Very motivated parents of talented soccer players: What are your/your kid’s goals?
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Anonymous
| My dream for my 13 YO DD is for her to play at a national level, don’t know what that is yet, maybe YNT? Maybe pro? College admission to a top university with scholarship would be icing on the cake and not my motivation for supporting her soccer dreams. |
Anonymous
Well you outed yourself with the statement “My dream for my 13 YO DD”. It HAS to be her dream, not yours. So, you are either a troll or terribly misguided. |
Anonymous
Ha! So true! My 14-year old has been training by himself up at the middle school and comes home talking about “Karen Academy”. 
There are 1-2 moms with girls younger than him screaming at their daughters and forcing them to train. Mom is in goal diving like a middle aged idiot and telling girls they are t working. Real fun for 6, 8, 10 year old girls. My husband and I often played with our kids when they were little. I played college soccer, but it was always FUN. Family competitors, monkey in the middle, lots of laughter. Your kid needs to want it on their own. If a kid isn’t out there in their own—mine bike to a field every day (14 and 12) and train by themselves, watch YouTube, Fifa games, etc. they are never going to succeed. Way too many DMV parents living vicariously through their kids. My younger one is starting to like basketball more. It’s his choice. He’s opting for the driveway hoop more than the field with his brother. It’s his life to live and should play for fun and passion. “The Last Dance” might be some of the latest obsession. Who doesn’t love basketball after watching that? Let her make and follow her own dreams. |
Anonymous
| 08:50 here. I didn’t give anything away, and I knew I’d get a response like this, anytime anyone posts anything remotely related to having a dream for their kid the criticism comes out. By they way, I don’t push her, she’s completely self motivated and I just pay for it. |
Anonymous
The only dream any parent should have for their kid is that they grow up healthy and find the ability/opportunity to contribute doing something THEY love. As a parent you simply offer them opportunities to experience, learn and grow from. Set healthy boundaries and support their goals and then stay out of their way. |
Anonymous
+100 And a minority in the youth travel soccer world (esp prior to HS when parents are still delusional). |
Anonymous
This is actually so stupid...you are telling me what my dreams for my kid should ONLY be. STFU! Don't give me any parenting advice please. Answer the question the OP asked or move along. |
Anonymous
| Wow. Mentally unstable. |
Anonymous
|
Everyone has dreams for their kids. They should stop at health, happiness, education and the kid following their OWN dreams. I feel sorry for psycho’s kids. He has rage like the guy attacking kids on the bike trail in MD.
Covid has not been good for many’s mental illness. |
Anonymous
I'm the poster here. Our DS was a DA player but stepped back in high school to focus on his academics and on his school team where he is now the captain. It got to the point that he felt many of his DA teammates were going "all in" for a sports career (and kind of being jerky about it) and he found socially he could relate more to his schoolmates than his teammates as far as long term goals. Many of the other players had zero long term plans besides playing soccer at college and then in the MLS, a mathematical 'long shot' if there ever was one. I felt and his coaches felt if he really wanted it he could have made a run for it as a player, certainly to college but beyond would depend on too many factors to determine just now. But he didn't want it, so... As for our family experience, we have a cousin who played D1 soccer but was injured sophomore year and 'forgotten'. She was getting queries from the youth US coaches coming out of high school but as soon as she took a bad knock (out for 9 months) the interest, not only in her playing career but her own well-being basically disappeared. Her own coaches were sort of like 'see the school health service doctor and let us know if you get better' and that was about it which she found quite disconcerting. The school really wasn't very supportive (and this is a school most would consider a major academic power in other sports). Other two family experiences were more mixed. One loved playing with team, made life-long friends from his team, but really didn't meet and experience college the way he would have preferred. Didn't know many other kids outside of the academic world and felt he missed something. Other player, a neice, is still in school but is reporting academically it's been an incredible challenge and she is being counseled away from courses she wants by the coaches who want her on an easier path. She may decide to quit and focus on her goals rather than the athletic department's academic route which was heavy on 'independent studies' and basically 'basketweaving' to use her phrase. |
Anonymous
It can be done, but it takes a bit of planning and preferably, a bunch of cash. The easiest way is for a parental transfer to work in Europe, which, of course, is not for everyone. I have found parents though who have sought out transfers to get their kids over there. They get sent to the UK, France, Germany etc and find a club for their kid to train with and start to make an impression on the local scene. The second way is via the schooling route. In the UK there are a few prep and boarding schools that are basically 'soccer schools', focusing on athletics. Some have rather amazing facilities as well. You can go to school there for a comparable amount to a private school here. But just upping sticks and going over without a plan is definitely not that easy. Visas alone are a problem in many countries that would stop most people. |
Anonymous
| I just want my kid to get off the damn Xbox.... |