Valor

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Valor charges well above market rate for the exurbs. $3000 for a low level team when neighboring clubs charge $2000. Anyone can look up the rates at Burke, Herndon, VSA, FC Dulles or FPYC and see that Valor costs the most and provides the least. Those other clubs don't use parent coaches either.

You are not looking at what is included in the cost. Most clubs do not have tournament fees included. 5 tournaments are included in the fee. yes some tournament qualities are questionable. But if you add separate cost for tournaments, it's even more at other clubs. One good example is Loudoun where they stopped going to more tournaments.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"Valor has a problem with evaluating talent and with proper coaching at the younger ages. It starts in the CYA/SYA rec leagues. Then it's a problem later on for a kid who is serious because they are behind their peers at other clubs who did have good training."

Being with Valor over the years...I am now seeing this as our child moves up the league...other leagues we play have players with much higher technical skills that I dont see being worked on in Valor practices...not sure who is at fault for that but sad we pay alot of money to have mediocre training with children who really do love soccer and maybe have potential that's not being tapped at all. And looking elsewhere puts our children at a huge disadvantage when Valor is "playing in the elite" league but not developing our children to play at that level.

Not hating on Valor but as a parent navigating this soccer world- with other children in other sports etc. and working full time...it would be nice to know the investment we and our family is making in Valor has an honest outcome.

I played college soccer and I now have kids playing in travel. So I have seen this expectation alot. Most parents who are new to the travel expects that their kids will somehow get good with technical skill. They do develop that during games and practices. But the main focus of travel team is that they teach how to play soccer. formations, using spaces, communication on the field, etc. Individual skills are mostly learned outside team practices. at home or HP or private training. I know parents make fun of academy session at Valor but there are no other clubs actually do this except maybe Arlington. Acedemy sessions actually do some technical training that kids need.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s tryout season—if you don’t like Valor, just move on. Not all of us are unhappy. I came here looking for tryout dates and stumbled upon a lot of negativity. I’ve had three kids go through NOVA travel, and every club has its issues. Two of mine played at the national level—one went on to play college soccer, while the other chose club soccer in college. My youngest is currently at Valor, and aside from a few tournament selections, I haven’t seen the problems being mentioned here.

You have to be realistic about your child’s level and commitment. My eldest trained nonstop and now plays for a top 10 D1 program. My youngest prefers hanging out with friends and riding his bike—I don’t expect the same outcome. Let go of entitlement and the inflated perception of your kid’s abilities.

I don't think too many would disagree with what you're saying here. Valor is fine for kids who like soccer and want more than rec, but are not talented and/or dedicated enough for higher level play. Though it is expensive compared to other clubs that fit this same bill. Valor is not fine for kids on their top teams who do want to train hard and aim for a higher level. Valor by and large does not attract enough of those players to put together quality teams. But they try to act like they are on par with the actual good clubs, with a price tag to match. It's a tough lesson to learn if you aren't familiar with the soccer landscape and didn't realize that leadership has zero vision beyond social media marketing and making as much money as possible.

Valor rates are on par with pretty much every club in the area. $2500-3500 is the typical range for 1 year of travel soccer at VDA, VSA, PWSI, Loudoun, Herndon, GFR, Valor, Arlington, Union. You can get a cheaper option from small clubs that is parent coached. In regards to your comment "act like they are par with the actual good clubs". Why wouldn't they? Go into a Kia dealership and go into a Lexus dealership, they make the same claims regarding Value, reliability, performance, etc. I've seen parents complain about the coaching, but yet I watch their kid suck down ice cream 10 mins before games. Here is the deal, go to any local park in July and find a group of kids playing soccer on their own. It shouldn't be a surprise that most of them play for high level clubs/leagues because they live and breath soccer which is why they are good. If your kid does that, then go try out for ECNL/GA/MLSN. If they are playing on tiktok as soon as they get up.....ECNL R, NCSL, EDP, Rec is probably just fine.

You are all over the place. None of what you are saying explains why the young Valor teams are often far behind the teams at other respectable clubs, from top to bottom. I don't buy that all the kids at other clubs are living and breathing soccer... not at 8/9/10. Valor has a problem with evaluating talent and with proper coaching at the younger ages. It starts in the CYA/SYA rec leagues. Then it's a problem later on for a kid who is serious because they are behind their peers at other clubs who did have good training.

