Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:MLSNext is MUCH higher competition. But probably better for your son to start and play most of the game with ECNL team than play sparingly with MLSN team (not saying that is the case, obviously). If he can crack a starting lineup, make the switch.

This is false and misinformation. There is no information to support this claim. The level of competition between MLS Next and ECNL varies by team, region, and player development focus. Both leagues provide high-level competition, and the best environment for a player depends on individual goals and circumstances, not blanket statements like this.

MLS Next is Top Dog
MLS Next is the top of the pyramid league for boys. Period.
All USYNT players come from MLS Next or International Academy
(maybe 0.000001% exception)

Stop the false equivalence and comparisons nonsense because of your fragile ego and you don't want your baby to feel inferior.

Keep living in a fantasy world. You’re going to be one sad individual when reality sets in. All these “elite” leagues are the same, and USYNT selections are driven by politics. The player pool in the U.S. is too large for USYNT to truly represent the best talent across the country. What pyramid are you referring to? League hierarchies are subjective at best. It sounds like you’re defining your child’s ability based on a made-up league status, which points to a fragile ego. Like many others, you’ll learn the hard truth when things don’t pan out as you expect. But hey, at least they played in a ‘high-level’ youth league. The reality is, your kid isn’t special—we all pay to play. Focus on the quality of the program, not the league badge.

Then every true soccer country lives in a fantasy.
Because all their national youth teams players come from the league the top clubs academies play in as well.

You don't need to look all across the country when you know with high probability where the best talent gather.
MLS Next is the watering hole the USYNT hunters lay in wait.

Other countries invest heavily in developing players and structure their youth leagues based on regional geography to effectively identify talent. There’s no debate in those countries about which youth league is better—they focus on inclusivity, and many operate with promotion and relegation systems to ensure competitiveness.

For those of us who’ve been through the USYNT system, whether as “players” or parents, we’ve seen firsthand how things constantly change. US Soccer has restructured so many times that it’s hard to keep up, but we hope they eventually find a sustainable path forward.

The reality is we all pay-to-play, so we end up chasing leagues and “exposure” that may not reflect opportunities. But hey its the system we all pay for so we can't really complain.

We the majority are in Pay-to-Play

Are you saying any kid of any talent just walks up to Baltimore Armor or FC Delco with a check and gets placed on the roster for their U15 MLS Next teams?

Here’s a response that maintains professionalism while addressing the issues raised:

Not sure about Delco, but for BA, the answer appears to be yes—there are ways that go beyond pure talent. These teams aren’t consistently strong from top to bottom; there are clear major drop-offs in talent at certain points on the roster. We all see it and often wonder “how did he make the team or damn he never plays” It really depends on how naïve you are or if you know how to work the system.

Option 1: Some families manage to “pay” their way into top spots—whether through donations, direct cash exchanges, or signing up for private sessions with certain coaches. These behind-the-scenes actions can often secure roster spots.

Option 2: Others pay the same high fees but get misled—told they’ll play at a certain level (like NAL) bc those MLS NXT rosters are already full. They end up bouncing between rosters or only getting minutes here and there, with no guarantee of meaningful development.

In short, the system isn’t always based on merit. It often rewards those who understand how to navigate these informal pathways or leverage other means to secure opportunities.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:MLSNext is MUCH higher competition. But probably better for your son to start and play most of the game with ECNL team than play sparingly with MLSN team (not saying that is the case, obviously). If he can crack a starting lineup, make the switch.

This is false and misinformation. There is no information to support this claim. The level of competition between MLS Next and ECNL varies by team, region, and player development focus. Both leagues provide high-level competition, and the best environment for a player depends on individual goals and circumstances, not blanket statements like this.

MLS Next is Top Dog
MLS Next is the top of the pyramid league for boys. Period.
All USYNT players come from MLS Next or International Academy
(maybe 0.000001% exception)

Stop the false equivalence and comparisons nonsense because of your fragile ego and you don't want your baby to feel inferior.

Harvard, Yale, and Penn are the top dogs. All the US Presidents for the last 30 years came out of these schools. Nobody is looking at their other Ivy Leagues and certainly not the state schools. Maybe 0.0000001% exception.
That's basically what you're saying. Harvard and Yale aren't for everyone. And there are kids who come out of other schools, just like those that come out of ECNL, who will go on to have great careers...in soccer and other aspects of life.
If you are banking on your kid to get a $20 million contract in the Premier Leauge, then go ahead and empty all those eggs into your basket. But don't ridicule the rest of us who see that there are good players, good teams, and yes not so great players or teams (West Virginia / Achilles) in most every league.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:MLSNext is MUCH higher competition. But probably better for your son to start and play most of the game with ECNL team than play sparingly with MLSN team (not saying that is the case, obviously). If he can crack a starting lineup, make the switch.

