Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well let parents decide! It seems that DA/ECNL directives are closed to the idea of playing locally once soccer activities resume, but at the end families are the ones to decide. Again it is not only DMV is all the other states families that will be in a hardship situation. Their priorities will be different. In a family budget Travel soccer is equivalent to entertainment or vacation, this will be at the bottom iof their list if not crossed out.

Exactly how can they just decide to play locally?

Please, walk us through this process of how it happens.

If, as some are predicting, USSF will annouce termination of DA programs on both boys and girls side, you will see how this works very quickly, at least on the boys side. It's called EDP. U12 boys already did this last season for dispaced DA programs. Once they add other local teams that are perennial powers, you have exactly what people are describing. On the boys side, Bethesda, SAC, Pipeline, Baltimore Union, Achilles, Arlington, Alexandria, SYC, Richmond, VDA/PWSI and other challengers. Doesn't seem hard at all. The top teams among these clubs for each group also already play other tiers within EDP against top teams on the East Coast (as well as things like Acela League) And of course I am sure they'd be happy to welcome Loudoun, McLean and BRYC from ECNL.

That beats to hell any current league in which these clubs currently participate.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well let parents decide! It seems that DA/ECNL directives are closed to the idea of playing locally once soccer activities resume, but at the end families are the ones to decide. Again it is not only DMV is all the other states families that will be in a hardship situation. Their priorities will be different. In a family budget Travel soccer is equivalent to entertainment or vacation, this will be at the bottom iof their list if not crossed out.

Exactly how can they just decide to play locally?

Please, walk us through this process of how it happens.

Under these extraordinary circumstances, why not reorganize the league regions or conference or whatever it is called based on distance. Why a DA team needs to fly to play a Florida team? Or why ECNL team needs to stay overnight to play a South Carolina team?
What is behind the long distance travel?
I wonder when most of families in NJ, Ohio, Illinois, Louisiana expect to go back to normal.

Anonymous wrote:I don’t get it. If people live here but prefer to drive to NJ or even, MA, why not have your child join a NJ team so you can drive there during the week for practices and weekends for games.

If traffic stays this way it would be possible.

I don’t get it. If people live here but prefer to drive to NJ or even, MA, why not have your child join a NJ team so you can drive there during the week for practices and weekends for games.

Anonymous wrote:Well let parents decide! It seems that DA/ECNL directives are closed to the idea of playing locally once soccer activities resume, but at the end families are the ones to decide. Again it is not only DMV is all the other states families that will be in a hardship situation. Their priorities will be different. In a family budget Travel soccer is equivalent to entertainment or vacation, this will be at the bottom iof their list if not crossed out.

Exactly how can they just decide to play locally?

Please, walk us through this process of how it happens.

Well let parents decide! It seems that DA/ECNL directives are closed to the idea of playing locally once soccer activities resume, but at the end families are the ones to decide. Again it is not only DMV is all the other states families that will be in a hardship situation. Their priorities will be different. In a family budget Travel soccer is equivalent to entertainment or vacation, this will be at the bottom iof their list if not crossed out.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You must be the one moron who enjoys driving all over the NE and MA to play inferior teams. Believe me when I tell say that you are the only one because no one I have spoken to prefers the insane amount of travel in the current system.

The landscape is already changing and it has nothing to do with the haves and have-nots. It is about idiotic leagues. The fact that teams are leaving DA for ECNL was the start. Just consolidating those two leagues is half the battle. The other part is incorporating other elite teams.

Well you are partly right. Things are changing. In fact, youth soccer is in a state of continuous change. There is no end in sight. Frankly though, I don't know what you're whining about because everything appears to be headed in your direction. GDA clubs are drifting back to ECNL, ECNL has created the RL layer as a second tier. COVID isn't going to change this too much near term, there are still tons of people able to pay the prices. If ECNL won't let Pipeline in, maybe y'all should join ECNL RL and demonstrate your competitiveness there. Seems like best of both worlds.

Youth sports in general are going to take a huge hit. Soccer alone could see a 50% drop in organized participation through both unemployment and actual clubs still existing. The landscape is going to be quite fractured moving forward if unemployment rates continue to climb. The idea of worrying about "winners and losers" regarding your soccer league utopia could look very short sighted and you may actually be longing for the days when you could afford to complain about your kid having to play a soccer game in New England.

okay chicken little.

That is a more likely outcome than your elite, local utopia league. There isn’t much room for a middle ground.

It is also more likely that there isn’t soccer until next spring. So, for the current spring and coming fall season you don’t have to drive to New England. You win.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You must be the one moron who enjoys driving all over the NE and MA to play inferior teams. Believe me when I tell say that you are the only one because no one I have spoken to prefers the insane amount of travel in the current system.

The landscape is already changing and it has nothing to do with the haves and have-nots. It is about idiotic leagues. The fact that teams are leaving DA for ECNL was the start. Just consolidating those two leagues is half the battle. The other part is incorporating other elite teams.

Well you are partly right. Things are changing. In fact, youth soccer is in a state of continuous change. There is no end in sight. Frankly though, I don't know what you're whining about because everything appears to be headed in your direction. GDA clubs are drifting back to ECNL, ECNL has created the RL layer as a second tier. COVID isn't going to change this too much near term, there are still tons of people able to pay the prices. If ECNL won't let Pipeline in, maybe y'all should join ECNL RL and demonstrate your competitiveness there. Seems like best of both worlds.

