GA & MLS NEXT Form Strategic Alliance

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It will be interesting to see how far the GA / MLS Next partnership goes.

Hopefully NWSL will get onboard and GA can rename itself to NWSL Next.

GA becoming NWSLNext? You VAR, TSJ, SYC parents are funny.

Why else would the be partnering with MLS Next. Get a clue.

They partnered 5 years ago. GA has crumbled in that time.

How do you define “crumbled”? GA has grown the number of clubs significantly over those 5 years. More clubs means more revenues. More clubs means bigger showcases, more sponsors, more teams participating, and again more revenues. By any objective measure used to evaluate businesses (because it is in fact a business), GA is most certainly not crumbling but expanding.

GA is a base spring from not existing. Their future may be bright but they have to get through this spring and not lose their top teams to Ecnl. That is a possibility. That is why this announcement was made. It determines everything they do right now. If they hold they can build. If they can’t hold it is game over.

[Anonymous]

What top clubs are thinking about leaving GA?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you follow identityhybrid on ig, he speaks on youth soccer….This is what he said about the alliance…

📍This is a strategic chess move.
Rook to B5 if you will.

1. Solidifying pre-professional pathway. Laying the ground work on professional pathway via NWSL (remember you don't need to go to college and enter the draft anymore. Remember over 10 players under 17 have signed pro contracts).

2. Isolation of ECNL on one side. Collegiate only pathway.
This will be a 2-3 year ripple. Around 2026 / 2027. World Cup Years.📍

It will also likely affect littles.

If certain leagues choose to stay BY they'll also need a youngers feeder funnel. If all the current youngers leagues switch to SY it will force a rival BY youngers league to form.

In the end...

Rec -> ecnl -> college will exist as one path.
Rec ->MLSN/GA -> pro/college will exist as the highest level league.

All the ECNL hats are trying to say that MLSN + GA working together doesn't mean anything. But they're only doing this because they don't understand MLS's power on the boys side.

MLS Next has about 150 clubs and MLS really only center on the 30 academies.

ECNL/RL is what, 4-5 times larger about with about 600-700 clubs if you separate out boys and girls and RL an NL.

You sure MLS wants the headache of running all of youth soccer to help it's 30 academies? US Soccer didn't want the headache. MLS would sooner stop funding their academies (more or less shit them down) then throw large amounts of money to take on ECNL.

600-700 clubs?

Do each of these clubs only have like 6 players? 😂

Dumb take, with inaccurate information.

ECNL girls 130, ECNL boys 150, ECRL girls 250, ECRL boys 270. Roster max per team of 30.

50% of the RLs are attached to the same club as the NL genius.

About 100,000 players under ECNL/RL and about 16,000 under MLS Next.

So ECNL/RL is not 4-5 times larger than MLS Next, it is over 6 times larger.

The posted that started this thread was talking about clubs…not teams, not player pools. Then they proceeded to break “clubs” into genders and leagues to get to their point. That poster was wrong.

Yes there are more ECNL kids than MLSN kids…not the point.

There's always more rec players than elite players.

So other than supporting their 30 academies, why would MLS want to be in charge of / responsible for rec soccer?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What top clubs are thinking about leaving GA?

A lot of them already left.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What top clubs are thinking about leaving GA?

A lot of them already left.

But which ones are leaving?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What top clubs are thinking about leaving GA?

A lot of them already left.

But which ones are leaving?

GA added more clubs than they lost last year. As long as there are clubs ready to replace them it doesn’t matter too much which clubs are there. They all pay the same dues.

The same people said GA was done because the top clubs left last year, but there is no evidence of any impact from last year’s clubs leaving even though they were the “top” clubs. Forgive me for not being convinced when they say again if some top clubs leave this time it’s over. I’ve heard the sky is falling too many times.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What top clubs are thinking about leaving GA?

A lot of them already left.

But which ones are leaving?

GA added more clubs than they lost last year. As long as there are clubs ready to replace them it doesn’t matter too much which clubs are there. They all pay the same dues.

The same people said GA was done because the top clubs left last year, but there is no evidence of any impact from last year’s clubs leaving even though they were the “top” clubs. Forgive me for not being convinced when they say again if some top clubs leave this time it’s over. I’ve heard the sky is falling too many times.

Seems like GA, MCL Next and ECNL shopping for USYS clubs to grow and to add lower ages. And all 3 are growing.

[Anonymous]

It's going to be fun watching ECNL get a taste of it's own mecine with MLSN and GA working together to pressure clubs.

So many clubs would drop ECNL in a heartbeat fir MLSN.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's going to be fun watching ECNL get a taste of it's own mecine with MLSN and GA working together to pressure clubs.

So many clubs would drop ECNL in a heartbeat fir MLSN.

for not fir (phone typing issue)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you follow identityhybrid on ig, he speaks on youth soccer….This is what he said about the alliance…

📍This is a strategic chess move.
Rook to B5 if you will.

