ECNL moving to school year not calendar

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For people who said SY was stupid because girls don’t care about playing with school friends. My daughter is in middle school and half of her MS team showed up to tryout for her club team because they all wanted to play on the same team together. Most will not make it due to the varying level of play. But they made their parents drive 20/30 min away so they could try to do it.

Also I’ve seen a lot of players show up to tryout because they know a kid from school on the other club teams. Girls want friends on their team and not saying they have to be from The same school To be friends but it is a special moment when you get the best of both worlds. School year age changes are going to be great for soccer and youth players.

This argument makes sense for rec and those learning, not really so much for elite travel leagues, where it's often kids from around larger areas and many different schools even if they are in the same grade. The better elite argument has to do with college recruiting.

There really is no elite league and teams. It is all rec. Clubs/leagues try to give the illusion of elite for marketing purposes. This becomes more and more obvious when your kids get older...after you spent the money and realize that soccer was "only" for funzies.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For people who said SY was stupid because girls don’t care about playing with school friends. My daughter is in middle school and half of her MS team showed up to tryout for her club team because they all wanted to play on the same team together. Most will not make it due to the varying level of play. But they made their parents drive 20/30 min away so they could try to do it.

Also I’ve seen a lot of players show up to tryout because they know a kid from school on the other club teams. Girls want friends on their team and not saying they have to be from The same school To be friends but it is a special moment when you get the best of both worlds. School year age changes are going to be great for soccer and youth players.

This argument makes sense for rec and those learning, not really so much for elite travel leagues, where it's often kids from around larger areas and many different schools even if they are in the same grade. The better elite argument has to do with college recruiting.

There really is no elite league and teams. It is all rec. Clubs/leagues try to give the illusion of elite for marketing purposes. This becomes more and more obvious when your kids get older...after you spent the money and realize that soccer was "only" for funzies.

How dare kids have "fun"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For people who said SY was stupid because girls don’t care about playing with school friends. My daughter is in middle school and half of her MS team showed up to tryout for her club team because they all wanted to play on the same team together. Most will not make it due to the varying level of play. But they made their parents drive 20/30 min away so they could try to do it.

Also I’ve seen a lot of players show up to tryout because they know a kid from school on the other club teams. Girls want friends on their team and not saying they have to be from The same school To be friends but it is a special moment when you get the best of both worlds. School year age changes are going to be great for soccer and youth players.

This argument makes sense for rec and those learning, not really so much for elite travel leagues, where it's often kids from around larger areas and many different schools even if they are in the same grade. The better elite argument has to do with college recruiting.

There really is no elite league and teams. It is all rec. Clubs/leagues try to give the illusion of elite for marketing purposes. This becomes more and more obvious when your kids get older...after you spent the money and realize that soccer was "only" for funzies.

It's all relative. It may be true that few if any teams in the DMV are truly elite, but, regardless of how good or bad they are, the ECNL girls teams and MLSN boys teams are dramatically better than all the rest. Playing for those teams may not lead many to the pros, but they do lead most to college soccer. Regardless of where they do and don't lead, they are a fundamentally different experience, and the kids who want that type of experience could not care less if their teammates go to the same school.

[Anonymous]

The issue is that the youth soccer orgs are applying the rigid 12-month “SY” dates across age groups and levels of competition. Perhaps many “elite” players don’t care about playing with school peers/friends (though I think many of them would enjoy that aspect, too - they are still kids!). But it sure matters for most kids and their interest and longevity in the sport.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For people who said SY was stupid because girls don’t care about playing with school friends. My daughter is in middle school and half of her MS team showed up to tryout for her club team because they all wanted to play on the same team together. Most will not make it due to the varying level of play. But they made their parents drive 20/30 min away so they could try to do it.

Also I’ve seen a lot of players show up to tryout because they know a kid from school on the other club teams. Girls want friends on their team and not saying they have to be from The same school To be friends but it is a special moment when you get the best of both worlds. School year age changes are going to be great for soccer and youth players.

This argument makes sense for rec and those learning, not really so much for elite travel leagues, where it's often kids from around larger areas and many different schools even if they are in the same grade. The better elite argument has to do with college recruiting.

There really is no elite league and teams. It is all rec. Clubs/leagues try to give the illusion of elite for marketing purposes. This becomes more and more obvious when your kids get older...after you spent the money and realize that soccer was "only" for funzies.