This is false and misinformation. There is no information to support this claim. The level of competition between MLS Next and ECNL varies by team, region, and player development focus. Both leagues provide high-level competition, and the best environment for a player depends on individual goals and circumstances, not blanket statements like this.

MLS Next is Top Dog
MLS Next is the top of the pyramid league for boys. Period.
All USYNT players come from MLS Next or International Academy
(maybe 0.000001% exception)

Stop the false equivalence and comparisons nonsense because of your fragile ego and you don't want your baby to feel inferior.

Keep living in a fantasy world. You’re going to be one sad individual when reality sets in. All these “elite” leagues are the same, and USYNT selections are driven by politics. The player pool in the U.S. is too large for USYNT to truly represent the best talent across the country. What pyramid are you referring to? League hierarchies are subjective at best. It sounds like you’re defining your child’s ability based on a made-up league status, which points to a fragile ego. Like many others, you’ll learn the hard truth when things don’t pan out as you expect. But hey, at least they played in a ‘high-level’ youth league. The reality is, your kid isn’t special—we all pay to play. Focus on the quality of the program, not the league badge.

Then every true soccer country lives in a fantasy.
Because all their national youth teams players come from the league the top clubs academies play in as well.

You don't need to look all across the country when you know with high probability where the best talent gather.
MLS Next is the watering hole the USYNT hunters lay in wait.

Other countries invest heavily in developing players and structure their youth leagues based on regional geography to effectively identify talent. There’s no debate in those countries about which youth league is better—they focus on inclusivity, and many operate with promotion and relegation systems to ensure competitiveness.

For those of us who’ve been through the USYNT system, whether as “players” or parents, we’ve seen firsthand how things constantly change. US Soccer has restructured so many times that it’s hard to keep up, but we hope they eventually find a sustainable path forward.

The reality is we all pay-to-play, so we end up chasing leagues and “exposure” that may not reflect opportunities. But hey its the system we all pay for so we can't really complain.

We the majority are in Pay-to-Play

Are you saying any kid of any talent just walks up to Baltimore Armor or FC Delco with a check and gets placed on the roster for their U15 MLS Next teams?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:MLSNext is MUCH higher competition. But probably better for your son to start and play most of the game with ECNL team than play sparingly with MLSN team (not saying that is the case, obviously). If he can crack a starting lineup, make the switch.

This is false and misinformation. There is no information to support this claim. The level of competition between MLS Next and ECNL varies by team, region, and player development focus. Both leagues provide high-level competition, and the best environment for a player depends on individual goals and circumstances, not blanket statements like this.

MLS Next is Top Dog
MLS Next is the top of the pyramid league for boys. Period.
All USYNT players come from MLS Next or International Academy
(maybe 0.000001% exception)

Stop the false equivalence and comparisons nonsense because of your fragile ego and you don't want your baby to feel inferior.

Keep living in a fantasy world. You’re going to be one sad individual when reality sets in. All these “elite” leagues are the same, and USYNT selections are driven by politics. The player pool in the U.S. is too large for USYNT to truly represent the best talent across the country. What pyramid are you referring to? League hierarchies are subjective at best. It sounds like you’re defining your child’s ability based on a made-up league status, which points to a fragile ego. Like many others, you’ll learn the hard truth when things don’t pan out as you expect. But hey, at least they played in a ‘high-level’ youth league. The reality is, your kid isn’t special—we all pay to play. Focus on the quality of the program, not the league badge.

Then every true soccer country lives in a fantasy.
Because all their national youth teams players come from the league the top clubs academies play in as well.

You don't need to look all across the country when you know with high probability where the best talent gather.
MLS Next is the watering hole the USYNT hunters lay in wait.

Other countries invest heavily in developing players and structure their youth leagues based on regional geography to effectively identify talent. There’s no debate in those countries about which youth league is better—they focus on inclusivity, and many operate with promotion and relegation systems to ensure competitiveness.

For those of us who’ve been through the USYNT system, whether as “players” or parents, we’ve seen firsthand how things constantly change. US Soccer has restructured so many times that it’s hard to keep up, but we hope they eventually find a sustainable path forward.

