Anonymous wrote:She recently committed to an awesome school. The road to get there was was filled with many ups and downs (and a lot of travel).
She is a defender and is blessed with size (5'9) and speed. She was never known as a technical player but is extremely physical. Every few years since early middle school she bounced up to a better team finally playing for the one of the top teams in the area.
Here is my advice;
Get your daughter playing against boys at an early age. It makes a huge difference in speed of play and the level of physicality.
Get a dedicated trainer for speed and agility as early as possible. I think this is more important than a soccer trainer. If coaches see that she can really move and has adequate athleticism they will take a long look. Get fast, get strong, get quick!!!

Don't be a helicopter parent!!!! If she does not want to workout regularly then that is her loss. If she is not all in then it wont happen for her. You can't force the issue and you damn sure can't live vicariously through your kid. And by the way, STOP yelling and screaming on the sidelines. They already have too much pressure from coaches, teammates and themselves. Don't make soccer everything in your life. Go get some ice cream!!

Don't ever go to a general open tryout. Call the coach for the team you are interested in and see if they will let you come for a practice.

Try to separate yourself by being really good at one thing. Great left foot, super athlete, dynamic in the box, exceptional 1v1 defender, very physical, technically excellent. Be good at a lot but be great at one thing. And remember that 'going hard all the time' is a skill. I have seen a ton of girls with great skills who just don't go hard enough.

Do whatever you have to do to get on a ECNL team. Not ECNL RL, and not GA. Your odds of playing in college drastically go up. Even if you are riding the bench for an ECNL team its probably better than being on an ECNL RL or GA team. There are only a few decent GA teams in the area. Look at Arlington, NVA, Maryland United, Union, Bethesda (although I don't recommend Bethesda to anyone..very toxic). I'm sure there are a few others.
The absolute most important aspect of getting recruited is to play well at ECNL showcase events. Either showcase events or ECNL playoffs. Typically there will be coaches from tons of D1 and D3 schools wrapped around the field at all games. Most coaches DO NOT attend regular season ECNL games (they are busy in their own season). Its all about the showcase events.

If you are playing ECNL, try your best to skip the ID Camps. It is a money grab plain and simple. Colleges use these ID camps to pay their assistance coaches. We got bamboozled in to going to way too many. Most were a complete waste of time and money. The only good part was that she was able to see the schools and from there narrow her focus on what type of school she really wanted.

High school soccer does not matter. My daughter is not playing high school because her club season and school season are at the same time. Over use is a real thing. Its not worth it. No one gets recruited from playing high school soccer. Its extremely rare.

Really solid highlight videos and good communication with coaches before and after showcase events is key. Letting coaches know where and when you are playing is important. Using a platform like Sports Recruit makes it very easy to email coaches and create a profile. Developing a plan and getting your name out there with Instagram and X (Twitter) is a vital piece to the puzzle. Posting highlights and just being active on social media goes a long way. Highlights videos should be short (like 2 minutes max) and should have your absolute best stuff in the beginning of the video.

If your daughter does put herself in a position to be recruited, remember that most girls DO NOT go to their #1 choice. That's pretty much left for USWNT players and the absolute highest level girls. My daughter lucked up and is going to a school she really likes and is a perfect fit for her style of play (but it wasn't her #1 choice). Fit and a great college coaching staff is of upmost importance.

I am willing to answer any questions.

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Anonymous wrote:ROFL about GA. If you regularly look at the schools that they go to in this area, GA girls regularly go to better and more competitive schools than ECNL kids. Most ecnl kids. I see broadcast on social media from local clubs or at D3 schools. Happy your kid got in with what she's good at. It does make me a little sad that you continually said your kid is physical over technical skills. That definitely goes much farther in the US. It's just sad that we live in a country where being an actual good technical soccer player with real skills with the ball is not as important as being able to knock other kids around.

Example of uninformed delusional parent above. Let me prove it from just 2026 commits this far:

https://x.com/imyouthsoccer/status/1824210962007634034?s=46

P4 Schools
74% ECNL
23% GA

Just because you say it, doesn’t mean you know what you are talking about.

