Anonymous wrote:Our ECNL team best more MLS teams than most MlS clubs so if that's third tier than sure. Our record against MLS teams was 7-2. Three of them were MLS Academy teams.
The two local kids from ECNL who eventually turned pro did it after college.
Great players come from everywhere.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:ECNL kids certainly can go pro and it's happened quite a few times. MLS Academy teams probably have more but not many of them make it either. Our ECNL team beat three MLS Academy teams this year. Non academy mls is second tier still very good.
USA isn't great because it's too much about money for a lot of these coaches

What's the pathway to pro for an ECNL player?
Honest question because I don't know and my DS plays ECNL

Some of the ECNL clubs are part of USL academy's. Several of our rising seniors have made appearances for the local USL pro team.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:ECNL kids certainly can go pro and it's happened quite a few times. MLS Academy teams probably have more but not many of them make it either. Our ECNL team beat three MLS Academy teams this year. Non academy mls is second tier still very good.
USA isn't great because it's too much about money for a lot of these coaches

What's the pathway to pro for an ECNL player?
Honest question because I don't know and my DS plays ECNL

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When I look at players in the youth national teams and players signing contracts to clubs in Europe and start seeing ECNL products, then I'll entertain the silly arguments about ECNL being at MLS Academy level.

Your ECNL team winning a game against a MLS Academy when your focus is on winning the game while theirs is on development (with kids playing up) is a hollow statement.

But only true soccer knowledgeable people understand that.

Nobody is arguing your point. Academy is top tier. There is no question about this

But next is not academy--no matter how much they have the marketing engine going. Neither is ECNL.

So let's stop trying to say Next and (Next II and futures and Next III and whatever other layers they have added) is somehow superior to anything else. It's not. It's not as good as academy. If it was as good as acadmey it wouldn't be called...Next

Whether Next is better than ECNL is dependent on team/club.

Plenty of mediocre Next and plenty of mediocre ECNL. Plenty of good on each side too--somewhat dependent on region...

Since this is DCUM (not CAUM or TXUM), let's just put it out there---VDA, NVA, Arlington, Pipeline, Richmond vs. Alexandria, SYC Bethesda, Achilles, Armour. No way you can say that the Next teams are 'far superior' for every age level. It's just not true.

Anonymous wrote:When I look at players in the youth national teams and players signing contracts to clubs in Europe and start seeing ECNL products, then I'll entertain the silly arguments about ECNL being at MLS Academy level.

Your ECNL team winning a game against a MLS Academy when your focus is on winning the game while theirs is on development (with kids playing up) is a hollow statement.

But only true soccer knowledgeable people understand that.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When I look at players in the youth national teams and players signing contracts to clubs in Europe and start seeing ECNL products, then I'll entertain the silly arguments about ECNL being at MLS Academy level.

Your ECNL team winning a game against a MLS Academy when your focus is on winning the game while theirs is on development (with kids playing up) is a hollow statement.

But only true soccer knowledgeable people understand that.

No most teams in MLS want to win. If you don't win then players won't come to play. The MLS next kids are better than ECNL, but at this point, since most are not getting recruited, it doesn't matter. Pick a league where you get playing time.

Achilles doesn't win and still have a line out their door to join.
Why?
Because everyone knows MLS Next is superior to ECNL.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When I look at players in the youth national teams and players signing contracts to clubs in Europe and start seeing ECNL products, then I'll entertain the silly arguments about ECNL being at MLS Academy level.

Your ECNL team winning a game against a MLS Academy when your focus is on winning the game while theirs is on development (with kids playing up) is a hollow statement.

But only true soccer knowledgeable people understand that.

No most teams in MLS want to win. If you don't win then players won't come to play. The MLS next kids are better than ECNL, but at this point, since most are not getting recruited, it doesn't matter. Pick a league where you get playing time.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When I look at players in the youth national teams and players signing contracts to clubs in Europe and start seeing ECNL products, then I'll entertain the silly arguments about ECNL being at MLS Academy level.

Your ECNL team winning a game against a MLS Academy when your focus is on winning the game while theirs is on development (with kids playing up) is a hollow statement.

But only true soccer knowledgeable people understand that.

No most teams in MLS want to win. If you don't win then players won't come to play. The MLS next kids are better than ECNL, but at this point, since most are not getting recruited, it doesn't matter. Pick a league where you get playing time.

Anonymous wrote:When I look at players in the youth national teams and players signing contracts to clubs in Europe and start seeing ECNL products, then I'll entertain the silly arguments about ECNL being at MLS Academy level.

Your ECNL team winning a game against a MLS Academy when your focus is on winning the game while theirs is on development (with kids playing up) is a hollow statement.

But only true soccer knowledgeable people understand that.

Anonymous wrote:Definitely not true about the competition level. Having played in both leagues
The competition is only stronger at the Academy level. Otherwise it's pretty equal. Not sure if counting how many games a team plays makes one better than other. We train all year round A lot of MLS take long breaks.