Montgomery County Soccer

[Anonymous]

Recommendations for the best soccer program for a 4 year old this spring? There seems to be many programs to choose from and it’s a bit overwhelming. I’m looking for something that will be a real introduction to the sport, for a kid that has been able to kick a soccer ball since he was 12 months old.

[Anonymous]

There's really no program at that age that's aimed at elite/serious players. Soccer programs at age 4 are open to all, and most of the kids will have never played before. As a result, the coach will need to coach to kids at every level, including the "I'd rather be on the swings but my parents think I should be in an organized activity" level. The programs that we've liked better were more about the coach being able to keep the kids engaged rather than teach them high-level offensive strategies. Keeping them engaged often means the right mix of levity and authority combined with drills that are disguised as somewhat silly games.

At that age, you're not going to find a program that takes it super seriously, because if they did, most of the kids would drop out.

FWIW, we've had good experiences with Brit Am and PPA, but if you do a search, you'll find mixed reviews on every program. Stoddert is supposed to be good, but I don't know if they start at age 4.