Start club soccer as early as possible?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Should we start club soccer at U6? Is the only downside that club requires some level of specialization at a very young age versus continuing to play various rec program sports and individual sports? My spouse and I played other sports at a time when it was still possible to be a 3-sport high school athlete. We know that being good at this young age may not correlate to later success, but DC did stand out in the rec league this year, and DC likes soccer more than everything else we've tried.

He’s six. This is psychotic

No he is five.

Otherwise I agree.

[Anonymous]

This is nuts. The early elementary years are for trying different things. I would not commit time and money for this age.

[Anonymous]

Only join travel if/when your kid wants to. Meaning they like or enjoy the sport enough to practice on their own. Otherwise, it'll be just parents pressing a kid to do what they don't want and that will lead to burn out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Should we start club soccer at U6? Is the only downside that club requires some level of specialization at a very young age versus continuing to play various rec program sports and individual sports? My spouse and I played other sports at a time when it was still possible to be a 3-sport high school athlete. We know that being good at this young age may not correlate to later success, but DC did stand out in the rec league this year, and DC likes soccer more than everything else we've tried.

The answer is yes; however you already lost one year if playing up. The earlier the better. Rec is just playing for fun, with friends, not for good players with D1 scholarships in the future.

[Anonymous]

My oldest started playing at 3 and then went to club at U5 (complete money grab in a "league" that just played against other teams from out club) we didn't know any better and thought since our kid was good that we might as well. Shes now on the top U14 team and with only 3 from the original U5 team on the roster.

My youngest started later at u7. This time we stayed in rec and went to a smaller club to do competitive. The parents are way more relaxed and the coach loves our kid so she gets all kinds of minutes.

Different clubs work for different kids. Top talent will find their way to the top teams. It doesn't matter what club they play for.

[Anonymous]

If they are playing up with 8 year olds then no. Like someone said, not skill but attention and maturity. Those expectations would make it difficult and not fun for most kids. And why go there, at 5?
A U6 league is a complete money grab but probably harmless. You’ll still have the daisy pickers and mob ball but it will be a little more organized. Most of the parents will be much more into it.
My vote rec and some extra classes, they aren’t all sharks and minnows. We did some with skills and scrimmages.
And since you were athletic get a pop up goal and go to the elementary school. Skills gained and family time.
You have a five year old, things are fluid. Go with your gut. Don’t believe the hype, it all works out. U9 is not to late to enter travel soccer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would definitely not start at u6. It’s a recipe for burnout. I didn’t even know u6 existed in travel. DS started at u9. His club had a development program beforehand with strong coaching (but not travel). We skipped that but maybe 1/3 of the players in his age group started there. I remember some of those parents being upset their kids were placed on the 2nd or 3rd team so I don’t think it helped much. U9 seemed like a good age to start but there were kids who started at u10 and caught up fast so we could have even waited. He is now u16 and clearly no worse for not starting sooner.

What is burnout and how does it happen exactly?

https://www.ncaa.org/sports/2014/12/10/understanding-student-athlete-burnout.aspx

Doesn't explain how starting playing at 6 years old equals guaranteed burnout.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would definitely not start at u6. It’s a recipe for burnout. I didn’t even know u6 existed in travel. DS started at u9. His club had a development program beforehand with strong coaching (but not travel). We skipped that but maybe 1/3 of the players in his age group started there. I remember some of those parents being upset their kids were placed on the 2nd or 3rd team so I don’t think it helped much. U9 seemed like a good age to start but there were kids who started at u10 and caught up fast so we could have even waited. He is now u16 and clearly no worse for not starting sooner.

Early programs help those who were talented/athletic in the first place.

We started one kid early bc we knew they were not athletic and he turned out to be a solid travel player bc of the consistency.

Another kid started even earlier and is now on MLSNext. Every kid on his team started at U6 or earlier. Not everyone started at a formal club program and but every kid had been in an environment where they were regularly playing soccer.

I don’t think that’s true of everyone. DS’s good friend plays for DC United. He started at u10 and was placed on a low team at a huge club. He wasn’t doing any crazy training either. You can start soccer at 3 or even 6 but there’s no need to pay for travel.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Should we start club soccer at U6? Is the only downside that club requires some level of specialization at a very young age versus continuing to play various rec program sports and individual sports? My spouse and I played other sports at a time when it was still possible to be a 3-sport high school athlete. We know that being good at this young age may not correlate to later success, but DC did stand out in the rec league this year, and DC likes soccer more than everything else we've tried.

