their kid. It's funny because you actually agree with me 90% of the way. It's obviously been frustrating to you as a PPA coach for your players to leave to chase an empty badge and often have a worse experience than they would have had if they stayed with PPA. I'm sure you tried to explain to them that the grass isn't always greener, but they wouldn't listen, so now you and all these 47 new clubs are getting the badge. So you find yourself in the weird position of simultaneously criticizing what you call "fickle families" who just chase a badge, while also hoping those families will chase your badge and pay you a "$500 mls next premium." |
Anonymous
Nope. I am a parent of a kid playing MLS Next HG outside of the city. I will respond though to clarify: 1. I fully understand HG vs AD. I am thinking more long-term and pre-U13. There were a few DC players in each age group who started outside of the city but the majority of them currently in HG started with DC Soccer, DC XI, WCU and PPA before moving to HG clubs at U13. I don't honestly know the coaching there at PPA or DC Soccer as they have the MLS Next AD badge now as well. However, if they develop classes starting at U8-U10 and keep the kids together, they will be in a position in 3-4 years to entertain moving into HG if they are able to keep the talent home. 2. I don't know what you mean. I only know that the MLS charges each club $500 for each registered player in AD. That should be the only premium for the badge. The rest of the fees vary club to club. Club fees are always negotiable if the kid is good enough. 3. I agree. However, you can't change the tide. Most people don't understand how many kids in DC developed faster on smaller EDP/NCSL clubs than kids at HG clubs during the pre-U13 stage. Most parents have no clue about development and the MLS badge draws people in. It will be up to PPA and DC Soccer to put the coaches in place to develop HG-level talent with the current AD badge. If they do, they will get promoted to HG like Coppermine. Both DC Soccer and PPA have the MLS Next AD badge now. We will see what do with it. I encourage people to kick the tires on every organization in DC. DC XI, City Sporting and WCU have quality coaches as well at the younger ages if you are focused on development and not just winning. This change will not impact my kid but I am hoping for more options for DC kids in the future. |