GA & MLS NEXT Form Strategic Alliance
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Anonymous
Maybe start with this --- let's say there are acadamies. How many? One per NWSL team? What about all of the other GA teams? They fold? If only 1 per NWSL team -- that it about $25 million a year. Where does that come from? Even if that happens and let's say 20 girls on each team -- that is 280 per age group. But there are thousands of girls in GA and ECNL in each age group. Where would they play? ECNL I guess. Not all of the top girls will go. For some parents just too far to drive. Others have busy lives and no time to be that devoted. I agree you will shift a numbert of the top girls. And maybe you create elite teams but there would not be anywhere near enough girls to satisfy college needs which is really true if a number of these girls would go pro. At the end of the day you create a new elite but it does not really change anything. And back to the money -- where is it coming from? |
Anonymous
No GA will not be attending MLS Next events. Where do you get that? |
Anonymous
Most clubs would drop the MLS to keep the ECNL. |
Anonymous
Generation adidas cup and some combined mlsn/ga events |
Anonymous
You would have to know their financial standing to know that. What if FC Delco feeds a lot of players to pro academies… what if the pro team gives FC Delco an incentive to keep feeding the academy players. And if the girls go GA, they would most likely be admitted to Champions cup… which attracts college coaches |
Anonymous
Ha, that poster is right though. The barrier is, and will continue to be, money. If GA is going to overtake ECNL from behind, it's going to have to offer something attractive that ECNL doesn't. The pro-pathway gets more attractive if there's more money in women's pro soccer, if they go that way against ECNL's college-first-pathway. They could also waive fees for players, which, again, takes money. Marketing with MLS and NWSL could help, but it just doesn't seem like enough without money. ECNL is not untouchable, but you're overestimating the power of a marketing-only alliance. If someone partners with GA in a way that injects their money or player-selection power into it, *then* ECNL is toast. |
Anonymous
When making the business presentation, you have to justify the hockey stick growth, you can't just say it and expect to be taken seriously. |
Anonymous
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This definitely shakes things up. Will clubs with GA/ECNL now be given full membership to ECNL? I would imagine if they don’t, MLS Next will get some of the top boys ecnl programs…
VSA Rush Skyline Elite STA Baltimore Celtic Santa Clara sporting Columbia Premier NTH-NASA South Carolina Surf SDSC Surf West Coast FC HTX BVBIA |
Anonymous
I don't know what FC Delco does or will do. But I know the MLS Development grants are peanuts at $10,000ish and while new, there have only been a couple of them. |
Anonymous
It took a few years for the academies tied to MLS clubs to offer fully funded programs, and within MLSN there's plenty of clubs still that AREN'T funded and are just typical old pay to play. That model would probably be what happens if that ever occurs, there would be academy teams tied to clubs and over time as revenue increases, they can afford to fund them. |
Anonymous
| So many people here with so much confidence about what will happen. I suppose it’s fun to make predictions but really how many predicted things that have happened over the last 3-5 years? The club mergers, new GA clubs in the area, NCAA roster sizes, NIL, which teams were good, etc. No reason to think you’ve all got it figured out now. |
Anonymous
You clearly did not do any research on it. You just want to come on here and naysay. The money isn't straight out of Michelle Kang's pocket. She may have made a donation, i assume she did, but others have donated too. It is reported that Arthur Blank gave a sizeable donation. He is worth almost $10 billion. As long as there are people like Mr. Blank willing to help fund girls and womens sports, the money will keep flowing. |
Anonymous
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The whole US soccer landscape is so freaking fractured...too many leagues. Classic too many cooks in the kitchen. IMO or everyone wanting to be the king of their one little kingdom.
There are only so many truly MLS Academy teams out there, but there are many pay to play MSL Next teams. On the womens side, where are they true aligned academy programs and I saw NCFC get cited. There are pathways but are there programs that allow signings and players to work with a senior team and play with the regular youth club team? You are starting to see this on the USL men's side with USL-A teams and players working with the senior USL squad. There's a ton of movement now in the soccer landscape - the traditional college route is going to look very different with roster limits, the financial settlement, NIL, etc. Will be interesting to see where this all goes. |
Anonymous
I will go this far. If the teams were owned by Arthur Blank types then you could be on to something. But for the most part they are not. Kang is rich. Not Blank rich. New Boston team owners have money but not crazy stupid money. KC is owned by Chris Long and Mahomes. Mahomes is on his way to stupid money and he would likely be there but Chris long does not have stupid money. This could all work but for the next bunch of years the money is not there. I will make one point on Blank. I think he would put the money up but he is only going to do it if he thinks this could work. He would have to be convinced this is just not throwing money away. I doubt we are there yet. |
Anonymous
| Collegiate landscape is changing, and now with no NWSL draft any longer either, it'll be interesting to see how everything plays out. |