It's tough out there with coaching--coaches may move, kids grow and their favorite coach stays with their previous age group, etc...

But in our experience, the club with the best overall coaching was PAC in Falls Church.
Also, we've never had a kid there, but Alexandria also looks like they are well-trained.

Anonymous wrote:

Nova2Euro wrote:I just wonder why the Boys U11 division has a "Juniors" bracket which appears to be all U10 teams. Why not just have all those teams in the U10 division?

Does the nomenclature of "playing up" mean that much to someone?

They will play 9 v 9 instead of 7 v 7

Good to know, makes sense. Thanks!

I just wonder why the Boys U11 division has a "Juniors" bracket which appears to be all U10 teams. Why not just have all those teams in the U10 division?

Does the nomenclature of "playing up" mean that much to someone?

Same parents that complain about advertising for new coaches also complain about how there's no "new blood" or "fresh ideas"

OP asked about academy-to-academy transfers to EU.

Has any player actually done this? I don't think so?

Anonymous wrote:

Nova2Euro wrote:Barcelona IS a bit of an exception, but Xavi Simons joined La Masia at 7 or 8 from Club Deportivo Thader in Spain, IIRC. So he was both a) not a teenager coming from another academy, and b) not recruited from out of the country. Maybe his moving to PSG Academy would be an actual example of a teenager moving academies, but PSG paid him $1 million/year, so probably not an academy contract.

Alphone Davies moved as a teenager, but signed a first-team contract before moving and then signed a first-team contract with Bayern.

Bottom line is that it's always better to have an organization pursue you than to try to push your way in. So this young man from PU isn't "looking at" clubs in Europe. They're looking at him, and they're not looking at him for an academy. He'll prove himself as a USL or MLS player and then make a move. I wish him the best!

Realistically, unless we have access to UEFA Youth player card transfer data, we can't state for or against as knowledgeable verifiable fact.
Outside of personal intimate knowledge of players, the only ones we hear about are the 1%ers superstars.

Yes, kids come from everywhere in Belgium, Holland, Germany, Spain etc to the biggest academies in those countries.


But they also all have access to academies in other EU countries.

No, not as "verifiable fact." But has anyone come up with a single example of a single player transferring directly from an MLS academy to a European academy (the OPs original question)?

Anonymous wrote:

Nova2Euro wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

If you're serious with goals of being a soccer professional, there is no way you stay at Philadelphia Union over the clubs it's rumored Cavan Sullivan is looking at in Europe.
Young Kids in Europe cross borders to different countries/languages all the time for development opportunities.

I don't think the bolded part is true. I'm not saying it doesn't happen, but it doesn't happen all the time. It happens if an opportunity at their local professional academy or at one in their country is not available. And I think it's vanishingly rare for 16-year-olds. Cristiano Ronaldo, Erling Haaland, Gio Reyna, and 99% of players come up to the first team in their club. I'm willing to be corrected on this if you have data or examples, but I've seen lots of kids move to professional academies in-country. A few trials out of country, but no one actually moved.

I don’t disagree with this. It make sense for kids to move in-country to an academy where the competition is lighter perhaps.

For a dual passport holder, there would seem to be more opportunities in Europe, for example, than the USA where so many more kids around the country are vying for spots on just about two dozen MLS academies.

No doubt there's more opportunity in Europe. But it's not about the competition being lighter--it's about there not being as many stupid gatekeepers as in the US. 2 dozen MLS academies. How does a kid get into those? Their coach knows a coach, etc. Hah, even the MLS academies try to protect themselves from playing non-MLS academy clubs. Ridiculous. Just play the games!

Around U12 professional academy teams are set. They challenge kids by moving them up the ranks until they arrive at the inevitable decision: 1st team contract (5%-ish, or 1 per academy team), loan (45%-ish, 8 or 9 per team), or release (50%).

Barcelona IS a bit of an exception, but Xavi Simons joined La Masia at 7 or 8 from Club Deportivo Thader in Spain, IIRC. So he was both a) not a teenager coming from another academy, and b) not recruited from out of the country. Maybe his moving to PSG Academy would be an actual example of a teenager moving academies, but PSG paid him $1 million/year, so probably not an academy contract.

Alphone Davies moved as a teenager, but signed a first-team contract before moving and then signed a first-team contract with Bayern.

Bottom line is that it's always better to have an organization pursue you than to try to push your way in. So this young man from PU isn't "looking at" clubs in Europe. They're looking at him, and they're not looking at him for an academy. He'll prove himself as a USL or MLS player and then make a move. I wish him the best!

Anonymous wrote:

If you're serious with goals of being a soccer professional, there is no way you stay at Philadelphia Union over the clubs it's rumored Cavan Sullivan is looking at in Europe.
Young Kids in Europe cross borders to different countries/languages all the time for development opportunities.

I don't think the bolded part is true. I'm not saying it doesn't happen, but it doesn't happen all the time. It happens if an opportunity at their local professional academy or at one in their country is not available. And I think it's vanishingly rare for 16-year-olds. Cristiano Ronaldo, Erling Haaland, Gio Reyna, and 99% of players come up to the first team in their club. I'm willing to be corrected on this if you have data or examples, but I've seen lots of kids move to professional academies in-country. A few trials out of country, but no one actually moved.

Right. That's the thing. A player with a dual passport can move any time they choose. But why pull a kid out of an environment where they are thriving and progressing towards a pro? It's tough to move as a teenager.

Especially if they're not comfortable with the language (passport notwithstanding), they'll miss out on valuable coaching in the formative mid-teen years. That's why 99% of the time players will stay where they are thriving until they are ready to sign a first-team contract.

Even with a first-team contract, they will probably still go out on loan or play on a lower-level team within the club.

btw, the DCU academy player who went to AZ Alkmaar is now back in the US on a college team. That's not where AZ hopes to send its players.

Yes, there's been at least one who moved to NLD with his family and, after playing on a local team and getting noticed/recommended, ended up at AZ Alkmaar academy.

Several DCU academy alumni have signed contracts with European teams in the past few years. Info available via google.

Bottom line for any academy, worldwide, is that most of the kids won't make the first team.

To be fair, though...
A lot of young European players--including graduates of elite academies--might *look* less capable than their US counterparts because they're not frantically racing up and down the field kicking and chasing.

Not a great display of technical prowess by the white team. Quality first touches would have made a world of difference.

I understand it can be tough for the kid if either a) they feel that they are not challenged enough, or b) they're operating at a different level from perhaps less talented/committed/athletic teammates and therefore have little opportunity to employ their own talents. I had a son experience that at the U11 level. It frustrated him to the point that he dreaded matches, where the team would regularly lose 0-8.

My suggestions:

1) ask if your player can train 1-2 times/week with a higher-level team;
2) Each game, focus on one particular area/goal and make that "victory," i.e. "pass 5 times with my weaker foot," or "beat 3 players on the dribble";
3) Ask if you can join a higher-level team for a tournament;
4) Encourage him to relax and be friends with his teammates. Yeah, they might not be great at football. But at least some of them are probably awesome kids and could be good friends.