It's all relative. It may be true that few if any teams in the DMV are truly elite, but, regardless of how good or bad they are, the ECNL girls teams and MLSN boys teams are dramatically better than all the rest. Playing for those teams may not lead many to the pros, but they do lead most to college soccer. Regardless of where they do and don't lead, they are a fundamentally different experience, and the kids who want that type of experience could not care less if their teammates go to the same school.

Kids, or their parents, in those leagues have clearly indicated that they place higher priority on "leading to college soccer" than "playing with friends from school." But why does everyone assume that because they put that at a higher priority they "couldn't care less" about what they're giving up? Seems like at least some of these kids would love to have both if the system was better set up to allow it. We set up a system that forces them to make a choice, and then tell ourselves the system is great because the kids don't care at all about the thing they didn't choose.

It's like letting a kid pick a parent in a divorce, and then saying, "See, he/she doesn't care about the other parent at all!"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For people who said SY was stupid because girls don’t care about playing with school friends. My daughter is in middle school and half of her MS team showed up to tryout for her club team because they all wanted to play on the same team together. Most will not make it due to the varying level of play. But they made their parents drive 20/30 min away so they could try to do it.

Also I’ve seen a lot of players show up to tryout because they know a kid from school on the other club teams. Girls want friends on their team and not saying they have to be from The same school To be friends but it is a special moment when you get the best of both worlds. School year age changes are going to be great for soccer and youth players.

This argument makes sense for rec and those learning, not really so much for elite travel leagues, where it's often kids from around larger areas and many different schools even if they are in the same grade. The better elite argument has to do with college recruiting.

There really is no elite league and teams. It is all rec. Clubs/leagues try to give the illusion of elite for marketing purposes. This becomes more and more obvious when your kids get older...after you spent the money and realize that soccer was "only" for funzies.

It's all relative. It may be true that few if any teams in the DMV are truly elite, but, regardless of how good or bad they are, the ECNL girls teams and MLSN boys teams are dramatically better than all the rest. Playing for those teams may not lead many to the pros, but they do lead most to college soccer. Regardless of where they do and don't lead, they are a fundamentally different experience, and the kids who want that type of experience could not care less if their teammates go to the same school.

Kids, or their parents, in those leagues have clearly indicated that they place higher priority on "leading to college soccer" than "playing with friends from school." But why does everyone assume that because they put that at a higher priority they "couldn't care less" about what they're giving up? Seems like at least some of these kids would love to have both if the system was better set up to allow it. We set up a system that forces them to make a choice, and then tell ourselves the system is great because the kids don't care at all about the thing they didn't choose.

It's like letting a kid pick a parent in a divorce, and then saying, "See, he/she doesn't care about the other parent at all!"

That must have been tough for you.

My middle school daughter prefers her soccer teammates over her school friends. Says she likes having two separate friend groups, as they’re very different. Expanding her network seems smart to me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For people who said SY was stupid because girls don’t care about playing with school friends. My daughter is in middle school and half of her MS team showed up to tryout for her club team because they all wanted to play on the same team together. Most will not make it due to the varying level of play. But they made their parents drive 20/30 min away so they could try to do it.

Also I’ve seen a lot of players show up to tryout because they know a kid from school on the other club teams. Girls want friends on their team and not saying they have to be from The same school To be friends but it is a special moment when you get the best of both worlds. School year age changes are going to be great for soccer and youth players.

This argument makes sense for rec and those learning, not really so much for elite travel leagues, where it's often kids from around larger areas and many different schools even if they are in the same grade. The better elite argument has to do with college recruiting.

There really is no elite league and teams. It is all rec. Clubs/leagues try to give the illusion of elite for marketing purposes. This becomes more and more obvious when your kids get older...after you spent the money and realize that soccer was "only" for funzies.

It's all relative. It may be true that few if any teams in the DMV are truly elite, but, regardless of how good or bad they are, the ECNL girls teams and MLSN boys teams are dramatically better than all the rest. Playing for those teams may not lead many to the pros, but they do lead most to college soccer. Regardless of where they do and don't lead, they are a fundamentally different experience, and the kids who want that type of experience could not care less if their teammates go to the same school.