The reality is we all pay-to-play, so we end up chasing leagues and “exposure” that may not reflect opportunities. But hey its the system we all pay for so we can't really complain.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:MLSNext is MUCH higher competition. But probably better for your son to start and play most of the game with ECNL team than play sparingly with MLSN team (not saying that is the case, obviously). If he can crack a starting lineup, make the switch.

This is false and misinformation. There is no information to support this claim. The level of competition between MLS Next and ECNL varies by team, region, and player development focus. Both leagues provide high-level competition, and the best environment for a player depends on individual goals and circumstances, not blanket statements like this.

MLS Next is Top Dog
MLS Next is the top of the pyramid league for boys. Period.
All USYNT players come from MLS Next or International Academy
(maybe 0.000001% exception)

Stop the false equivalence and comparisons nonsense because of your fragile ego and you don't want your baby to feel inferior.

Keep living in a fantasy world. You’re going to be one sad individual when reality sets in. All these “elite” leagues are the same, and USYNT selections are driven by politics. The player pool in the U.S. is too large for USYNT to truly represent the best talent across the country. What pyramid are you referring to? League hierarchies are subjective at best. It sounds like you’re defining your child’s ability based on a made-up league status, which points to a fragile ego. Like many others, you’ll learn the hard truth when things don’t pan out as you expect. But hey, at least they played in a ‘high-level’ youth league. The reality is, your kid isn’t special—we all pay to play. Focus on the quality of the program, not the league badge.

Then every true soccer country lives in a fantasy.
Because all their national youth teams players come from the league the top clubs academies play in as well.

You don't need to look all across the country when you know with high probability where the best talent gather.
MLS Next is the watering hole the USYNT hunters lay in wait.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:MLSNext is MUCH higher competition. But probably better for your son to start and play most of the game with ECNL team than play sparingly with MLSN team (not saying that is the case, obviously). If he can crack a starting lineup, make the switch.

This is false and misinformation. There is no information to support this claim. The level of competition between MLS Next and ECNL varies by team, region, and player development focus. Both leagues provide high-level competition, and the best environment for a player depends on individual goals and circumstances, not blanket statements like this.

MLS Next is Top Dog
MLS Next is the top of the pyramid league for boys. Period.
All USYNT players come from MLS Next or International Academy
(maybe 0.000001% exception)

Stop the false equivalence and comparisons nonsense because of your fragile ego and you don't want your baby to feel inferior.

Keep living in a fantasy world. You’re going to be one sad individual when reality sets in. All these “elite” leagues are the same, and USYNT selections are driven by politics. The player pool in the U.S. is too large for USYNT to truly represent the best talent across the country. What pyramid are you referring to? League hierarchies are subjective at best. It sounds like you’re defining your child’s ability based on a made-up league status, which points to a fragile ego. Like many others, you’ll learn the hard truth when things don’t pan out as you expect. But hey, at least they played in a ‘high-level’ youth league. The reality is, your kid isn’t special—we all pay to play. Focus on the quality of the program, not the league badge.

How is it a fantasy?
What did the PP say thats not factual or truthful?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:MLSNext is MUCH higher competition. But probably better for your son to start and play most of the game with ECNL team than play sparingly with MLSN team (not saying that is the case, obviously). If he can crack a starting lineup, make the switch.

This is false and misinformation. There is no information to support this claim. The level of competition between MLS Next and ECNL varies by team, region, and player development focus. Both leagues provide high-level competition, and the best environment for a player depends on individual goals and circumstances, not blanket statements like this.

MLS Next is Top Dog
MLS Next is the top of the pyramid league for boys. Period.
All USYNT players come from MLS Next or International Academy
(maybe 0.000001% exception)

Stop the false equivalence and comparisons nonsense because of your fragile ego and you don't want your baby to feel inferior.

Keep living in a fantasy world. You’re going to be one sad individual when reality sets in. All these “elite” leagues are the same, and USYNT selections are driven by politics. The player pool in the U.S. is too large for USYNT to truly represent the best talent across the country. What pyramid are you referring to? League hierarchies are subjective at best. It sounds like you’re defining your child’s ability based on a made-up league status, which points to a fragile ego. Like many others, you’ll learn the hard truth when things don’t pan out as you expect. But hey, at least they played in a ‘high-level’ youth league. The reality is, your kid isn’t special—we all pay to play. Focus on the quality of the program, not the league badge.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:MLSNext is MUCH higher competition. But probably better for your son to start and play most of the game with ECNL team than play sparingly with MLSN team (not saying that is the case, obviously). If he can crack a starting lineup, make the switch.

