Travel teams now 4-5 teams deep? Is this for real?

[Anonymous]

Soccer is becoming more popular in the US, more kids want to play, with more demand clubs are just meeting the demand. It’s not like clubs are deciding on their own to add teams and force people to join. I see this as a good thing because it shows soccer is gaining in popularity and catching up to what sports like basketball and baseball and gymnastics have been doing for a while with youth sports

[Anonymous]

Soccer isnt getting more popular. More kids are playing travel now who would have just played in rec.

[Anonymous]

This has been going on for years. If anything there are less travel soccer teams now than there were 5 - 6 years ago.

[Anonymous]

Huh???

My kids (I have 3 sons) have been at a number of different Clubs over the past 10 years and every one of them had 4-6 teams deep.

My oldest son started at Arlington in 2010 and his age group had 4 teams. Alexandria, Loudoun, McLean, etc. all the same.

In older age groups they morph into 3 teams with larger rosters at 11v11.

It’s not Covid-related it’s been this way for well over a decade.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This has been going on for years. If anything there are less travel soccer teams now than there were 5 - 6 years ago.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Pay to play.

Capitalism! If it's not worth it to you, don't do it. The market sets the price.

...so sick of all of the 'money grab' commenters.

If it was straight capitalism, I’d agree with you.

I know a couple of coaches who’ve looked into starting clubs - and one who did - as well as another guy who runs a (disintegrating) one. The way that many localities dole out public field space makes it very difficult to get a new club off the ground. The club needs to be a non-profit, which limits the profit motive...If you do go the for-profit route (Barca, St. James), non-profit clubs may block you from joining their leagues. If you were to try to start a club tomorrow, in many jurisdictions (such as Fairfax and PW), a new applicant has a 6 month waiting period before being eligible to receive field space. Many places a club also needs at least 5 teams and to have a rec program, in order to get space. Hard to have 5 teams signed up when your only near-term option may be renting private space, which is limited and expensive. The reality is, trying to start up a viable competitor in a lot of places is extremely difficult (Arlington, Alexandria, Loudoun) and why those local ‘flagship’ clubs have run virtually unchecked since the 70s.

I played in this area in the 80s, and the top clubs were BRYC, FPYC, Bethesda, SAC, McLean, Annandale and LMVSC. And there were about one-tenth the number of teams in any age group. Barely heard a thing about Alexandria or Arlington. Things change.

[Anonymous]

Why is it a scam? Because you don’t see the value? There’s lots of kids who really love to play soccer, and are pretty good at it. Only a few players are goi to end up playing at the elite level and college. But between that and recreational soccer there’s a big range and travel teams and developmental teams fill the void. It costs money to reserve fields, pay coaches who are not volunteers, join an organized league, get uniforms, pay referees, etc. it’s a machine and it’s not free to run it. My kid loves soccer and is quite good at it but not elite level good. We don’t go crazy with private training and have no inclination they will play in college. But they are staying very active, have great friendships, have matured as humans and players, and gained skills to continue playing a game they love. We can afford it. What’s wrong with that? Don’t like it, don’t participate.

Is your kid going to just get a job straight out of HS if they don’t get into Princeton or Harvard?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:in rec you have a volunteer parent. 95% of volunteer parents don't know how to coach the sport.

You are asking 1 person with a full time job and kids at home to be a coaching genius and know how to train every age group as the kids go from U9 to U19... for free.

And coach with knowledge, zero interest in your kid’s future, only coaching the way he played, is a worse answer.

[Anonymous]

Yes, OP, you have described things accurately!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Soccer isnt getting more popular. More kids are playing travel now who would have just played in rec.

Wrong. The actual opposite. There was a study that showed soccer popularity is at an all time high. Do you all just get on here and make things up?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Has anyone noticed this? I realize all clubs took a hit from COVID but now it is as if anyone can make a travel team. Parents are paying thousands of $$$ to be on a mediocre travel soccer team. This is nothing like it used to be even just a few years ago where just to make a travel team was super competitive. Rec leagues now can barely make up a few teams where they used to have several per age group. Just an observation from a parent who has had a kid on a travel soccer team for several years. Now younger kid has been doing rec soccer and was asked to tryout for travel this year… opted not to due to another sport he excels more at. But honestly the likely hood would be he’d make a 3rd or 4th travel team for soccer…. Just did not seem right.