Kids, or their parents, in those leagues have clearly indicated that they place higher priority on "leading to college soccer" than "playing with friends from school." But why does everyone assume that because they put that at a higher priority they "couldn't care less" about what they're giving up? Seems like at least some of these kids would love to have both if the system was better set up to allow it. We set up a system that forces them to make a choice, and then tell ourselves the system is great because the kids don't care at all about the thing they didn't choose.

It's like letting a kid pick a parent in a divorce, and then saying, "See, he/she doesn't care about the other parent at all!"

That must have been tough for you.

My middle school daughter prefers her soccer teammates over her school friends. Says she likes having two separate friend groups, as they’re very different. Expanding her network seems smart to me.

I think expanding friend groups is a great thing and meeting kids from other schools and areas is great. The benefit of SY isn’t that kids have to play with friends in the same grade it’s that the barrier preventing it is gone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For people who said SY was stupid because girls don’t care about playing with school friends. My daughter is in middle school and half of her MS team showed up to tryout for her club team because they all wanted to play on the same team together. Most will not make it due to the varying level of play. But they made their parents drive 20/30 min away so they could try to do it.

Also I’ve seen a lot of players show up to tryout because they know a kid from school on the other club teams. Girls want friends on their team and not saying they have to be from The same school To be friends but it is a special moment when you get the best of both worlds. School year age changes are going to be great for soccer and youth players.

This argument makes sense for rec and those learning, not really so much for elite travel leagues, where it's often kids from around larger areas and many different schools even if they are in the same grade. The better elite argument has to do with college recruiting.

There really is no elite league and teams. It is all rec. Clubs/leagues try to give the illusion of elite for marketing purposes. This becomes more and more obvious when your kids get older...after you spent the money and realize that soccer was "only" for funzies.

It's all relative. It may be true that few if any teams in the DMV are truly elite, but, regardless of how good or bad they are, the ECNL girls teams and MLSN boys teams are dramatically better than all the rest. Playing for those teams may not lead many to the pros, but they do lead most to college soccer. Regardless of where they do and don't lead, they are a fundamentally different experience, and the kids who want that type of experience could not care less if their teammates go to the same school.

Kids, or their parents, in those leagues have clearly indicated that they place higher priority on "leading to college soccer" than "playing with friends from school." But why does everyone assume that because they put that at a higher priority they "couldn't care less" about what they're giving up? Seems like at least some of these kids would love to have both if the system was better set up to allow it. We set up a system that forces them to make a choice, and then tell ourselves the system is great because the kids don't care at all about the thing they didn't choose.

It's like letting a kid pick a parent in a divorce, and then saying, "See, he/she doesn't care about the other parent at all!"

That must have been tough for you.

My middle school daughter prefers her soccer teammates over her school friends. Says she likes having two separate friend groups, as they’re very different. Expanding her network seems smart to me.

This sort of smug response always reminds me of the viral news clip where a dog owner tries to prove her dog is vegetarian, and then the dog runs for the meat. It's funny, but you also kind of feel bad for the dog.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For people who said SY was stupid because girls don’t care about playing with school friends. My daughter is in middle school and half of her MS team showed up to tryout for her club team because they all wanted to play on the same team together. Most will not make it due to the varying level of play. But they made their parents drive 20/30 min away so they could try to do it.

Also I’ve seen a lot of players show up to tryout because they know a kid from school on the other club teams. Girls want friends on their team and not saying they have to be from The same school To be friends but it is a special moment when you get the best of both worlds. School year age changes are going to be great for soccer and youth players.

This argument makes sense for rec and those learning, not really so much for elite travel leagues, where it's often kids from around larger areas and many different schools even if they are in the same grade. The better elite argument has to do with college recruiting.

There really is no elite league and teams. It is all rec. Clubs/leagues try to give the illusion of elite for marketing purposes. This becomes more and more obvious when your kids get older...after you spent the money and realize that soccer was "only" for funzies.

It's all relative. It may be true that few if any teams in the DMV are truly elite, but, regardless of how good or bad they are, the ECNL girls teams and MLSN boys teams are dramatically better than all the rest. Playing for those teams may not lead many to the pros, but they do lead most to college soccer. Regardless of where they do and don't lead, they are a fundamentally different experience, and the kids who want that type of experience could not care less if their teammates go to the same school.