PREACH!!!!!!!

100%^^^^

They have nearly the same number of girls in each too.

It’s not because GA as a platform isn’t good for soccer development. It’s that ECNL has a platform that makes it easier for college coaches to see the girls, AND post DA debacle, ECNL pulled in better talent and has been living off the combination of the two ever since.

When it comes to events and league GA and ECNL are nearly identical.

Well that is an indictment of GA isn’t it?

They do have similar calendars and showcases, but mot similar PR and outreach. One example of why ECNL makes it easier for colleges.

Anonymous wrote:Nothing to add, just wanted to say what a great post this is! Thanks OP!

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Anonymous wrote:ROFL about GA. If you regularly look at the schools that they go to in this area, GA girls regularly go to better and more competitive schools than ECNL kids. Most ecnl kids. I see broadcast on social media from local clubs or at D3 schools. Happy your kid got in with what she's good at. It does make me a little sad that you continually said your kid is physical over technical skills. That definitely goes much farther in the US. It's just sad that we live in a country where being an actual good technical soccer player with real skills with the ball is not as important as being able to knock other kids around.

Example of uninformed delusional parent above. Let me prove it from just 2026 commits this far:

https://x.com/imyouthsoccer/status/1824210962007634034?s=46

P4 Schools
74% ECNL
23% GA

Just because you say it, doesn’t mean you know what you are talking about.

PREACH!!!!!!!

100%^^^^

They have nearly the same number of girls in each too.

It’s not because GA as a platform isn’t good for soccer development. It’s that ECNL has a platform that makes it easier for college coaches to see the girls, AND post DA debacle, ECNL pulled in better talent and has been living off the combination of the two ever since.

When it comes to events and league GA and ECNL are nearly identical.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:ROFL about GA. If you regularly look at the schools that they go to in this area, GA girls regularly go to better and more competitive schools than ECNL kids. Most ecnl kids. I see broadcast on social media from local clubs or at D3 schools. Happy your kid got in with what she's good at. It does make me a little sad that you continually said your kid is physical over technical skills. That definitely goes much farther in the US. It's just sad that we live in a country where being an actual good technical soccer player with real skills with the ball is not as important as being able to knock other kids around.

Example of uninformed delusional parent above. Let me prove it from just 2026 commits this far:

https://x.com/imyouthsoccer/status/1824210962007634034?s=46

P4 Schools
74% ECNL
23% GA

Just because you say it, doesn’t mean you know what you are talking about.

PREACH!!!!!!!

100%^^^^

They have nearly the same number of girls in each too.

It’s not because GA as a platform isn’t good for soccer development. It’s that ECNL has a platform that makes it easier for college coaches to see the girls, AND post DA debacle, ECNL pulled in better talent and has been living off the combination of the two ever since.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:ROFL about GA. If you regularly look at the schools that they go to in this area, GA girls regularly go to better and more competitive schools than ECNL kids. Most ecnl kids. I see broadcast on social media from local clubs or at D3 schools. Happy your kid got in with what she's good at. It does make me a little sad that you continually said your kid is physical over technical skills. That definitely goes much farther in the US. It's just sad that we live in a country where being an actual good technical soccer player with real skills with the ball is not as important as being able to knock other kids around.

Example of uninformed delusional parent above. Let me prove it from just 2026 commits this far:

https://x.com/imyouthsoccer/status/1824210962007634034?s=46

P4 Schools
74% ECNL
23% GA

Just because you say it, doesn’t mean you know what you are talking about.

PREACH!!!!!!!

Anonymous wrote:Also, you can’t count FCV anymore as BP is gone. The 05s, 06s, and 07s all were competing for a National Championship. Those days are over and no GA team in our area is even remotely close. If you want a more realistic picture of GA offers to come for VA clubs, compare with Baltimore Celtic or Baltimore Armour.

Anonymous wrote:DD is now a recruited employee with requirements such as volunteering for initiatives at the University; often on the weekends.