Youth sports in general are going to take a huge hit. Soccer alone could see a 50% drop in organized participation through both unemployment and actual clubs still existing. The landscape is going to be quite fractured moving forward if unemployment rates continue to climb. The idea of worrying about "winners and losers" regarding your soccer league utopia could look very short sighted and you may actually be longing for the days when you could afford to complain about your kid having to play a soccer game in New England.

okay chicken little.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You must be the one moron who enjoys driving all over the NE and MA to play inferior teams. Believe me when I tell say that you are the only one because no one I have spoken to prefers the insane amount of travel in the current system.

The landscape is already changing and it has nothing to do with the haves and have-nots. It is about idiotic leagues. The fact that teams are leaving DA for ECNL was the start. Just consolidating those two leagues is half the battle. The other part is incorporating other elite teams.

Well you are partly right. Things are changing. In fact, youth soccer is in a state of continuous change. There is no end in sight. Frankly though, I don't know what you're whining about because everything appears to be headed in your direction. GDA clubs are drifting back to ECNL, ECNL has created the RL layer as a second tier. COVID isn't going to change this too much near term, there are still tons of people able to pay the prices. If ECNL won't let Pipeline in, maybe y'all should join ECNL RL and demonstrate your competitiveness there. Seems like best of both worlds.

Youth sports in general are going to take a huge hit. Soccer alone could see a 50% drop in organized participation through both unemployment and actual clubs still existing. The landscape is going to be quite fractured moving forward if unemployment rates continue to climb. The idea of worrying about "winners and losers" regarding your soccer league utopia could look very short sighted and you may actually be longing for the days when you could afford to complain about your kid having to play a soccer game in New England.

Anonymous wrote:You must be the one moron who enjoys driving all over the NE and MA to play inferior teams. Believe me when I tell say that you are the only one because no one I have spoken to prefers the insane amount of travel in the current system.

The landscape is already changing and it has nothing to do with the haves and have-nots. It is about idiotic leagues. The fact that teams are leaving DA for ECNL was the start. Just consolidating those two leagues is half the battle. The other part is incorporating other elite teams.

Well you are partly right. Things are changing. In fact, youth soccer is in a state of continuous change. There is no end in sight. Frankly though, I don't know what you're whining about because everything appears to be headed in your direction. GDA clubs are drifting back to ECNL, ECNL has created the RL layer as a second tier. COVID isn't going to change this too much near term, there are still tons of people able to pay the prices. If ECNL won't let Pipeline in, maybe y'all should join ECNL RL and demonstrate your competitiveness there. Seems like best of both worlds.

Anonymous wrote:You must be the one moron who enjoys driving all over the NE and MA to play inferior teams. Believe me when I tell say that you are the only one because no one I have spoken to prefers the insane amount of travel in the current system.

The landscape is already changing and it has nothing to do with the haves and have-nots. It is about idiotic leagues. The fact that teams are leaving DA for ECNL was the start. Just consolidating those two leagues is half the battle. The other part is incorporating other elite teams.

I'd use words like "idiot" and "moron" when referring to you, but I think "pipeline Dad" says it best of all.

Anonymous wrote:You must be the one moron who enjoys driving all over the NE and MA to play inferior teams. Believe me when I tell say that you are the only one because no one I have spoken to prefers the insane amount of travel in the current system.

The landscape is already changing and it has nothing to do with the haves and have-nots. It is about idiotic leagues. The fact that teams are leaving DA for ECNL was the start. Just consolidating those two leagues is half the battle. The other part is incorporating other elite teams.

You are mixing two realities. Clubs and leagues will fold because there are far fewer paying customers. You are all worried about your privileged trip to New England for a soccer game and in order to make YOUR world better you'd rather see local leagues fold and reform into YOUR little Elite league?

You must be the one moron who enjoys driving all over the NE and MA to play inferior teams. Believe me when I tell say that you are the only one because no one I have spoken to prefers the insane amount of travel in the current system.

The landscape is already changing and it has nothing to do with the haves and have-nots. It is about idiotic leagues. The fact that teams are leaving DA for ECNL was the start. Just consolidating those two leagues is half the battle. The other part is incorporating other elite teams.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you folks so dense that you can't follow the discussion. McLean and FCV are platforms in of themselves. If ECNL and DA went away tomorrow, both clubs would still produce elite teams with elite players. Neither clubs needs to send team to Long Island or SC for league games when they can play games locally.

If FCV and McLean believed playing Pipeline offered the same benefits as ECNL or DA they would. FCV would rather travel to play Penn Fusion than play your club. McLean would rather travel to play North Carolina than your club.

They don’t see the value in playing against your club. Their B teams likely do and that says enough.

Your post completely showcases your arrogance and ignorance.

And your post demonstrates your desperation to have the “cool kids” move to your table.

someone still living in HS. The wrinkles on your face don't lie though, Al Bundy.

Anonymous wrote:That is a backward view of what was said. I have a DD on a ECNL/DA team and one of the constant complaints is the travel. No one feels that traveling to Boston or LI or SC for a league game benefits anyone. The issue is the travel and not coaches, club fees, etc. Even national soccer figures recognize that travel is one of the main issues that hurt soccer in the US. No one is asking for a utopia. We just want common sense.

BTW, This isn't about small clubs vs. big clubs. This is about trying to get the best local teams playing against one another. It just seems idiotic to me that anyone would fight the idea and would prefer to drive through four states to play a game against a team that on the same level as a dozen other teams in the area.

1. If you don't like the travel there have always been options.
2. A economic recession/depression is not going to improve the soccer landscape. Soccer will become more of a haves and haves not situation.

If you are wealthy enough and can weather this financially and leagues and clubs go bankrupt allowing your kid to travel less for soccer then congratulations you win.