Strategy for a determined Parent

[Anonymous]

is your player even the best on his own team? is his team #1 in D1 NCSL?

[Anonymous]

OP, have you tried ODP? ODP is not expensive at all compared to DA. If your son is good, he will at least make it to the state team selection

[Anonymous]

Geez, ODP can cost up to $7k a year! How much does DA cost?

[Anonymous]

If your son is that talented, have him try out for a DA team that is free. Philadelphia Union is the closest, but there are others as well. Seems more realistic than packing up and moving to Europe.

[Anonymous]

Here's some snark. Hypothetical future pro? NCSL to Europe? Money and visa is no object? Notice the lack of response from the PP. Such an obvious troll question to see how many people would take the bait.

[Anonymous]

OP, here is an honest suggestion. Stay with your team and have that kid of yours crack open the school books. I can't give him a pathway to pro soccer, but i can certainly give him a pathway to professional employment.

[Anonymous]

What does your son want? Does that matter or are you just seeing dollar signs and a cushy retirement funded by your son?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, here is an honest suggestion. Stay with your team and have that kid of yours crack open the school books. I can't give him a pathway to pro soccer, but i can certainly give him a pathway to professional employment.

Thanks for your concern. Thanks for the answer to the question not asked. Thanks for for the offer. Please do not post here again.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, do you have the opportunity to get him a passport to a European country? Before you head over there that should be a big concern. I think if you see his talent, even if the so called American experts don’t see it, you need to pursue it. I’m not finding US soccer to be of any kind of a level that inspires top
Tier play. It is not true that if he’s enough to go pro he should be a huge standout in DA. US soccer is at such a low level and nowhere lower than at the youth level. It is really the lowering tide that sinks all ships. Having a passport for him to play more easily over there could be a game changer for you. You just have to be realistic that even if he’s great his chances are slim; you need more than his potential career to make the move worth it; your relationship with him and what he wants are what will determine if he looks back in this with joy and gratitude or misery. Good luck. I have a 7 year old who is a phenomenal little player and have gotten zero zero guidance.

omfg

OMFG is that the best you got? Great response scumbag. People like you are why soccer sucks in this country and there is no football culture. Get off of this thread.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I really think this is a troll thread people.

OP Here. Nope, a sincere question. I don't have enough $$ for DA....so looking for another option. Look, I know that he can't make it here...but my understanding is that Soccer is more similar to USA Baseball. A lot of good players can make A level soccer. There is even a Rookie League. I'm guessing that the Soccer System is similar in Europe.

My comments on the IDCamps is sincere as well. I find it amusing that people pay a lot of money to go have their kid looked at for College potential. This seems so ludicrous to me. I understand why it exists. I just find it repugnant.

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I don’t understand how you are able to move overseas but can’t afford DA???????

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I really think this is a troll thread people.

OP Here. Nope, a sincere question. I don't have enough $$ for DA....so looking for another option. Look, I know that he can't make it here...but my understanding is that Soccer is more similar to USA Baseball. A lot of good players can make A level soccer. There is even a Rookie League. I'm guessing that the Soccer System is similar in Europe.

My comments on the IDCamps is sincere as well. I find it amusing that people pay a lot of money to go have their kid looked at for College potential. This seems so ludicrous to me. I understand why it exists. I just find it repugnant.

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I don’t understand how you are able to move overseas but can’t afford DA???????

OP Here ... I am Naive on the costs to move to Europe, I guess. I'm just running scenarios through my head that might make sense. Clearly this one sounds like a bad idea....and I DO appreciate all the comments. Even "omfg", as it made me laugh.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Here's some snark. Hypothetical future pro? NCSL to Europe? Money and visa is no object? Notice the lack of response from the PP. Such an obvious troll question to see how many people would take the bait.

OP Here ... So let's be clear. Let's use the MLB analogy, as it seems to be most apt to me.

I am seriously thinking of him in the A Division (they make $1100 per month) .. and then anything from there is on him. I'm guessing that the Europe lesser teams are similar. What I was asking was are the Academy for youth better? If so, is it worth trying to get into them?

Money is a big deal. Visa is new to me. Guess I need to look into that.

You don't need to be so cynical. Some questions are sincere. This was one. Not saying it was well thought out. But it was sincere.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:is your player even the best on his own team? is his team #1 in D1 NCSL?

