Originally posted by Unregistered
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Bribery in ECNL/GDA/CLUB soccer?
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Unregistered
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Unregistered
Originally posted by Unregistered View PostHuh? No one is paying big money for ecnl or gda spots unless they are a fool. Yale is worth a lot of bribe money. Fancy youth soccer is not.
What fish bowl do you take up residence in ? It’s not the dollar value it’s that money or favors etc are being passed. It can be couple hundred to thousands.
If you don’t think some parents are throwing some money a coaches or DOCs way you are truly lost.
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Unregistered
Originally posted by Unregistered View PostWhat fish bowl do you take up residence in ? It’s not the dollar value it’s that money or favors etc are being passed. It can be couple hundred to thousands.
If you don’t think some parents are throwing some money a coaches or DOCs way you are truly lost.
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Unregistered
Originally posted by Unregistered View PostMaybe so but for what? Silly.
So the parents have status in his or hers social scene. It’s all relative. The hedge guy worth 100 mil likes it when he and the wife say little Susie is going to (fill in the blank university) when there at social events etc. And on another level when mommy is at school pickup she brags to the other moms that her daughter is DA / ECNL etc.
And we all know this happens every day at work/ school etc
“ Sad but oh so true"..........many many people are insecure ... it has no monetary or social boundaries
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Unregistered
Originally posted by Unregistered View PostSo the parents have status in his or hers social scene. It’s all relative. The hedge guy worth 100 mil likes it when he and the wife say little Susie is going to (fill in the blank university) when there at social events etc. And on another level when mommy is at school pickup she brags to the other moms that her daughter is DA / ECNL etc.
And we all know this happens every day at work/ school etc
“ Sad but oh so true"..........many many people are insecure ... it has no monetary or social boundaries
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Unregistered
Originally posted by Unregistered View PostSo the parents have status in his or hers social scene. It’s all relative. The hedge guy worth 100 mil likes it when he and the wife say little Susie is going to (fill in the blank university) when there at social events etc. And on another level when mommy is at school pickup she brags to the other moms that her daughter is DA / ECNL etc.
And we all know this happens every day at work/ school etc
“ Sad but oh so true"..........many many people are insecure ... it has no monetary or social boundaries
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Unregistered
Originally posted by Unregistered View PostI think those days are over. This gda launch has left youth soccer of all stripes pretty exposed for what it is. Status is not what comes to mind.
Imagine anything you didn’t think is possible can and does happen. People have more money and insecurity than brains at all income levels.
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Unregistered
Originally posted by Unregistered View PostSo if last week before all this bribery scandal broke, I told you Aunt Becky from Full House and a bunch of other rich idiots gave $25 million over 5 years to this guy so he could have someone take the SAT for their kids, photoshop their kids’ faces onto athletes bodies, and hand bags of cash to elite college coaches, you would have believed me? Seriously???
Imagine anything you didn’t think is possible can and does happen. People have more money and insecurity than brains at all income levels.
There is not that much surprise at this story. Disgust - yes. Impressed by the amounts involved and some of the the more ballsy moves like the Photoshoped faces - yes. But there is little surprise that people would try to bribe kids into elite colleges because it is viewed as being so very critical and valuable.
I dont think a youth soccer team is viewed as worthy of much of a bribe. We will have to agree to disagree. Dinner and drinks, vacation home use, extra training? - fine. Dont really think there is significant cold hard cash. for what really?
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Unregistered
How about charging small clubs to get into the NEP? Bribery? Or paying ECNL board members to let you in?
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Unregistered
Originally posted by Unregistered View PostI just dont see much of an analogy from bribes to access Yale and USC to bribes to access pay to play competitive youth soccer.
There is not that much surprise at this story. Disgust - yes. Impressed by the amounts involved and some of the the more ballsy moves like the Photoshoped faces - yes. But there is little surprise that people would try to bribe kids into elite colleges because it is viewed as being so very critical and valuable.
I dont think a youth soccer team is viewed as worthy of much of a bribe. We will have to agree to disagree. Dinner and drinks, vacation home use, extra training? - fine. Dont really think there is significant cold hard cash. for what really?
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Unregistered
Originally posted by Unregistered View PostIf the scenario is wanting their kid to go to a good college on a soccer scholarship or maybe get a call up to a national team camp, which looks good on a resume, you don’t think someone would pay a DOC at a good club to put their kid on the right team or use their connections at the college or national team to make that happen? I think in light of all that’s come out at the college level that would be naive. These types of parents have been pushing for the best for their kids their whole lives.