This is false and misinformation. There is no information to support this claim. The level of competition between MLS Next and ECNL varies by team, region, and player development focus. Both leagues provide high-level competition, and the best environment for a player depends on individual goals and circumstances, not blanket statements like this.

MLS Next is Top Dog
MLS Next is the top of the pyramid league for boys. Period.
All USYNT players come from MLS Next or International Academy
(maybe 0.000001% exception)

Stop the false equivalence and comparisons nonsense because of your fragile ego and you don't want your baby to feel inferior.

Anonymous wrote:MLSNext is MUCH higher competition. But probably better for your son to start and play most of the game with ECNL team than play sparingly with MLSN team (not saying that is the case, obviously). If he can crack a starting lineup, make the switch.

This is false and misinformation. There is no information to support this claim. The level of competition between MLS Next and ECNL varies by team, region, and player development focus. Both leagues provide high-level competition, and the best environment for a player depends on individual goals and circumstances, not blanket statements like this.

Anonymous wrote:So if someone had the choice of BSC or Achilles MLSNext versus MD United or Potomac ECNL it’s basically comparable? Only reason to really switch would be to go to DC United?

You also play 40% more games a year with MLSnext team over ECNL. Players are faster.

Anonymous wrote:Hi! We are in MD and are trying to figure out whether our current 2011 son should switch to MLSNext or stay with ECNL. Is the caliber of play and coaching worth the extra time, money, and travel? This is for a kid who would love to play in college (well, he says so now but so much can change!) but is realistic about options beyond that. TIA for any thoughts

The only difference is speed. MLSNext plays at a much faster pace. That’s where you want to be.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So if someone had the choice of BSC or Achilles MLSNext versus MD United or Potomac ECNL it’s basically comparable? Only reason to really switch would be to go to DC United?

In theory, I'd say you'd tend to go with BSC in your scenario.
But I know a handful of Potomac ECNL kids that recently moved to BSC and were really unhappy...the roster was much bigger, with far less playing time. So it's really a case by case basis.
And do a search on here about Achilles...a very polarizing club. I'd avoid them like the plague, but others praise them.

My son played on Bethesda from ages 7-11 and hated it. He never made the top team (in fairness he wasn’t good enough for it at the time) and saw HUGE improvement after leaving. We transitioned to Potomac for a single season before moving to an EDP team and then joining Achilles when he made the MLS NEXT team. Between BSC, Potomac and Achilles, I would certainly say Achilles was best. The coaches most definitely put more pressure on the players individually, however the work-rate is MUCH higher which helped my son get into DC United after just 1 single season at Achilles.
Note: If your son doesn’t get much playing time in MLS NEXT, I would highly recommend moving to ECNL.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm saying scouts are not solely focused on MLS Next teams. There are plenty that attend ECNL games.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How so? Didn't VDA just post about their 5 players going to DCU? How many MLS Next players are going to academy teams.


 

Anonymous wrote:I would say that the biggest advantage that MLS Next has over ECNL is that MLS Next is scouted heavier than ECNL.

Are you saying most players in the MLS Club Academy system came from ECNL and not from MLS Next teams?
Where can we find that data? It's an interesting theory.

Maybe true for the girls side

There were a lot of scouts in the events that i have attended.

It depends on where you live. Where VDA is those boys played ECNL bec MLSNext teams were farther. This is similar to Richmond and Va Beach area where there is no MLSNext so top players do ECNL. Around the DMV MLSNext is stronger and plays Red Bulls, Union etc. so you have SYC and Alexandria in NOVa and BSC, Achilles and Armour in MD (Armour being farther out but some do the drive).

That being said there are some small number of kids that get scouted from ECNL around here too, but typically the stronger players flock to MLSNext.

Anonymous wrote:I'm saying scouts are not solely focused on MLS Next teams. There are plenty that attend ECNL games.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How so? Didn't VDA just post about their 5 players going to DCU? How many MLS Next players are going to academy teams.


 

Anonymous wrote:I would say that the biggest advantage that MLS Next has over ECNL is that MLS Next is scouted heavier than ECNL.

Are you saying most players in the MLS Club Academy system came from ECNL and not from MLS Next teams?
Where can we find that data? It's an interesting theory.

Maybe true for the girls side