I'll put it this way. Fair to say he is in the discussion of best. Though I would classify him as "the most impactful" as opposed to the best. And no, not #1 in D1.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ok, assuming this is sincere let me point out a few things:

1) Visa. You can't just up and move to France because you feel like it. You need a visa to live there (or wherever). Maybe you have an EU Passport and that's easy enough, but if you don't then you need a sponsor who is going to get you a visa and a job with a decent salary.

2) As a professional expat who has lived abroad in a half dozen countries over the last 20 years, I can assure you the price of a travel team in the USA is a hell of a lot cheaper than the cost of any move I have ever made.

3) FIFA Article 19: Transfer of minors. There is a law that is on the books to prevent the transfer of minors across international borders for the purpose of playing football or signing with a club. https://www.thomascooperlaw.com/guide-fifa-rules-international-transfer-minors/

4) I don't think anyone is objectively saying someone from D1 NCSL at age 14 is being watched for a professional career. You would have been scouted already by a DA or at DA's second team (EDP or something). There are 100s of kids in the DMV at a quality level above NCSL D1 right now. 100s.

5) I've seen top DA players go to Europe for visiting camps and have about 3-5 days with an academy before they learn they are not up to the level they need to be. It can be quite jarring for some here who think they rule the roost only to find out there are a couple of dozen kids in Europe who are already way past them.

6) The suggestion about a scholarship is a good one. Many teams have a program to help if needed. DA's are doing identification sessions now. Why don't you try it and see what they say. You can always turn them down over the Summer and head on to Europe if you find a way to get past all the other obstacles.

OP Here -- I read page 2 first, as last time page 1 was pretty full.

This is exactly the response I had hoped to get. I appreciate the honesty and time that you took for this response.

Again, thanks to all that responded. Very informative list. And don't be so hard on the snarky folks. Taken in context, they are quite amusing.

Hope everyone has a great Spring!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ok, assuming this is sincere let me point out a few things:

1) Visa. You can't just up and move to France because you feel like it. You need a visa to live there (or wherever). Maybe you have an EU Passport and that's easy enough, but if you don't then you need a sponsor who is going to get you a visa and a job with a decent salary.

2) As a professional expat who has lived abroad in a half dozen countries over the last 20 years, I can assure you the price of a travel team in the USA is a hell of a lot cheaper than the cost of any move I have ever made.

3) FIFA Article 19: Transfer of minors. There is a law that is on the books to prevent the transfer of minors across international borders for the purpose of playing football or signing with a club. https://www.thomascooperlaw.com/guide-fifa-rules-international-transfer-minors/

4) I don't think anyone is objectively saying someone from D1 NCSL at age 14 is being watched for a professional career. You would have been scouted already by a DA or at DA's second team (EDP or something). There are 100s of kids in the DMV at a quality level above NCSL D1 right now. 100s.

5) I've seen top DA players go to Europe for visiting camps and have about 3-5 days with an academy before they learn they are not up to the level they need to be. It can be quite jarring for some here who think they rule the roost only to find out there are a couple of dozen kids in Europe who are already way past them.

6) The suggestion about a scholarship is a good one. Many teams have a program to help if needed. DA's are doing identification sessions now. Why don't you try it and see what they say. You can always turn them down over the Summer and head on to Europe if you find a way to get past all the other obstacles.

Different poster, chiming in to say that this is a great post--I wish there were more thoughtful people like you on here.

To add a couple of things to the above, the cost of playing DA at DC United or Bethesda (and maybe others) is likely less than what you'd pay for a non-DA travel team in this area, and that's for full pay kids with no scholarships. You should certainly apply for financial aid if you receive interest from a DA club--we know a lot of kids who received significant scholarships.

A kid who is starting on a tier 1 DA team in our area will have a much greater chance of being identified and moving to the next level than kids not in the DA. They will play against top notch teams like Philly Union and NYCFC, both of which have produced a large number of pros. Moving to the DA programs at top clubs like those down the line is an option for kids who are good enough and don't mind relocating. Playing in DA also increases your likelihood of being seen by youth national team scouts. If you end up in the youth national team pool, the odds of going pro and/or getting an athletic scholarship to a great school go way up. National team training camps, travel, and overseas trips are all completely free for players. I have been following the careers of a number of American youth national team kids who started out in DA and then moved to Germany at 16 (with Euro passports) or 18, and seem to be doing well there. It's definitely the most straightforward and cost-effective path available to serious American teen boys at this time.

Do not waste your time with ODP or other expensive training programs. Do take the advice another poster offered and make sure that your kid studies hard and keeps his grades up. Top boy players with good grades have a lot of excellent college soccer options, contrary to what you hear on DCUM, and that's a nice alternative for kids who don't end up going pro.