It’s not as competitive as it used to be. But the top teams are still the top teams. There is just more room at the bottom for kids who want the experience. This area is very wealthy compared to others. I lived in shitty Idaho for 3 years for my job and I can promise you they don’t have anywhere near the amount of soccer teams, trainers, or programs as we have hear. Then again, I know software developers and government contractors who spend twice as much as their kids NCSL Division 5 club fee on law maintenance or hiring a pool guy in Bethesda. So who are we to judge if people have the money and leisure time to watch their kids kick a ball with the wrong side of the foot?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Soccer isnt getting more popular. More kids are playing travel now who would have just played in rec.

Wrong. The actual opposite. There was a study that showed soccer popularity is at an all time high. Do you all just get on here and make things up?

This is 3 years old so things may have changed, but per this article: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/14/sports/world-cup/soccer-youth-decline.html there was a significant (14%) drop in youth participation from 2015-2018.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Pay to play.

Capitalism! If it's not worth it to you, don't do it. The market sets the price.

...so sick of all of the 'money grab' commenters.

If it was straight capitalism, I’d agree with you.

I know a couple of coaches who’ve looked into starting clubs - and one who did - as well as another guy who runs a (disintegrating) one. The way that many localities dole out public field space makes it very difficult to get a new club off the ground. The club needs to be a non-profit, which limits the profit motive...If you do go the for-profit route (Barca, St. James), non-profit clubs may block you from joining their leagues. If you were to try to start a club tomorrow, in many jurisdictions (such as Fairfax and PW), a new applicant has a 6 month waiting period before being eligible to receive field space. Many places a club also needs at least 5 teams and to have a rec program, in order to get space. Hard to have 5 teams signed up when your only near-term option may be renting private space, which is limited and expensive. The reality is, trying to start up a viable competitor in a lot of places is extremely difficult (Arlington, Alexandria, Loudoun) and why those local ‘flagship’ clubs have run virtually unchecked since the 70s.

I played in this area in the 80s, and the top clubs were BRYC, FPYC, Bethesda, SAC, McLean, Annandale and LMVSC. And there were about one-tenth the number of teams in any age group. Barely heard a thing about Alexandria or Arlington. Things change.

Arlington and Alexandria were established in 1970; When I played (90s), they both were solid, but my main point is that they both now have the field space in their county/city locked down. I’ve never heard of any other club from either of those places in the last 30 years and doubt anyone could successfully start up an in-County competitor. Loudoun Soccer is in a similar position and all of their in-county ‘competitors’ (FCV, Barca, VRSC, Leesburg) have to resort to paying to use the same private soccer park (Evergreen).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Has anyone noticed this? I realize all clubs took a hit from COVID but now it is as if anyone can make a travel team. Parents are paying thousands of $$$ to be on a mediocre travel soccer team. This is nothing like it used to be even just a few years ago where just to make a travel team was super competitive. Rec leagues now can barely make up a few teams where they used to have several per age group. Just an observation from a parent who has had a kid on a travel soccer team for several years. Now younger kid has been doing rec soccer and was asked to tryout for travel this year… opted not to due to another sport he excels more at. But honestly the likely hood would be he’d make a 3rd or 4th travel team for soccer…. Just did not seem right.

It’s not as competitive as it used to be. But the top teams are still the top teams. There is just more room at the bottom for kids who want the experience. This area is very wealthy compared to others. I lived in shitty Idaho for 3 years for my job and I can promise you they don’t have anywhere near the amount of soccer teams, trainers, or programs as we have hear. Then again, I know software developers and government contractors who spend twice as much as their kids NCSL Division 5 club fee on law maintenance or hiring a pool guy in Bethesda. So who are we to judge if people have the money and leisure time to watch their kids kick a ball with the wrong side of the foot?

LOL!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Soccer isnt getting more popular. More kids are playing travel now who would have just played in rec.

Wrong. The actual opposite. There was a study that showed soccer popularity is at an all time high. Do you all just get on here and make things up?

This is 3 years old so things may have changed, but per this article: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/14/sports/world-cup/soccer-youth-decline.html there was a significant (14%) drop in youth participation from 2015-2018.

I think we are referring to different periods. The time and study I referred to was much further back, like 90s compared to now.