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We did something similar with our club last year. I had a verbal agreement with both coaches prior to practice that my kid could practice 1 time per week with the other team. The only problem was, the kids on the lower team and some of their parents became overly concerned and voiced their displeasure to the coach! But my kid did get a big head and tell the other kids that they were better than them, which ticked off some kids. I for sure would have a conversation with your kid about what to say to their teammates: I would recommend you tell your kid say something like you want to challenge yourself more and get better -vs- you are better than them. --Just be aware there could be some parental/ kid jealousy issues with this. But hopefully not!
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:This is a scam. If they were interested in pulling in the best talent, they'd have an open tryout with no fee or a $25 fee to cover the field costs. They are trying to make money at every turn. Run away.
Oh and travel soccer is not a scam?
It is, but travel soccer doesn't force you to buy $250 worth of merchandise for five days of use.
Oh, I must be a horrible soccer mom then, since I thought my 11 year old daughter could proudly wear official AC Milan jerseys, shorts, and socks like Christian Pulisic. I would hate for anyone seeing my daughter wear the same team jersey that the captain and star of the US National Men's Soccer team wears. I had no idea these were throw away, one time use jerseys, shorts, socks, and gymbag. They also have clearly stated you wear the same clothes for the academy.
Consumers Ed: There's now something called Amazon. Save yourself $150.
Or venture on to ebay for even cheaper finds. Or if you are feeling extra frugal just go on to Ali baba!
Maybe not all of us want or buy cheap knockoffs or fakes. Doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out most knockoffs, fakes, and counterfeit items are usually made with much less quality materials and don't last as long. There is a reason why Amazon and Ebay have both cracked down and shut down many 3rd part sellers selling knockoffs, fakes, and counterfeit items. You might as well save even more money and go to a dollar store or Walmart and buy a cheap shirt and iron or sew your team's patch or iron on logo. lol Not knocking it, but just been burned too many times by them.
Wonder if the AC Milan Pulisic Kits will be for sale by the tournament venders over the next two weekends! They are usually $40 for the Shirt and Shorts! Time to stock up on Christmas Gifts!
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Is it common for a club to have two teams per age group? For example, two teams in U10 girls? Can anyone speak to the dynamics about this?
Also, if the club only has 1 or 2 teams per age group, this is considered a small club…. And growth a development might be limited if are serious about soccer. We are stuck in a small club now, our eyes are open to how bigger vs small clubs operate. We are crushed by the bigger clubs regularly. We are run over at all tournaments also. With more kids, it allows the club to pay for better coaching staff and run better clinics and eventually develop higher level teams in higher leagues that the small clubs won’t even compete in. (There may be exceptions.) I’m starting to develop the opinion that small clubs are like glorified Rec programs.
DC United scouting department apparently does not share your sentiment about the quality of "small clubs".
Seen at several small clubs games this season.
You haven't seen my small club. Lots of individual coaches, all doing separate practices, club leadership not quality checking practices, but yet the club charges premium fees. Clinics are few and not very effective. However, I absolutely think there are some great small clubs.... just not in my neck of the woods.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:The lower teams at the big clubs are basically expensive rec teams. They take everyone who tries out, and just make more teams.
I see this sentiment often, and it is inaccurate.
We have two kids playing for a big club (5 teams per age group), and every year, at most 60% of kids even make a team. I hate this, I wish more kids could make a team, but coaching and field space constrains it.
The third-fifth teamers are still absolute stand-outs in rec (which I also coach).
Whether or not you think the coaching is better, the competition definitely is, club soccer practices more, and gets better field space.
My former fifth team DD who now plays ECNL is happy she didn’t stick with rec.
Thats great you daughter went from the 5th team to ECNL! Gives me some hope!
My daughter at 9 used it for about 2 months.... she wasn't into it. I think for older kids they might like it more. She also complained that they are too tight on her shoes, but the bigger size is too big. As a dad, I loved all the data. So, I thought it was great. If she had a friend to compete with, it would be better.
Anonymous wrote:Does anyone know roughly how many kids try out for winter futsal, and again roughly what percentage make it onto a team?