What DMV club has a U6 team? My kid played for Bethesda’s U7 team last year. My understanding was that it was the first year Bethesda had a U7 team and there weren’t many (any?) other U7 teams in the DMV. Surprised to hear there are U6 travel teams in the area.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Should we start club soccer at U6? Is the only downside that club requires some level of specialization at a very young age versus continuing to play various rec program sports and individual sports? My spouse and I played other sports at a time when it was still possible to be a 3-sport high school athlete. We know that being good at this young age may not correlate to later success, but DC did stand out in the rec league this year, and DC likes soccer more than everything else we've tried.

What DMV club has a U6 team? My kid played for Bethesda’s U7 team last year. My understanding was that it was the first year Bethesda had a U7 team and there weren’t many (any?) other U7 teams in the DMV. Surprised to hear there are U6 travel teams in the area.

BTW, the team played up in a U8 league, I thought because there weren’t any U7 leagues. The existence of a U6 travel team and league surprises me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Should we start club soccer at U6? Is the only downside that club requires some level of specialization at a very young age versus continuing to play various rec program sports and individual sports? My spouse and I played other sports at a time when it was still possible to be a 3-sport high school athlete. We know that being good at this young age may not correlate to later success, but DC did stand out in the rec league this year, and DC likes soccer more than everything else we've tried.

What DMV club has a U6 team? My kid played for Bethesda’s U7 team last year. My understanding was that it was the first year Bethesda had a U7 team and there weren’t many (any?) other U7 teams in the DMV. Surprised to hear there are U6 travel teams in the area.

OP. The U6 team doesn't travel. It's a development team within the club and they play other teams within 30 minutes, versus our town program which is all local kids and parents. I suppose what seperates it from a rec league is paid coaches, 2 practices a week, and a light game schedule in Summer, Spring, and Falll. More emphasis on practice than games. We are athletes but neither of us played soccer. At the moment, it is the best fit of the sports we’ve tried.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Should we start club soccer at U6? Is the only downside that club requires some level of specialization at a very young age versus continuing to play various rec program sports and individual sports? My spouse and I played other sports at a time when it was still possible to be a 3-sport high school athlete. We know that being good at this young age may not correlate to later success, but DC did stand out in the rec league this year, and DC likes soccer more than everything else we've tried.

What DMV club has a U6 team? My kid played for Bethesda’s U7 team last year. My understanding was that it was the first year Bethesda had a U7 team and there weren’t many (any?) other U7 teams in the DMV. Surprised to hear there are U6 travel teams in the area.

OP. The U6 team doesn't travel. It's a development team within the club and they play other teams within 30 minutes, versus our town program which is all local kids and parents. I suppose what seperates it from a rec league is paid coaches, 2 practices a week, and a light game schedule in Summer, Spring, and Falll. More emphasis on practice than games. We are athletes but neither of us played soccer. At the moment, it is the best fit of the sports we’ve tried.

I loved the U7 BSC program. It’s obviously not hard core club soccer so absolutely no burnout concern, but it’s much more structured / serious / organized than all the local rec leagues. The kids in the group definitely had a leg up this year at the U8 level, although I highly doubt that will be sustained for more than a year or two. My kid enjoyed it, so definitely no harm, and he definitely got some benefit out of it, but probably not sustained for a significant amount of time.

[Anonymous]

Syc has the DA program that is like this

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Should we start club soccer at U6? Is the only downside that club requires some level of specialization at a very young age versus continuing to play various rec program sports and individual sports? My spouse and I played other sports at a time when it was still possible to be a 3-sport high school athlete. We know that being good at this young age may not correlate to later success, but DC did stand out in the rec league this year, and DC likes soccer more than everything else we've tried.

What DMV club has a U6 team? My kid played for Bethesda’s U7 team last year. My understanding was that it was the first year Bethesda had a U7 team and there weren’t many (any?) other U7 teams in the DMV. Surprised to hear there are U6 travel teams in the area.

OP. The U6 team doesn't travel. It's a development team within the club and they play other teams within 30 minutes, versus our town program which is all local kids and parents. I suppose what seperates it from a rec league is paid coaches, 2 practices a week, and a light game schedule in Summer, Spring, and Falll. More emphasis on practice than games. We are athletes but neither of us played soccer. At the moment, it is the best fit of the sports we’ve tried.

I loved the U7 BSC program. It’s obviously not hard core club soccer so absolutely no burnout concern, but it’s much more structured / serious / organized than all the local rec leagues. The kids in the group definitely had a leg up this year at the U8 level, although I highly doubt that will be sustained for more than a year or two. My kid enjoyed it, so definitely no harm, and he definitely got some benefit out of it, but probably not sustained for a significant amount of time.

This is what I tend to think as someone who started my kids early in a different sport. Starting early gives the kids a leg up for a couple years, but by age 9 or 10 other athletic kids can and will catch up. A lot of great athletes start early but starting early does not make a great athlete, if that makes sense. Do it if you want to and your kid will like it, but not to try to gain some advantage over other kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Avoid this cesspool as long as you can!

+100000