As for other clubs having 4th teams... yes they do, but those are clubs that could actually have 6 or 7 teams if they didn't turn anyone away. Valor literally accepts everyone including kids who have no business doing anything other than rec. It's not just about talent -- it's also focus, willingness to listen, and wanting to improve. A kid who is out there just not thinking about what they're doing at all should not be in a travel sport.

I can assure you that if you look at any player competing at the top tier leagues are 100% living and breathing soccer. It's a rat race. Now 8/9/10...to be honest I see 2 issues. There isn't a pathway to the higher leagues so that talented 10 year old is going to bail to a VDA/Loudoun. The other issue is that most parents in Fairfax area are clueless about soccer, so there isn't any soccer culture at home. Other communities watch soccer on a sunday morning like most in ffx watch the skins play. They know the game, they follow top players, they are "pick EPL team" fans because their parents are. I've lost count how many times someone has asked me to explain offsides or a handball call. I don't think the other poster is all over the place, it's actually an accurate observation. If you want to develop and grow an age group you need to find ways to keep the talent you are developing.

[Anonymous]

U are drinking the valor cool-aid.
The rates from other clubs include several tournaments. We paid $1800 at BAC a few years ago and four tournaments were included.

[Anonymous]

Most Valor teams are low level NCSL. NCSL hasn't put out their schedules yet. You can't blame Valor for that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:here you go -- regarding NVA --

Dear Virginia Valor FC Family,

We would like to share an update regarding our partnership with NVA, which has served as our current pathway within the ECNL league structure. In light of NVA’s decision to pursue a path no longer aligned with the ECNL framework, we have mutually agreed to conclude our partnership.

Looking ahead to the 2025/2026 season, we are actively exploring new relationships with local organizations to establish a clear and tangible pathway from our Regional League to the National League within ECNL.

As a Regional League member of ECNL, we believe that the competition level in our local area is well-suited for our teams. This approach eliminates the need for extensive out-of-state league travel while still providing opportunities for postseason play and allowing players to participate in their high school seasons. We regard leagues, showcase events, and collaboration with local, regional, and national clubs as vital tools for our players’ development. We continue to value the competition and opportunities offered by ECNL, and we are confident that our training environment, coaching staff, and club-wide philosophy will enable every athlete to achieve their personal goals.

Thank you for your continued trust. We look forward to supporting our players’ growth throughout the remainder of this season and beyond.

Sincerely,

Your Club Leadership Team

Virginia Valor FC

Is Valor going to join FVU?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:here you go -- regarding NVA --

Dear Virginia Valor FC Family,

We would like to share an update regarding our partnership with NVA, which has served as our current pathway within the ECNL league structure. In light of NVA’s decision to pursue a path no longer aligned with the ECNL framework, we have mutually agreed to conclude our partnership.

Looking ahead to the 2025/2026 season, we are actively exploring new relationships with local organizations to establish a clear and tangible pathway from our Regional League to the National League within ECNL.

As a Regional League member of ECNL, we believe that the competition level in our local area is well-suited for our teams. This approach eliminates the need for extensive out-of-state league travel while still providing opportunities for postseason play and allowing players to participate in their high school seasons. We regard leagues, showcase events, and collaboration with local, regional, and national clubs as vital tools for our players’ development. We continue to value the competition and opportunities offered by ECNL, and we are confident that our training environment, coaching staff, and club-wide philosophy will enable every athlete to achieve their personal goals.

Thank you for your continued trust. We look forward to supporting our players’ growth throughout the remainder of this season and beyond.

Sincerely,

Your Club Leadership Team

Virginia Valor FC

Is Valor going to join FVU?

Doubtful, and if it was anything like the NVA "alliance" was, don't bother.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:U are drinking the valor cool-aid.
The rates from other clubs include several tournaments. We paid $1800 at BAC a few years ago and four tournaments were included.

uhh.. BAC is shittier than Valor and they enter very low quality tournaments that costs like $500 per team. and you are mentioning few years ago. Everything was cheaper few years ago including my cool-aid

[Anonymous]

We have had a great experience at Burke after switching from Valor. It was around $1000 cheaper, too.

