MLS Next vs ECNL vs GA

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Imagine the shift to the local landscape if Arlington and/or Loudoun(NVA) switched to MLS Next/GA in an effort to salvage their boys programs. And I’m sure MLS and GA would take either of them. Now imagine 1-2 teams in every metro area doing the same. It doesn’t take much. If you have the soccer rankings app, there are virtually no ECNL Boys teams in the top 20 nationally. I don’t see how this doesn’t happen.

Arlington may belong in MLS next but definitely not Loudoun. Actually, both clubs have DC united's kids that couldn't play full time for them.

What do you mean DCU kids couldn't play full time for them? Can you elaborate on that?

They have placed some kids on the arlington and loudoun teams where they get playing time. They may not get much playing time at DCU.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This has the potential to let ECNL boys die. Before MLS Next and GA, USSF DA was putting pressure on ECNL, and ECNL won on the girls side. IMO, wasn't actually anything merit based but more of an inside job, selling off the market to ECNL. Now with the rise of MLS Next, ECNL doesn't have someone on the inside of MLS Next that would help them maintain control in the market like they did on the girls side.

Time will correct the market on this. The question is, will ECNL's strangle hold on the girls market suffer with clubs shifting girls programs over to a growing GA market?

GA market not growing despite SYC. GA is not a great product for its purpose -- college. It is an ok product and the top teams do fine. But that is all. IN ECNL, bad teams do fine; good teams do great. No way anyone would give up ECNL for GA to help the boys side. Too much money on the girls side.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This has the potential to let ECNL boys die. Before MLS Next and GA, USSF DA was putting pressure on ECNL, and ECNL won on the girls side. IMO, wasn't actually anything merit based but more of an inside job, selling off the market to ECNL. Now with the rise of MLS Next, ECNL doesn't have someone on the inside of MLS Next that would help them maintain control in the market like they did on the girls side.

Time will correct the market on this. The question is, will ECNL's strangle hold on the girls market suffer with clubs shifting girls programs over to a growing GA market?

GA market not growing despite SYC. GA is not a great product for its purpose -- college. It is an ok product and the top teams do fine. But that is all. IN ECNL, bad teams do fine; good teams do great. No way anyone would give up ECNL for GA to help the boys side. Too much money on the girls side.

And there's money on the boys side too. Even more so now with MLS Next rolling out what is essentially the stateside version of solidarity payments to clubs.

[Anonymous]

ECNL boys may be finished as we know it

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:ECNL boys may be finished as we know it

What is it now and what may change?

[Anonymous]

MLS payment to mls next clubs if they produce a player in the mls next. Directors of ECNL clubs will flock

[Anonymous]

I think the Development Grants are great and really good for US soccer. But I can’t help but be a little cynical. They did this because they were getting sued. Messi and the Apple broadcast deal helped them a lot but these are not huge money making Clubs.
Can’t help but thinking about the CTE/NFL article from this weekend and believe that money is going to be awfully tough to come by.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think the Development Grants are great and really good for US soccer. But I can’t help but be a little cynical. They did this because they were getting sued. Messi and the Apple broadcast deal helped them a lot but these are not huge money making Clubs.
Can’t help but thinking about the CTE/NFL article from this weekend and believe that money is going to be awfully tough to come by.

I join you in camp cynical.

[Anonymous]

I’ve been in and around the elite amateur sports scene in this country for 30+ years. In no other sport do pro teams have to pay youth clubs and their directors to incentivize player development. I had never heard the term “player pathway” until my kids started playing soccer. The entire youth travel soccer landscape is a scam designed to enrich and maintain the status of the current gatekeepers who sell naive parents on the value of this “pathway.” These MLS payments are nothing more than an extension of the problem, and if your club leaders tell you otherwise, they are on the take.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’ve been in and around the elite amateur sports scene in this country for 30+ years. In no other sport do pro teams have to pay youth clubs and their directors to incentivize player development. I had never heard the term “player pathway” until my kids started playing soccer. The entire youth travel soccer landscape is a scam designed to enrich and maintain the status of the current gatekeepers who sell naive parents on the value of this “pathway.” These MLS payments are nothing more than an extension of the problem, and if your club leaders tell you otherwise, they are on the take.

Hyperbole

[Anonymous]

On GA vs ECNL, how about some data?

From the soccer rankings app:

GA teams in top 100 nationally by year:
2011 17
2010 22
2009 19
2008 16
2007 25
2006/5 22

So about 20% of the top girls teams nationally are GA, about 5% are Elite 64, and 75% are ECNL.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:On GA vs ECNL, how about some data?

From the soccer rankings app:

GA teams in top 100 nationally by year:
2011 17
2010 22
2009 19
2008 16
2007 25
2006/5 22

So about 20% of the top girls teams nationally are GA, about 5% are Elite 64, and 75% are ECNL.

Yes, that’s about right and it should be that way since teams jumped to ECNL after DA broke. Still impressive that in under 5 years, GA has taken that much of Ecnls market share.

[Anonymous]

Now what happens when Boys ECNL teams want to compete at events like MLS Next Fest…that would require ditching ECNL and possibly moving their girls teams

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Now what happens when Boys ECNL teams want to compete at events like MLS Next Fest…that would require ditching ECNL and possibly moving their girls teams

Weird "what happens"

How would teams from one league compete in a tournament exclusive to another league?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:On GA vs ECNL, how about some data?

From the soccer rankings app:

GA teams in top 100 nationally by year:
2011 17
2010 22
2009 19
2008 16
2007 25
2006/5 22

So about 20% of the top girls teams nationally are GA, about 5% are Elite 64, and 75% are ECNL.

20% is very good when you consider that GA clubs don't play in a lot non-GA events which then they don't get "points" in soccer rankings sites. GA Championship Cup Teams don't play in Jefferson Cup because they're only 3 days a part. So to have 20% of the GA teams that are nationally ranked means they won or placed high in the very limited number of non-GA tournaments that they played in. I also think that the ECNL league is calculated into the score but i'm not sure if the GA League is (it wasn't a couple years ago when i was following it). Almost every event an ECNL team does is ranked while only part of a GA team's schedule is. Unless all events are ranked by the same system, then we're comparing apples to oranges.