Many ECNL and MLSN teams certainly have some elite players but the whole youth ecosystem is a rec based teams industry.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For people who said SY was stupid because girls don’t care about playing with school friends. My daughter is in middle school and half of her MS team showed up to tryout for her club team because they all wanted to play on the same team together. Most will not make it due to the varying level of play. But they made their parents drive 20/30 min away so they could try to do it.

Also I’ve seen a lot of players show up to tryout because they know a kid from school on the other club teams. Girls want friends on their team and not saying they have to be from The same school To be friends but it is a special moment when you get the best of both worlds. School year age changes are going to be great for soccer and youth players.

This argument makes sense for rec and those learning, not really so much for elite travel leagues, where it's often kids from around larger areas and many different schools even if they are in the same grade. The better elite argument has to do with college recruiting.

There really is no elite league and teams. It is all rec. Clubs/leagues try to give the illusion of elite for marketing purposes. This becomes more and more obvious when your kids get older...after you spent the money and realize that soccer was "only" for funzies.

It's all relative. It may be true that few if any teams in the DMV are truly elite, but, regardless of how good or bad they are, the ECNL girls teams and MLSN boys teams are dramatically better than all the rest. Playing for those teams may not lead many to the pros, but they do lead most to college soccer. Regardless of where they do and don't lead, they are a fundamentally different experience, and the kids who want that type of experience could not care less if their teammates go to the same school.

Kids, or their parents, in those leagues have clearly indicated that they place higher priority on "leading to college soccer" than "playing with friends from school." But why does everyone assume that because they put that at a higher priority they "couldn't care less" about what they're giving up? Seems like at least some of these kids would love to have both if the system was better set up to allow it. We set up a system that forces them to make a choice, and then tell ourselves the system is great because the kids don't care at all about the thing they didn't choose.

It's like letting a kid pick a parent in a divorce, and then saying, "See, he/she doesn't care about the other parent at all!"

That must have been tough for you.

My middle school daughter prefers her soccer teammates over her school friends. Says she likes having two separate friend groups, as they’re very different. Expanding her network seems smart to me.

This sort of smug response always reminds me of the viral news clip where a dog owner tries to prove her dog is vegetarian, and then the dog runs for the meat. It's funny, but you also kind of feel bad for the dog.

🤣 💯 such an annoying response

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For people who said SY was stupid because girls don’t care about playing with school friends. My daughter is in middle school and half of her MS team showed up to tryout for her club team because they all wanted to play on the same team together. Most will not make it due to the varying level of play. But they made their parents drive 20/30 min away so they could try to do it.

Also I’ve seen a lot of players show up to tryout because they know a kid from school on the other club teams. Girls want friends on their team and not saying they have to be from The same school To be friends but it is a special moment when you get the best of both worlds. School year age changes are going to be great for soccer and youth players.

This argument makes sense for rec and those learning, not really so much for elite travel leagues, where it's often kids from around larger areas and many different schools even if they are in the same grade. The better elite argument has to do with college recruiting.

There really is no elite league and teams. It is all rec. Clubs/leagues try to give the illusion of elite for marketing purposes. This becomes more and more obvious when your kids get older...after you spent the money and realize that soccer was "only" for funzies.

It's all relative. It may be true that few if any teams in the DMV are truly elite, but, regardless of how good or bad they are, the ECNL girls teams and MLSN boys teams are dramatically better than all the rest. Playing for those teams may not lead many to the pros, but they do lead most to college soccer. Regardless of where they do and don't lead, they are a fundamentally different experience, and the kids who want that type of experience could not care less if their teammates go to the same school.

Many ECNL and MLSN teams certainly have some elite players but the whole youth ecosystem is a rec based teams industry.

The coaching is rec level.

[Anonymous]

I don't really have anything to add. I just want to get us closer to 900, which in turn means were are that much closer to 1000.

[Anonymous]

Why wouldn’t GA go school year if everyone else (except MLSN) does?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't really have anything to add. I just want to get us closer to 900, which in turn means were are that much closer to 1000.

Calm before the storm -- tryouts for next year for nearly all teams everywhere will be done soon. Thereafter we'll learn about what -- if any -- transition plans we'll see.

[Anonymous]

Focus on the “if any”