I would say almost every kid U9-U12 who tried out or went to an ID session made it onto a team. Also, from our Club team, 20 kids play outdoor soccer and 14 decided to sign up to play Futsal. So 70% wanted to play and 100% were put on a team....but only after they paid their futsal fees.
Anonymous wrote:Outdoors in december from 5-9 pm on one of the most expensive rental fields in Northern Va?
That says to me they can't qualify for county field permits, so where is their Academy going to be permanently located? Mailing address in Vienna. We all know there is NO field space without building your own somewhere.
This seems rushed and poorly planned. 5-9pm for $800 for 5 school nights in December? Just to be invited to a AC Milan Experience tour later next year? Screams total money grab.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Is it common for a club to have two teams per age group? For example, two teams in U10 girls? Can anyone speak to the dynamics about this?
Also, if the club only has 1 or 2 teams per age group, this is considered a small club…. And growth a development might be limited if are serious about soccer. We are stuck in a small club now, our eyes are open to how bigger vs small clubs operate. We are crushed by the bigger clubs regularly. We are run over at all tournaments also. With more kids, it allows the club to pay for better coaching staff and run better clinics and eventually develop higher level teams in higher leagues that the small clubs won’t even compete in. (There may be exceptions.) I’m starting to develop the opinion that small clubs are like glorified Rec programs.
Your reasoning and analysis is off somewhat.
Several of the small clubs in the DMV have exceptional coaches who rather have developmental impact in quality versus quantity.
The bigger clubs are selecting their top team, top two teams, from a much bigger pool of players. Then have 3 or 4 weak teams in said age group.
Give almost any U10, U11 or U12 coach 13 early bloomers for 7v7 and 9v9 and they're going to 'win' games. Doesn't mean the coaching is good.
People spend so much time and effort focused on the aesthetics of name-brand clubs and leagues early on, they always miss the fact that youth soccer is about individual development.
Your kid being on a big name fancy club may float parents ego, but no scout or coach of a true high level team cares.
MLS Next teams in the DMV are filled with kids developed at 'small clubs', then the big clubs reap the benefits.
So saying small clubs are glorified Rec makes you look like a fool.
I like the thoughts on this, can you name 1 or 2 small clubs that seems to produce quality talent. Again, from a Club perspective, not just the 1 off coach who would excel at any club.
Just found a 3 day camp in Alexandria. Joga 19-21 Dec 10am - 1:30pm
https://www.thejogaproject.com/alexandria-premier-camps
https://www.thejogaproject.com/alexandria-premier-camps
Anonymous wrote:Majority miss the fact that playing up should be reserved for players who are head & shoulders above their age group in skills, IQ and athleticism.
Kids that are 'good' at U12 shouldn't play U13 to try and get them better. That's a high probability confidence killer.
When all of a sudden he/she can't dribble past two defenders or score goals like they did against their own age.
There is also no point in playing up in age with/against 'C' team players.
'Up' is not about age, it's about level of skills.
You make a good point, we are playing up now... but it has been a confidence killer. We are looking to switch teams and play in our own age bracket again next year. We left our age group as the coaching was sub-par and my kid showed lots of talent. But now, the coaching is better, but the other kids are faster, stronger, mentally quicker and make quicker decisions. My kid has learned how to play quicker but is not a starter now and is no where as confident as they were.
Anonymous wrote:If he plays up, can he repeat that level next year? I'm not sure it makes sense for him to stay up.
Or maybe playing up would be good for him as a player. My goal is just to keep him away from the coach.
If he stays "up" what does that mean for his senior year? He'll be 17 all senior year, is that fine and he just plays as an 18 year old?
Yes, he can repeat that level the next year.
