Can someone please break down all of these different soccer clubs for me?

[Anonymous]

Live in Downtown Silver Spring. Son will be in first grade. I have heard of Takoma Soccer, MSI, and PPA. What are the differences between any of these? Others we should be looking at? Thanks so much!

[Anonymous]

MSI is a recreational league with volunteer parent coaches. The fees are very modest, about $100 per season for winter and again for spring.

MSI gets all types of players from really good ones to kids who are forced to go by their parents. Every team will have a few kids that act silly or run off the field in the middle of the game. It's all good fun and most parents don't care. There are always a few parents who are hyper competitive with their kids at this age and get upset about this. If you happen to be one of those parents you should look at a different type of club.

PPA has professional coaching and is much more expensive. Their league is described as developmental, kind of equivalent of MSI Classic which the next highest level of MSI play above MSI Rec. But MSI Classic doesn't have 1st grade teams (or 2nd or 3rd) which is why PPA is doing very well. As a result most of those kids really want to be there and you will get fewer of the kids who aren't paying attention so there is a very different feel to the games.

[Anonymous]

PP again. Unless your school has enough kids for its own PPA team I would go with MSI for a 1st grader. Unless your child is really in to soccer, at this age it's about getting a fun introduction to the game and being with friends.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:MSI is a recreational league with volunteer parent coaches. The fees are very modest, about $100 per season for winter and again for spring.

MSI gets all types of players from really good ones to kids who are forced to go by their parents. Every team will have a few kids that act silly or run off the field in the middle of the game. It's all good fun and most parents don't care. There are always a few parents who are hyper competitive with their kids at this age and get upset about this. If you happen to be one of those parents you should look at a different type of club.

PPA has professional coaching and is much more expensive. Their league is described as developmental, kind of equivalent of MSI Classic which the next highest level of MSI play above MSI Rec. But MSI Classic doesn't have 1st grade teams (or 2nd or 3rd) which is why PPA is doing very well. As a result most of those kids really want to be there and you will get fewer of the kids who aren't paying attention so there is a very different feel to the games.

Thank you, that is very helpful. Oh, and what about Stoddert? Should that one be considered, as well?

[Anonymous]

Assuming you mean Stoddert rec. It's kind of the DC equivalent of MSI with similar advantages and disadvantages. Most of the families I know who do Stoddert live in NW D.C. and are part of a school team, but I would guess there are a teams all over.