1. Solidifying pre-professional pathway. Laying the ground work on professional pathway via NWSL (remember you don't need to go to college and enter the draft anymore. Remember over 10 players under 17 have signed pro contracts).

2. Isolation of ECNL on one side. Collegiate only pathway.
This will be a 2-3 year ripple. Around 2026 / 2027. World Cup Years.📍

It will also likely affect littles.

If certain leagues choose to stay BY they'll also need a youngers feeder funnel. If all the current youngers leagues switch to SY it will force a rival BY youngers league to form.

In the end...

Rec -> ecnl -> college will exist as one path.
Rec ->MLSN/GA -> pro/college will exist as the highest level league.

All the ECNL hats are trying to say that MLSN + GA working together doesn't mean anything. But they're only doing this because they don't understand MLS's power on the boys side.

MLS Next has about 150 clubs and MLS really only center on the 30 academies.

ECNL/RL is what, 4-5 times larger about with about 600-700 clubs if you separate out boys and girls and RL an NL.

You sure MLS wants the headache of running all of youth soccer to help it's 30 academies? US Soccer didn't want the headache. MLS would sooner stop funding their academies (more or less shit them down) then throw large amounts of money to take on ECNL.

600-700 clubs?

Do each of these clubs only have like 6 players? 😂

Dumb take, with inaccurate information.

ECNL girls 130, ECNL boys 150, ECRL girls 250, ECRL boys 270. Roster max per team of 30.

50% of the RLs are attached to the same club as the NL genius.

About 100,000 players under ECNL/RL and about 16,000 under MLS Next.

So ECNL/RL is not 4-5 times larger than MLS Next, it is over 6 times larger.

The posted that started this thread was talking about clubs…not teams, not player pools. Then they proceeded to break “clubs” into genders and leagues to get to their point. That poster was wrong.

Yes there are more ECNL kids than MLSN kids…not the point.

There's always more rec players than elite players.

So other than supporting their 30 academies, why would MLS want to be in charge of / responsible for rec soccer?

Poster talking about most ECNL teams.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Things I believe to be true

1. The GA/MLSN, while meaningful, will not fundamentally change the landscape
2. I would MUCH rather be a GA playoff team than a 500 ECNL team.
3. If I had a choice between a GA and an ECNL playoff team I would choose ECNL
4. A majority of top teams on both sides are talent aggregators, not talent developers. The true development comes outside of 1.5 hours of club practice 3X a week
5. US Soccer/GA/ECNL need an outlet for kids that are truly all in on elite soccer so kids dont have to patchwork quilt S&C, technical development, film study, tactics, team play, etc.
6. There has to be a way to play competitive games without spending 2K in travel 15 times a year to play league games and another 3-4K to go play a 4-5 day long showcase/playoff event
7. We should get “for profit” clubs out of youth sports. Their mission is fundamentally misaligned with youth development. I know of an alphabet club that is 2X more expensive than their closest 401c3 rival and that rival has better coaching standards, better fields, better programming and better admin. You cant tell me that is better for youth sports.

Points make some sense other than 2. You would still want to be on an Ecnl team for the exposure. On the GA playoff team your 1-8 or even 1-11 may be fine. The bottom of your team is not being recruited. Bottom of bad Ecnl teams are still being recruited.

Top 2-3 of GA teams in most conferences better than bottom half of ECNL teams in overlapping geography across most age groups. Not always but most of the time. Pretty simple to look up results.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Things I believe to be true

1. The GA/MLSN, while meaningful, will not fundamentally change the landscape
2. I would MUCH rather be a GA playoff team than a 500 ECNL team.
3. If I had a choice between a GA and an ECNL playoff team I would choose ECNL
4. A majority of top teams on both sides are talent aggregators, not talent developers. The true development comes outside of 1.5 hours of club practice 3X a week
5. US Soccer/GA/ECNL need an outlet for kids that are truly all in on elite soccer so kids dont have to patchwork quilt S&C, technical development, film study, tactics, team play, etc.
6. There has to be a way to play competitive games without spending 2K in travel 15 times a year to play league games and another 3-4K to go play a 4-5 day long showcase/playoff event
7. We should get “for profit” clubs out of youth sports. Their mission is fundamentally misaligned with youth development. I know of an alphabet club that is 2X more expensive than their closest 401c3 rival and that rival has better coaching standards, better fields, better programming and better admin. You cant tell me that is better for youth sports.

Points make some sense other than 2. You would still want to be on an Ecnl team for the exposure. On the GA playoff team your 1-8 or even 1-11 may be fine. The bottom of your team is not being recruited. Bottom of bad Ecnl teams are still being recruited.

Top 2-3 of GA teams in most conferences better than bottom half of ECNL teams in overlapping geography across most age groups. Not always but most of the time. Pretty simple to look up results.

It also depends on the conference. Certain GA conferences are better than others. Just like ECNL. Many of the top GA conference winners would beat ECNL conference winners. It all depends on what's being compared.