We moved our kid for similar issue. The coach was lackluster (just on time to practice, lots of scrimmaging, poorly executed drills, not addressing fouls at scrimmages). We weren't ready to move clubs, as the next club is about 10 more minutes away, so we moved our kid up a year in the spring tryouts. The club accepted our kid and placed them on the B team. But they put all new players on the B team and never adjusted the A and B team rosters. The A team kids have formed cliques and haven't been very welcoming. (The The B team kids and coach has been a step down competition-wise and that A team 'fire' just is not there. The kids have been bigger and faster and our kid has become a little timid as a result of it. Next season, we will but out kid back at the appropriate age group but try to change clubs completely. We are just looking for proper development from a competition and coaching standpoint. Our kid didn't really like switching teams, but there were issues with the last coach and now playing up there are a host of new issues. Logistically, our kid kept the same number (luckily) , the club technical director had to approve the transfer and the registrars had to switch our player between teams.
I agree, but 2 scenarios arise when this is a perceived problem. 1.) The Head Coach is making the decisions, but your kid is being coached by a junior coach. The Head Coach does not have your kid on their radar and the junior coach is just a lackey who might not do more than what they're being told to do. (This is a big club problem with 3 and 4 teams that train together.) 2.) There is the perception by the parents that the coach just isn't looking at your kid more than a few seconds as there are too many kids to coach and the coach is spending all their focused time with the previously established 'A-team' players. In both those cases, if you would like to move up or get recognized as one of the better players, you might consider private training with the coach if it is allowed within the club. If not, then keep on grinding! But know that things might not change for a while. Objectively, I can easily see how private training with your coach could be an avenue fraught with problems; but for new players or seemingly stagnated players wanting to earn starting spots or get on a higher team it might be a good option.
Anonymous wrote:Isn't it a conflict of interest to have players do private trainings with their current coach outside of the club structure for additional payment? There is a coach for a Maryland club who does individual trainings with his current players for a fee. Those players then get more playing time than those who do not do private trainings. How is this allowed?
It certainly could be conceived as a conflict of interest by other parents. There is no set State policy against this practice, but there could be (should be) a policy against this in any particular club. Even at U9 we had psycho parents who were overly concerned why some kids were already on the Red Team (top team) and why some kids were on the White Team (bottom team). Those kids did not have private training at the club, but I imagine what the perception might be if those kids were receiving private club training by the coach of the Red Team.
On the flip side, a coach can really evaluate a younger player skill-wise during a private training session. Sometimes, during poorly designed practices or large practice sessions, kids don't get to touch the ball too much. It might be hard for a coach to identify the stronger kids without doing some type of skills bases assessment. I only mention this possibility, because sometimes a club coach has way too many kids and way too many teams to coach and he or she might be new to your kid's team. Without a decent sense of history of your player, the coach could likely obtain a better understanding of your player through private training and therefore set them up for more success.
This becomes apparent when you take your kid to a big club and there is no easy way for your kid to stand out, you are the outsider, your kids is otherwise just 1 of 30 or 40 kids out there scrimmaging and the coach can barely tell anything different about them. It would take another full season for the coach to get a decent grasp of the kid's abilities. Then, it could be mutually beneficial for the player to have a private training session with the coach. The downside, obviously, would be that current families might not be too happy when that kid starts receiving more playing time and attention. Because of this, it shouldn't be allowed for fairness sake. But trust me, the kids who attend all the extra clinics and camps for your club, start to be seen more by the coach and start to receive some preferential treatment. And because it is financially driven, extra camps and skills clinics are promoted at all clubs.
""DD was at a club where this happened. Team members were refunded the share of their team dues used to pay the coach's salary. That's why I think it is a reasonable ask. If I was in OP's position and I was strongly rebuffed, I'd probably go to small claims court once my kid left the club. Professional (no mater how debatably professional) coaching is a major differentiator between rec and travel and is part of what justifies travel fees
""
Thanks for sharing your experience, I would completely agree with your suggestion to ask for a discount/ refund as an option. Also at our club, if a parent is also a Coach, their kids participate for free (thus doubling their incentive to Coach.) I'd rather we not have parents coaching their own kid's teams, but our club has struggled to get good coaches, not just qualified coaches; so clubs frequently end up with this situation. Some parent-coaches are very good. Some professional Coaches are terrible.
Perhaps the OP should bring it up to Club leadership now, but maintain a wait and see approach after 1 month? Or perhaps, they already dislike the parent-Coach based on previous encounters; if that's the case, they likely will not be happy remaining on the team.