Anonymous wrote:

Parents are paying thousands of $$$ to be on a mediocre travel soccer team. This is nothing like it used to be even just a few years ago where just to make a travel team was super competitive.

Seriously, why do you care how other people spend their money? Everyone has their own priorities. DH and I make a lot of money, we have one kid with learning disabilities, and travel soccer has been a great way for him to get exercise 4 times a week, feel confident about himself, and make friends on his team through increased repeated contact with this peer group.

People will defend travel sports no matter what. The comment above is absolutely right. Less money and time and more fun.

The typical advantages of travel:
-More training sessions
-Play more of the year
-More engaged/similar skilled players
-More engaged/similar skilled opponents
-Better quality surfaces
-Better quality/more committed coach

All of the above aid in a player’s development. This is not to say that you can’t get some of the above in a rec program, but you would be lucky to get half of them. At the younger age groups all of them are important. I have coached rec as a volunteer, travel as a paid coach, and rec as a parent. It takes a special player and situation for a rec player to develop on the same trajectory as a player in a decent travel program, typically the gap widens exponentially. You just can’t do the same sessions with a few travel-caliber kids, a few not-ready players, a few disinterested players, and a few new-to-soccer players as you can with a group of travel-level players, that’s not debatable.

I will agree that the travel distance and the cornucopia of “elite” leagues is a huge detriment to development, but until there is money at the top of the system we are stuck in the pay to play model where there is no incentive for a true player development model where players get pushed up as necessary with play at neighborhood/local/regional/national tiers.

Parents are paying thousands of $$$ to be on a mediocre travel soccer team. This is nothing like it used to be even just a few years ago where just to make a travel team was super competitive.

Seriously, why do you care how other people spend their money? Everyone has their own priorities. DH and I make a lot of money, we have one kid with learning disabilities, and travel soccer has been a great way for him to get exercise 4 times a week, feel confident about himself, and make friends on his team through increased repeated contact with this peer group.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:People who have spent tens of thousands of dollars so their kids can play on the fourth travel team don’t want to believe that kids in rec could have had more fun and learnt soccer skills for $100/season.

Do you have kids on a travel team?

People worked hard for their money. Hence, it’s their prerogative how and how much they want to spend their money. Some spend it on a Ferrari, some spend it on a mansion or expensive for travels and others want to spend it on travel soccer, personal training, etc.

Let them be. It’s not your money so don’t be judgmental.

Anonymous wrote:People who have spent tens of thousands of dollars so their kids can play on the fourth travel team don’t want to believe that kids in rec could have had more fun and learnt soccer skills for $100/season.

Do you have kids on a travel team?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which rec leagues allow travel players? Our rec leagues have always said no travel players can register for rec...

There was no SFL this year due to COVID, so the rec teams did not have that requirement this year. The no travel player rule is an SFL rule, and they do check and will penalize clubs for playing a carded travel player in an SFL rec game.

There was SFL this spring.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which rec leagues allow travel players? Our rec leagues have always said no travel players can register for rec...

Msi

And ppa (rec)

Anonymous wrote:Which rec leagues allow travel players? Our rec leagues have always said no travel players can register for rec...

Msi

Anonymous wrote:Which rec leagues allow travel players? Our rec leagues have always said no travel players can register for rec...

There was no SFL this year due to COVID, so the rec teams did not have that requirement this year. The no travel player rule is an SFL rule, and they do check and will penalize clubs for playing a carded travel player in an SFL rec game.

Anonymous wrote:Which rec leagues allow travel players? Our rec leagues have always said no travel players can register for rec...

Stoddert.

Which rec leagues allow travel players? Our rec leagues have always said no travel players can register for rec..


Not the PP, but Alexandria did this year. Don't know what age their rec program goes up to in non-COVID times, but My 7th grader, who usually plays only travel, also played rec to hang out with some school friends.

And there were two other travel players on his rec team as well, so I assume it is a non-issue in Alexandria.

Which rec leagues allow travel players? Our rec leagues have always said no travel players can register for rec..

Not the PP, but Alexandria did this year. Don't know what age their rec program goes up to in non-COVID times, but My 7th grader, who usually plays only travel, also played rec to hang out with some school friends.

Which rec leagues allow travel players? Our rec leagues have always said no travel players can register for rec...

People who have spent tens of thousands of dollars so their kids can play on the fourth travel team don’t want to believe that kids in rec could have had more fun and learnt soccer skills for $100/season.


⬆️ this

I don't agree. My son plays both travel (3rd team) and rec soccer. He's never going to be on a top travel team, because he isn't aggressive enough, and that's fine. He has fun on both his travel and rec teams, and the rec coach is a really nice guy, but he is somebody's dad who played soccer when he was in college. He's definitely not teaching the kids as much as a travel coach would. Now, I think you can fairly raise the question of whether the difference in quality of coaching is worth the very large difference in cost. For many people, that answer would be no. However, my wife and I were only able to have one kid, and we both have high-paying jobs, so for us, it is worth the indulgence for our son.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Participating rates are dropping across lots of youth sports, not just soccer. This is. It news. But for soccer specifically....

...the share of children aged 6 to 12 who participate in outdoor soccer on a regular basis in the United States from 2008 to 2019. According to the source, 7.7 percent of children participated in soccer on a regular basis in 2019, down from 10.4 percent in 2008.

For all sports.....From 2008 to 2018, the participation rate of kids between the ages of 6 and 12 dropped from 45 to 38 percent, due largely to the increasing costs, time commitments, and competitive nature of organized sports leagues.Jan 27, 2021

Obesity rates are 43% and overweight 73%. Soccer is not a sport for fat, out of shape kids. Obese nieces/nephews in the Midwest hate playing soccer.

Soccer is a sport for well off kids. Your Superstar is the best of the talent can afford it. So that is great but it is what it is.

Young fat kids do baseball/softball and football in elementary years before giving up altogether. It’s rare to see obese or fat kids on a soccer field. Yes, socioeconomic factors into weight/fitness which has more educated, entitled kids in soccer and lacrosse.