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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]In reading all of this it makes me curious with the restructuring of DC United are there any positives at all about your kid joining.  How would they be successful in this system?  
[/quote]

Very few positives to be honest. Just go through this thread and you'll see what I mean.  Success depends on your definition of success.  If you want to be a pro, like a real pro, you cannot be successful at this in DCU's system.  It is almost impossible.  Impossible in a lot of environments, is what detractors will say, but even less possible in a crap environment like DCUs.  You're starting your trajectory already behind.  DCU is no different than a local pay to play club and pay to play clubs have better data and rate of college acceptances.  It is what it is. [/quote]

The only thing I would love to see going along with this statement to add true value is actual real numbers for comparison between MLS academies

I find a higher recruitment and acceptance to colleges from local pay-to-play over the professional academy a hard pill to swallow without proof

Would add, its either impossible or not.
Since there are players currently professional who are from DCU,  then its obviously not impossible.

[b]Making exaggerated and unverifiable and untruthful comments ruin the value of the thread when you can simply provide what's real and true to support your argument[/b][/quote]

I agree with your sentiment and if this is the DCU intern I appreciate this new tone. I feel like we can actually be productive.  To that end, DCU is not alone in their obfuscation. Other MLS academies have very little information as well. We simply happen to be close to two academies that do well in communicating and have several academy products in the USMNT and USYNT teams so that magnifies what DCU is not doing.

Here is something that we need to change. There is no audited data and the MLS is not forthcoming with any data which I surmise is intentional at this point. So, in the absence of audited data or a double-blind study in information we share, we do have to rely on piecemeal information. It is not helpful to attack the information in the absence of some audited and verified info from the MLS. That has not stopped us parents from wanting more information amid numerous attempts to try to suppress it over 1.5 years and almost 300 pages of posts. The reason I trust the old man is because his anonymous, unverified information holds up to what I find in real life.

Most of you have forgotten more about youth soccer than I have learned as a novice. However, sometimes a fresh look from an outsider helps. Here is the problem I learned on my first trip overseas.

We are competitive at the younger ages but it tails off once we hit U15+. I saw it from the groups we went with. That’s when I began asking why? No international academy truly knows how to identify talent early but the US has a particular problem of being competitive early and then losing ground majorily after U15. Look at Cavan Sullivan versus any of the kids in Europe making an impact at 16-18 years of age at Liverpool, PSG, Arsenal and Bayern. From the people I have spoken with, the cause is an accumulation effect in the foundation phase. We don’t have enough problem solving. Problem solving involves mistakes and losses which is antithetical to our “Just win baby” club youth system.

I was fortunate enough to start with a club people make fun of. Those coaches and the development methodology puts our current big club to shame but they don’t win because the kids give up cheap goals while learning. Back in the day, I imagine the coaching and talent was consolidated. Now, it is diluted and organizations chase wins which is actually antithetical to someone living it. The big clubs rely on their big names that were earned in an entirely different environment. What does this have to do with DCU?

I know what is it like for people to look at you and expect you to spend money just because of perception. However, DCU has the power to control our youth scene without spending extra money. Since Patrick spent time at Clairefontaine, I imagine they have the answers within the walls and simply don’t care or don’t have the imagination. Here are a few ways DCU can completely change the landscape:

RDS: I don’t really know what the actual numbers are but if you can run the program at cost versus profit, we all win. Cap the program at 20-30 kids per age group per location with 30-40% on scholarship and able to attend for free. The rest will subsidize the cost. I promise you, someone like me will pay for my kid to be in the building with the top 30 kids in MoCo (for example) if he is not in the top 10-12 based solely on merit. Heck, I might still fund because I need my kid to be with the most savage kids to bring out the best in him. You don’t get that behind paywalls in Loudoun County. Spend the extra money on a quality coach to run it. The current RDS coaches I am familiar with are 💩. I don’t know them all but there are better options if you don’t take a cost savings approach. I know one of the top kids an age group down from my son had to train 3 years up in RDS to get challenged. That family has not done the research I had done to know it is a waste of time but families are researching for answers in the foundation phase and DCU can lead the charge since you should have more information than just us parents. Heck, run an all RDS tournament with MoCo vs DC vs Alexandria, etc. Parents would thirst to be a part of that. The sponsorships would probably make it profitable.

Local Futsal/Free Play: USSF and Target have done the heavy lifting in our area. I am not sure what is happening out in Loudoun, but there are probably 40+ futsal courts that are frequently unused inside and directly outside of the Beltway in Alexandria, Arlington, PG, DC and MoCo. There are also dozens of unused elementary and middle school gyms with parents craving for their kids to have an activity so they don’t have to pick them up. There are some incredible futsal coaches in the area who don’t have the talent. Most of the major futsal clubs are run by hacks that we tolerate because we have no other viable options. Run a futsal program like Philly but at cost with free play and clinics sponsored by local businesses in the jurisdictions. Kids stay local, get qualified instruction, learn how to develop creativity, which is sorely lacking from the American player. Kids will compete without scoreboards and other things that parents screw up. If DCU runs it, parents will fall in line. The scoreboards are what is screwing things up. Give coaches a bonus for kids accepted into the academy. Incentivize development versus wins.

Right now, BSC has built a faculty, Arlington has built a 1/2 of a facility and Coppermine is building a real facility. There are another 2-3 organizations who have approached me about investing in development schools while retaining sell-on fees as compensation down the road. I have no idea how all of that works yet. The private market is so robust locally because DCU is not paying attention to the goldmine which is our local talent pool. There will be local wealthy kids who can make it. However, they can only achieve their maximum potential if they are pushed by a kid who does not attend Landon and has no AP classes in his future. The potential will be realized in this area whether it is via private means, whether DCU ownership wakes up from their slumber or sells to someone who recognizes the goldmine we are sitting on.

I am not sure what is taking place at DCU post 15+ plus but they appear to be fleecing B-More out of a real estate deal (I would do the same thing) and if they actually have a pathway to a legit 2nd team, that would solve 95% of the development problems they experience because most kids are not ready at 18 to break into the first team.  Beyond that, I am pretty sure Patrick and the new director have the knowledge IF the institution itself is amenable to change.

I am giving you this blueprint, DCU intern, because I don’t think you have the chutzpah to execute on a solvable problem. I hope you prove me wrong for our kids sake. If not, the private market will fix it for you but we will still be more fragmented than if the emperor actually had clothes. [/quote]

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