What's going on with FCBEscola NOVA?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:so when does the "success" happen?

It’s already happening. Happy parents, happy kids returning for a second year. Over 90% returning. Many more added and some turned away due to not enough space. That is success.

There has also been success on the soccer field which I guess is how you define success. Many teams have won tournaments. Yes, they aren’t in the top tier brackets yet. Many teams have shown rapid development by playing the same external team in friendlies and going from losing badly to competitive to dominating against the same team. Success is in HOW these teams are playing - using the style that is taught in training. That is success as FCB defines it. They expect it will take years for teams to master the concepts and there is a lot of patience. As a parent they have convinced me in this first year to trust the process and be patient too.

The success is in the journey not the destination.

This is what I was wondering, whether they actually said No to anyone willing to pay. We went to one of their open tryouts, our kid is still a baby (in my eyes) so our internal debate is whether the time (distance for us) and money (definitely more expensive than our local club) is worth it at such a young age. But it also makes sense that if you buy into FCB philosophy then the younger the start maybe the easier it becomes to be ingrained in that method/style of play.

They don’t want to have the quality of training take a hit so they have a cap on the number of players in the program. That is why there is a waitlist to get in. The number reflects the player-coach ratio and the room. They also had a cap on the number of players in a tryout session when they first opened to get a decent look and avoid the cattle call tryout, I think 30 at a time, and they kept adding sessions to accommodate numbers. They also didn’t just scrimmage like every other tryout we’ve attended. However, from what I understand, they will not increase the size of the Academy in a single location. They invest in development so they don’t discard players. But, if somebody knows more, please correct me if I understood wrong. I do know a few players on the waitlist.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wow, free? We always had to shell out 400 bucks every 2 years.

You mean you’ve had to pay for your uniform?

Every single travel club we’ve been with- you purchase your own uniform separate from fees on soccer.com. It’s never been included in the price.

[Anonymous]

As a soccer fan and parent of a few soccer kids, if kids buy into the Barca style, it will change the way other teams play. Punt and run won't cut it due to a few things. The "true" possession game (not the crap that all coaches preach about) will neutralize any opponent. The facts are that the ball is the fastest object on the field and it never gets tired. In a nut shell, it's playing keep away with the ball and only shooting when the opportunity arises. You'll never really see a Barca being the fastest or strongest, because they don't need to be. Google rondo drills to get a flavor of what this looks like. My kids are older now, but I'd do barca in a heartbeat if I could. Also, don't get hung up on their academy style. Think about it, DA is trying to do what they have always done in Europe. Train large pools of players and the best play in the game.

[Anonymous]

RantingSoccerDad wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Probably because they do so badly at them. Did you see some of the results in low brackets at the tournaments they played in? Don't want to call out any teams specifically, but some were really bad.

You are completely missing the point. FCB is not interested in brackets and winning tournaments or producing pro players. It’s nice of course but inconsequential to measuring their success. They are following a blueprint that has been successful in dozens of escolas all over the world. They are teaching the Barça style of soccer to the letter as defined by the home office, and teaching a set of values in how they conduct it. That is the formula and it works for them. And, here, the definition of ‘works’ is not winning tournaments but filling seats and following their model. And spreading the Barcelona brand. There are new escolas opening in Ohio, Chicago, many more. It’s not some experiment it is scaling a franchise.

I realize this doesn’t appeal to everyone. For some the current competitive landscape is fine. That’s ok. For others FCB is a welcome change.

I get it, at least to a point.

But if you've paid $3,000 for a full year of training, and then you enter the bottom bracket at Cannon Cup and can't beat a bottom-tier NCSL team ... is it worth it? At this point, we're talking about kids that probably won't make a high school team. Surely there are cheaper options.

You don't get it. The only reason they are in a low bracket to start is because of the idiotic system we have in the US---gotsoccer points. Their oldest boys' team is now in top brackets and killing it. They are now ranked very high and only a few teams ahead of them there solely because they have more points for being around longer.

But, yes, you don't get it. Most people are there because of the values the Academy is teaching their kids and the style of play. It's not a nasty environment like travel clubs with toxic parents and players because of the values they instill. Parents don't care about brackets and wins if they see their kids and teams developing.

Btw, just curious, why are you so focused on the Cannon Cup? Your kid's team tear it up at Cannon or something? Great job 8-year old! FCB had teams in some top tournaments all spring and were winning brackets. They have teams of all different levels. They were only in the lower brackets with some of their teams because that's where they make you start when you have zero record as a new Club.

Frankly, I've had discussions with friends that coach travel and they told me off the record that Clubs are shitting their pants because if people really start liking this product it is going to mean they are going to have to start to change the way they do business. That is why they are freezing them out of things and, apparently, saying inaccurate things on message boards.

So, if you think it's a scam, don't put your kid there. Why you insist on post after post after post tearing it up is beyond me? There is certainly another thread you can go to and brag about the eliteness of your child's team.

We've heard what you think about the price point on about 5 separate posts. Parents and players were happy and are coming back so it shows you something. If they didn't think it was worth it or liked the experience, they would have walked. I don't think most rational parents of 8 and 10-year olds are thinking about HS soccer---and most kids don't even play HS soccer anymore.

