DC United U14...where are they coming from?

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[Post New]09/09/2022 15:18
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DCUdad
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akindc wrote:Has he convinced the owners to put more money/resources into the academy system, which has been gutted over the past few years? That I don't know.

This is an outdated impression. They have been un-gutting the academy over the last two 18 months, even prior to Rooney. My son has been with the DCU academy for three years, and it is so much better than it was in 2019. More and better coaches, better recruitment, better facilities, fully-funded, better travel accommodations, etc. Is it at the level of Union or RSL yet? No, it is not. But it is miles ahead of where it was and generally trending in the right direction.

I do agree that Rooney is more interested in bringing up the young, homegrown players than previous coaches -- either for a look with Loudoun or the first team, or actually signing them to homegrown contracts. But despite the issues with the academy, DCU was already signing more homegrown players through the years than most MLS clubs.
[Post New]09/09/2022 15:33
quote
akindc
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DCUdad wrote:
akindc wrote:Has he convinced the owners to put more money/resources into the academy system, which has been gutted over the past few years? That I don't know.

This is an outdated impression. They have been un-gutting the academy over the last two 18 months, even prior to Rooney. My son has been with the DCU academy for three years, and it is so much better than it was in 2019. More and better coaches, better recruitment, better facilities, fully-funded, better travel accommodations, etc. Is it at the level of Union or RSL yet? No, it is not. But it is miles ahead of where it was and generally trending in the right direction.

I do agree that Rooney is more interested in bringing up the young, homegrown players than previous coaches -- either for a look with Loudoun or the first team, or actually signing them to homegrown contracts. But despite the issues with the academy, DCU was already signing more homegrown players through the years than most MLS clubs.


Good to know, thanks for the update.
By "fully funded", do you mean that kids/parents pay nothing to be on the Academy team?
[Post New]09/12/2022 16:56
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akindc
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DMVParent wrote:
Cruzado wrote:Interesting to read that Wayne Rooney is still involved with DC United and now part of their DCU Youth program. Hopefully that's a sign of better things to come---DCU's youth involvement has been underwhelming thus far.


DC United's U16 won the MLS Next Cup this year!


Is that now their U17 team? Interesting handful of games between DC and Bethesda this past weekend:

⚫ U17s DC 1, BSC 3

🔴 U15s DC 9, BSC 0

⚫ U14s DC 4, BSC 1
[Post New]09/13/2022 11:08
quote
DCUdad
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akindc wrote:By "fully funded", do you mean that kids/parents pay nothing to be on the Academy team?

Yes. Club pays for everything, including travel and accommodations on road trips. DCU was one of the last two MLS academies to be fully funded, but this is now the third year they are.
[Post New]09/13/2022 11:19
quote
DCUdad
Member Offline
akindc wrote:Is that now their U17 team? Interesting handful of games between DC and Bethesda this past weekend:
⚫ U17s DC 1, BSC 3
🔴 U15s DC 9, BSC 0
⚫ U14s DC 4, BSC 1

Yes, the U16 team that just won the MLS Next Cup is now the U17 team. However, several of the best players from that team are now with Loudoun United; and Matai just signed a first team contract and started against Real Salt Lake this weekend. So you always have to take these results against MLS academy teams with a grain of salt; in any given week, they often aren't fielding their best possible team for a regular season game--especially the U17s. Usually that only happens for the GA Cup or the playoffs.

Also, while last year's U16 team was good, keep in mind that very few MLS academies field a U16 team (indeed, DCU won't have a U16 team this year). So the MLS Next Cup bracket didn't have the same level of competition as the U15s and U17s, where every MLS academy is competing.

Finally, the 15s and 14s are stacked this year. So I'd expect lots of lopsided scores against the non-MLS teams.
[Post New]05/07/2025 21:06
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Anonymous
Is there an update regarding this team
[Post New]05/07/2025 22:07
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Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:Is there an update regarding this team


Besides DCU no longer having a U14 team?
[Post New]05/08/2025 09:06
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Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Is there an update regarding this team


Besides DCU no longer having a U14 team?


I still cannot believe that DCU is such an utter failure that they cancelled their U14 team.
[Post New]05/08/2025 09:28
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Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Is there an update regarding this team


Besides DCU no longer having a U14 team?


I still cannot believe that DCU is such an utter failure that they cancelled their U14 team.


They didn't necessarily cancel it. They will continue to bring those kids in. I think they are trying to see who matures.
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