Could you point me towards the 183 pages of complaints about Burke on here? I must have missed it...:

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Valor has a problem with evaluating talent and with proper coaching at the younger ages. It starts in the CYA/SYA rec leagues. Then it's a problem later on for a kid who is serious because they are behind their peers at other clubs who did have good training."

Being with Valor over the years...I am now seeing this as our child moves up the league...other leagues we play have players with much higher technical skills that I dont see being worked on in Valor practices...not sure who is at fault for that but sad we pay alot of money to have mediocre training with children who really do love soccer and maybe have potential that's not being tapped at all. And looking elsewhere puts our children at a huge disadvantage when Valor is "playing in the elite" league but not developing our children to play at that level.

Not hating on Valor but as a parent navigating this soccer world- with other children in other sports etc. and working full time...it would be nice to know the investment we and our family is making in Valor has an honest outcome.

I played college soccer and I now have kids playing in travel. So I have seen this expectation alot. Most parents who are new to the travel expects that their kids will somehow get good with technical skill. They do develop that during games and practices. But the main focus of travel team is that they teach how to play soccer. formations, using spaces, communication on the field, etc. Individual skills are mostly learned outside team practices. at home or HP or private training. I know parents make fun of academy session at Valor but there are no other clubs actually do this except maybe Arlington. Acedemy sessions actually do some technical training that kids need.

I’m not the PP who mentioned technical skills. Most Valor coaches aren’t great at teaching team play either.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:U are drinking the valor cool-aid.
The rates from other clubs include several tournaments. We paid $1800 at BAC a few years ago and four tournaments were included.

uhh.. BAC is shittier than Valor and they enter very low quality tournaments that costs like $500 per team. and you are mentioning few years ago. Everything was cheaper few years ago including my cool-aid

When my dc played for "Valor gold" last year, we played a Burke team in a tournament. They play in the same local tournaments. There aren't super special fancy tournaments that Valor enters justifying their high cost over low-budget Burke.

We found the "academy" sessions to be low on technical skills and mostly seemed designed to claim they offered three practices a week while coaches only had to coach two.

Most of our team practices were scrimmaging. Which is why we moved on.

[Anonymous]

I have never heard of tournament fees being extra. Tournaments have always been included in the total price at the several different clhbs my dc have played for (all cost less than Valor!)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:U are drinking the valor cool-aid.
The rates from other clubs include several tournaments. We paid $1800 at BAC a few years ago and four tournaments were included.

uhh.. BAC is shittier than Valor and they enter very low quality tournaments that costs like $500 per team. and you are mentioning few years ago. Everything was cheaper few years ago including my cool-aid

When my dc played for "Valor gold" last year, we played a Burke team in a tournament. They play in the same local tournaments. There aren't super special fancy tournaments that Valor enters justifying their high cost over low-budget Burke.

We found the "academy" sessions to be low on technical skills and mostly seemed designed to claim they offered three practices a week while coaches only had to coach two.

Most of our team practices were scrimmaging. Which is why we moved on.

You made the right decision for your child and that is all that matters. If it isn't the right fit then go elsewhere, but to continuously trash a club on a forum like this is unproductive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have never heard of tournament fees being extra. Tournaments have always been included in the total price at the several different clhbs my dc have played for (all cost less than Valor!)

There are many clubs that charge base fees + tournaments. Some are even collected at the team level and not by the club.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:U are drinking the valor cool-aid.
The rates from other clubs include several tournaments. We paid $1800 at BAC a few years ago and four tournaments were included.

uhh.. BAC is shittier than Valor and they enter very low quality tournaments that costs like $500 per team. and you are mentioning few years ago. Everything was cheaper few years ago including my cool-aid

When my dc played for "Valor gold" last year, we played a Burke team in a tournament. They play in the same local tournaments. There aren't super special fancy tournaments that Valor enters justifying their high cost over low-budget Burke.

We found the "academy" sessions to be low on technical skills and mostly seemed designed to claim they offered three practices a week while coaches only had to coach two.

Most of our team practices were scrimmaging. Which is why we moved on.

You made the right decision for your child and that is all that matters. If it isn't the right fit then go elsewhere, but to continuously trash a club on a forum like this is unproductive.

Unproductive for who? The owners of the club?