[Anonymous]

RantingSoccerDad wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Probably because they do so badly at them. Did you see some of the results in low brackets at the tournaments they played in? Don't want to call out any teams specifically, but some were really bad.

You are completely missing the point. FCB is not interested in brackets and winning tournaments or producing pro players. It’s nice of course but inconsequential to measuring their success. They are following a blueprint that has been successful in dozens of escolas all over the world. They are teaching the Barça style of soccer to the letter as defined by the home office, and teaching a set of values in how they conduct it. That is the formula and it works for them. And, here, the definition of ‘works’ is not winning tournaments but filling seats and following their model. And spreading the Barcelona brand. There are new escolas opening in Ohio, Chicago, many more. It’s not some experiment it is scaling a franchise.

I realize this doesn’t appeal to everyone. For some the current competitive landscape is fine. That’s ok. For others FCB is a welcome change.

I get it, at least to a point.

But if you've paid $3,000 for a full year of training, and then you enter the bottom bracket at Cannon Cup and can't beat a bottom-tier NCSL team ... is it worth it? At this point, we're talking about kids that probably won't make a high school team. Surely there are cheaper options.

You are right. I could spend $1500 less and win The Cannon Cup. Now how did that make my kid a better soccer player again?

[Anonymous]

Ranting soccer dad, you need your kid to grow up before you start talking. You really think you can tell a kid's future athletic prowess at U9??? That is what is different about Barca--they develop every player in their program equally and invest the same amount of time. They don't focus on just 10 players at U9 that appear to be the strongest at age 8....and, then, down the road cut them or move them down when more athletically, skilled kids show up. They are in the 'development business'. They aren't in the 'win every irrelevant tournament in the below U13 age bracket business'.

I get it, it's a new concept for youth soccer in the US. It's hard to grasp for some people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As a soccer fan and parent of a few soccer kids, if kids buy into the Barca style, it will change the way other teams play. Punt and run won't cut it due to a few things. The "true" possession game (not the crap that all coaches preach about) will neutralize any opponent. The facts are that the ball is the fastest object on the field and it never gets tired. In a nut shell, it's playing keep away with the ball and only shooting when the opportunity arises. You'll never really see a Barca being the fastest or strongest, because they don't need to be. Google rondo drills to get a flavor of what this looks like. My kids are older now, but I'd do barca in a heartbeat if I could. Also, don't get hung up on their academy style. Think about it, DA is trying to do what they have always done in Europe. Train large pools of players and the best play in the game.

It works(kick and go) in the younger age groups. There will always be a market for a “winning” u9, u10, etc clubs. Most parents do not really understand soccer. They just watch their kids games which are predominantly kick and go. That’s the type of soccer they see and their kids plays and they win. So that’s the way it is. Get the fastest biggest kids( the smarter coaches will have one or two technical players in midfield) and away you go. The midfield players do not score and therefore are not good in the eyes of the slide parents. Every year you replace a few fast big kids who have not grown with fast big more technical kid from outside the club. Winner winner chicken dinner.

[Anonymous]

This is what I was wondering, whether they actually said No to anyone willing to pay. We went to one of their open tryouts, our kid is still a baby (in my eyes) so our internal debate is whether the time (distance for us) and money (definitely more expensive than our local club) is worth it at such a young age. But it also makes sense that if you buy into FCB philosophy then the younger the start maybe the easier it becomes to be ingrained in that method/style of play.

They don’t want to have the quality of training take a hit so they have a cap on the number of players in the program. That is why there is a waitlist to get in. The number reflects the player-coach ratio and the room. They also had a cap on the number of players in a tryout session when they first opened to get a decent look and avoid the cattle call tryout, I think 30 at a time, and they kept adding sessions to accommodate numbers. They also didn’t just scrimmage like every other tryout we’ve attended. However, from what I understand, they will not increase the size of the Academy in a single location. They invest in development so they don’t discard players. But, if somebody knows more, please correct me if I understood wrong. I do know a few players on the waitlist.

Thanks PP. when we attended one of the last tryouts i figured they just added additional tryouts because they hadn't gotten enough interest, so this insight is helpful
The fact the tryouts were so drastically different (drills vs just scrimmaging) was interesting to us as well. When we stood on the sideline of our U9 tryouts it was really hard to tell how the coaches were going to differentiate these players and whether they were actually looking for players to keep or players to cut.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ranting soccer dad, you need your kid to grow up before you start talking. You really think you can tell a kid's future athletic prowess at U9??? That is what is different about Barca--they develop every player in their program equally and invest the same amount of time. They don't focus on just 10 players at U9 that appear to be the strongest at age 8....and, then, down the road cut them or move them down when more athletically, skilled kids show up. They are in the 'development business'. They aren't in the 'win every irrelevant tournament in the below U13 age bracket business'.

I get it, it's a new concept for youth soccer in the US. It's hard to grasp for some people.