This is why many GA parents get annoyed with the coat tail ECNL parents who's kids play on sucky ECNL teams but love to comment online about how ECNL is somehow "better". Sorry, the ability to get blown out week after week isn't an attribute.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Things I believe to be true

1. The GA/MLSN, while meaningful, will not fundamentally change the landscape
2. I would MUCH rather be a GA playoff team than a 500 ECNL team.
3. If I had a choice between a GA and an ECNL playoff team I would choose ECNL
4. A majority of top teams on both sides are talent aggregators, not talent developers. The true development comes outside of 1.5 hours of club practice 3X a week
5. US Soccer/GA/ECNL need an outlet for kids that are truly all in on elite soccer so kids dont have to patchwork quilt S&C, technical development, film study, tactics, team play, etc.
6. There has to be a way to play competitive games without spending 2K in travel 15 times a year to play league games and another 3-4K to go play a 4-5 day long showcase/playoff event
7. We should get “for profit” clubs out of youth sports. Their mission is fundamentally misaligned with youth development. I know of an alphabet club that is 2X more expensive than their closest 401c3 rival and that rival has better coaching standards, better fields, better programming and better admin. You cant tell me that is better for youth sports.

Points make some sense other than 2. You would still want to be on an Ecnl team for the exposure. On the GA playoff team your 1-8 or even 1-11 may be fine. The bottom of your team is not being recruited. Bottom of bad Ecnl teams are still being recruited.

Top 2-3 of GA teams in most conferences better than bottom half of ECNL teams in overlapping geography across most age groups. Not always but most of the time. Pretty simple to look up results.

I am in Illinois and, at the top three recruiting ages, the GA and ECNL are basically equal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Things I believe to be true

1. The GA/MLSN, while meaningful, will not fundamentally change the landscape
2. I would MUCH rather be a GA playoff team than a 500 ECNL team.
3. If I had a choice between a GA and an ECNL playoff team I would choose ECNL
4. A majority of top teams on both sides are talent aggregators, not talent developers. The true development comes outside of 1.5 hours of club practice 3X a week
5. US Soccer/GA/ECNL need an outlet for kids that are truly all in on elite soccer so kids dont have to patchwork quilt S&C, technical development, film study, tactics, team play, etc.
6. There has to be a way to play competitive games without spending 2K in travel 15 times a year to play league games and another 3-4K to go play a 4-5 day long showcase/playoff event
7. We should get “for profit” clubs out of youth sports. Their mission is fundamentally misaligned with youth development. I know of an alphabet club that is 2X more expensive than their closest 401c3 rival and that rival has better coaching standards, better fields, better programming and better admin. You cant tell me that is better for youth sports.

I’d rather 1000x be a GA playoff team than any ECNL playoff team that is not 1st or 2nd in their division.

Why would you want to fly out to Washington state as the 4th seed in your conference with no chance of winning anything.

It all depends on your end goal. If you're still in the u-little mindset of winning trophies, then I see your point. If you're trying to get recruited to college by getting exposure to a ton of college coaches in a very competitive environment, then you are dead wrong. College coaches could care less if your team wins or not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Things I believe to be true

1. The GA/MLSN, while meaningful, will not fundamentally change the landscape
2. I would MUCH rather be a GA playoff team than a 500 ECNL team.
3. If I had a choice between a GA and an ECNL playoff team I would choose ECNL
4. A majority of top teams on both sides are talent aggregators, not talent developers. The true development comes outside of 1.5 hours of club practice 3X a week
5. US Soccer/GA/ECNL need an outlet for kids that are truly all in on elite soccer so kids dont have to patchwork quilt S&C, technical development, film study, tactics, team play, etc.
6. There has to be a way to play competitive games without spending 2K in travel 15 times a year to play league games and another 3-4K to go play a 4-5 day long showcase/playoff event
7. We should get “for profit” clubs out of youth sports. Their mission is fundamentally misaligned with youth development. I know of an alphabet club that is 2X more expensive than their closest 401c3 rival and that rival has better coaching standards, better fields, better programming and better admin. You cant tell me that is better for youth sports.

Points make some sense other than 2. You would still want to be on an Ecnl team for the exposure. On the GA playoff team your 1-8 or even 1-11 may be fine. The bottom of your team is not being recruited. Bottom of bad Ecnl teams are still being recruited.

Top 2-3 of GA teams in most conferences better than bottom half of ECNL teams in overlapping geography across most age groups. Not always but most of the time. Pretty simple to look up results.

It also depends on the conference. Certain GA conferences are better than others. Just like ECNL. Many of the top GA conference winners would beat ECNL conference winners. It all depends on what's being compared.

This is why many GA parents get annoyed with the coat tail ECNL parents who's kids play on sucky ECNL teams but love to comment online about how ECNL is somehow "better". Sorry, the ability to get blown out week after week isn't an attribute.

ECNL conference winners would wipe the floor with GA conference winners. Nationals (Michigan) was a perennial powerhouse with multiple team national championships and several overall club national championships. Take a look at Midwest standings. They’re doing fine but nowhere near their success in GA.