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Unregistered
Originally posted by Unregistered View PostIf the scenario is wanting their kid to go to a good college on a soccer scholarship or maybe get a call up to a national team camp, which looks good on a resume, you don’t think someone would pay a DOC at a good club to put their kid on the right team or use their connections at the college or national team to make that happen? I think in light of all that’s come out at the college level that would be naive. These types of parents have been pushing for the best for their kids their whole lives.
There may be some bribery going on in club soccer, but I think it's uncommon. With all the clubs and leagues now it's easy enough for parents just to take their little stud somewhere else. It's also easy enough to schmooze coaches and influence them without flat out cash payments - do their private training, offer tickets to a pro game in town you "just can't make", buy them drinks at a tournament. And there isn't nearly the status and life long prospects for the youth soccer vs an elite university. In the world of hedge funds everyone's athletic studs are doing something "amazing." Soccer just isn't even that special in that orbit - that's the crowd that let's their 15 year olds sail around the world by themselves or climb Everest. To be special in that universe you'd have t be on the national team. Thankfully it appears that at the NT level it's mostly about talent (politics aside). In regards to the fake athletes I doubt their parents told anybody they were getting into Yale as a player. All their friends and family would know the kid didn't play. This was all on QT. It was all about getting admission for someone who wasn't qualified.
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Unregistered
Originally posted by Unregistered View PostIf a player is good there's no need for bribes.
There may be some bribery going on in club soccer, but I think it's uncommon. With all the clubs and leagues now it's easy enough for parents just to take their little stud somewhere else. It's also easy enough to schmooze coaches and influence them without flat out cash payments - do their private training, offer tickets to a pro game in town you "just can't make", buy them drinks at a tournament. And there isn't nearly the status and life long prospects for the youth soccer vs an elite university. In the world of hedge funds everyone's athletic studs are doing something "amazing." Soccer just isn't even that special in that orbit - that's the crowd that let's their 15 year olds sail around the world by themselves or climb Everest. To be special in that universe you'd have t be on the national team. Thankfully it appears that at the NT level it's mostly about talent (politics aside). In regards to the fake athletes I doubt their parents told anybody they were getting into Yale as a player. All their friends and family would know the kid didn't play. This was all on QT. It was all about getting admission for someone who wasn't qualified.
In this case, the USC coach felt comfortable to funnel $350k of bribe money thru his private soccer club. Obviously that’s the only instance disclosed, but you can imagine that if he didn’t think that would throw up any red flags that it wasn’t the first time large amounts were funneled thru his club. And if he felt comfortable accepted bribes and bringing unqualified players to his university program, it’s not a hard mental leap to guess he would do that with his own club players or those at other clubs. Also, remember this USC, which is a top program that nobody thought would be doing this stuff. Now imagine what other club owners would do and what sorts of shenagins go on at less college programs that are outside the limelight.
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Unregistered
Originally posted by Unregistered View PostI’m not sure we are talking about the same thing here. No one’s talking about good athletes or “youth soccer” generically. TS is littered with posts about using highly selective leagues like ECNL/DA as college pathways and, in fact, college and NT rosters are stacked with these players. Hard to imagine getting a roster spot on a top D1 program without it so it’s not just A pathway, it can be seen as the ONLY pathway for most. Many TS posts are about using club coaches as conduits or go-betweens with college coaches to skirt NCAA recruiting rules that don’t allow direct contact with players or parents. Not saying it happens frequently, but it’s not a hard mental leap to guess that some coaches or clubs do unethical, if not illegal, stuff to dole out those coveted spots and provide that college access. People are asking why these rich parents didn’t just take the bribe money and use it pay the tuition at Yale instead, but then Yale only accepts 5% of applicants so what they were really paying the bribe for was that access. Same thing for high-level club soccer, it’s really about access for some.
In this case, the USC coach felt comfortable to funnel $350k of bribe money thru his private soccer club. Obviously that’s the only instance disclosed, but you can imagine that if he didn’t think that would throw up any red flags that it wasn’t the first time large amounts were funneled thru his club. And if he felt comfortable accepted bribes and bringing unqualified players to his university program, it’s not a hard mental leap to guess he would do that with his own club players or those at other clubs. Also, remember this USC, which is a top program that nobody thought would be doing this stuff. Now imagine what other club owners would do and what sorts of shenagins go on at less college programs that are outside the limelight.
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