Not just athleticism, but he apparently believes whatever skill you have at age 8 is how skilled you will be down the road. Kids should just give up now. There is no developing of first touch or technical skill after age 8. Let's all throw in the towel and call it a day.

God, idiotic. But, truthfully, that is how most travel clubs operate and they put all their eggs in those top 12 they often turn out rotten in 5-6 years. It's 'Merica!

[Anonymous]

Hmm, when my son played Academy style soccer, the parents were very much like other travel parents. In fact, because the teams were constantly changing, the atmosphere was actually worse, instead of parents jostling to have their kid at the top of the heap at tryouts, it was continuous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hmm, when my son played Academy style soccer, the parents were very much like other travel parents. In fact, because the teams were constantly changing, the atmosphere was actually worse, instead of parents jostling to have their kid at the top of the heap at tryouts, it was continuous.

Were you at FCB last year? I keep hearing this same sentiment. I doubt any of the academy travel clubs remotely resemble what FCB is doing.

If you were at FCB, then we had drastically different experiences.

Again, how is this relevant to FCB if you have never been there or seen how they do it?

In fact, FCB inherited a ton of players from a 'academy style' travel program in NoVA. They apparently were just not sold on that particular Academy program and how it was run, not the Acadmey style in general.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hmm, when my son played Academy style soccer, the parents were very much like other travel parents. In fact, because the teams were constantly changing, the atmosphere was actually worse, instead of parents jostling to have their kid at the top of the heap at tryouts, it was continuous.

Great. Then, don't try out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hmm, when my son played Academy style soccer, the parents were very much like other travel parents. In fact, because the teams were constantly changing, the atmosphere was actually worse, instead of parents jostling to have their kid at the top of the heap at tryouts, it was continuous.

The problem with clubs saying that they are academy style does not necessarily mean they really are. Just having the A and B team practice together does not an academy make. The difference at FCB is multiple age groups and genders are on the fields roughly at the same time. They are broken into groups based on skill and the purpose of the practice. So that means that a kid could regularly practice with a age group one to two years up once a week and then twice a week with his regular group. It is very easy to make sure proper numbers are available for the specific drill by simply moving one or two kids to a different field.

While there are fairly established groups there is enough fluidity that they find ways to challenge all the kids in appropriate manners. There is also no team attachment which leads to a toxic environment due to jealousy or perceived slights. Does that mean some people are not happy? No but many traditional club soccer problems are mitigated minimized as best they can be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hmm, when my son played Academy style soccer, the parents were very much like other travel parents. In fact, because the teams were constantly changing, the atmosphere was actually worse, instead of parents jostling to have their kid at the top of the heap at tryouts, it was continuous.

The problem with clubs saying that they are academy style does not necessarily mean they really are. Just having the A and B team practice together does not an academy make. The difference at FCB is multiple age groups and genders are on the fields roughly at the same time. They are broken into groups based on skill and the purpose of the practice. So that means that a kid could regularly practice with a age group one to two years up once a week and then twice a week with his regular group. It is very easy to make sure proper numbers are available for the specific drill by simply moving one or two kids to a different field.

While there are fairly established groups there is enough fluidity that they find ways to challenge all the kids in appropriate manners. There is also no team attachment which leads to a toxic environment due to jealousy or perceived slights. Does that mean some people are not happy? No but many traditional club soccer problems are mitigated minimized as best they can be.

Different poster. I'll add to this. And, obviously, the coaching staff and resources. These guys are professionals and Coaching is a career. They have the highest certifications. FCB backs them. They aren't doing this after work as a second source of income.

The difference is, all of these 12-15 Coaches and TD take an active part in training every kid in the program. All Coaches coach all age groups. The Coaches rotate groups and they intimately know every player in the Academy and everything about them (weakness, strength, their first instinct, what they need to develop). Clip boards out at every session. Multiple coaches with any group at any one time. They review and analyze when they aren't coaching sessions.

At our tournaments, we often had 3-4 coaches and the TD at our games. If a coach was free, he was watching another game.

My own kids travel teams, we had two Finals in tournaments where the Coach didn't show up and another where he showed up at half-time. The TD had never seen my kids play. The coaches to the age groups they were graduating had never watched a single game all season yet were picking the teams for the following year. Now, I am not faulting them. That is just the way travel Clubs run. Limited resources because the people giving their time have other obligations/jobs, etc.

And, if another Coach has to fill in, it runs seamlessly because they know the plan and they personally know all of the kids.

So- it's different for sure.

[Anonymous]

To say your academy style and then go out a seperate the A & B teams defeats the purpose. they should all train together within same age groups. at weekly games rosters mixed up week to week to develop the "Academy" not until the get to u17 or u18 should there be a top or A team. thats what is suppose to make it academy style. the intent of developing the academy as a whole. this is not what is practiced at most so called academy style programs like
Loudon
BRYC
Mclean
they tend to put together an A team that sticks together at the expense of their B teams. and push winning first development a far 2nd . I love how clubs like Bryc claim outrages numbers of former players in playing on college teams but don't tell you only 1 or 2 are on soccer scholarships . and many more stop playing after 1 or 2 yrs into college. its all a marketing money grab.