Another excellent article

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Which is why ECNL is rumored to be going to graduation year like lacrosse. The majority of girls want to make their high school varsity teams and play in college. Graduation year age groups will attract the most players and make college recruiting the easiest. If college coaches are looking for 2020’s, they just go watch the 2020 games. Simple!

Yes, girls lacrosse is currently the fastest growing sport in the nation. Meanwhile, girls soccer, with their shortsighted "make decisions to benefit the .001% and call everyone else entitled for objecting" (as evidenced by an earlier post in this thread) continues to decline. Well done!

[Unregistered]

Yes, girls lacrosse is currently the fastest growing sport in the nation. Meanwhile, girls soccer, with their shortsighted "make decisions to benefit the .001% and call everyone else entitled for objecting" (as evidenced by an earlier post in this thread) continues to decline. Well done!

You're missing the point. There are options for the 99.999%. Lots of them. Demanding the highest levels locally or nationally operate in the best interests of your kids instead of what's best for the top players is the definition of entitled.

[Unregistered]

Yes, girls lacrosse is currently the fastest growing sport in the nation. Meanwhile, girls soccer, with their shortsighted "make decisions to benefit the .001% and call everyone else entitled for objecting" (as evidenced by an earlier post in this thread) continues to decline. Well done!

Of course, lacrosse is like American football--outside the US, nobody cares.

And "fastest growing sport" doesn't mean much when the base is small. If I have one restaurant last year and two restaurants this year, does that mean I'm growing faster than McDonalds? Technically, yes.

(And no disrespect intended to lacrosse; the more sports people can choose, the better).

[Unregistered]

You're missing the point. There are options for the 99.999%. Lots of them. Demanding the highest levels locally or nationally operate in the best interests of your kids instead of what's best for the top players is the definition of entitled.

What would be useful is a better-defined "select" tier of soccer, which has some attributes of classic soccer (competitive teams, tryouts, year round schedules, professional coaches, and a tourney or two) but which still is intended for the casual player. This tier could easily use the academic calendar without impacting the training of top prospects.

[Unregistered]

Which is why ECNL is rumored to be going to graduation year like lacrosse. The majority of girls want to make their high school varsity teams and play in college. Graduation year age groups will attract the most players and make college recruiting the easiest. If college coaches are looking for 2020’s, they just go watch the 2020 games. Simple!

Oregon has only 2 local clubs who signed up for the US Club regional/local/showcase travel adventure. What US Club is rumored to be doing is the norm nowadays. They are still dazed and confused after the US Soccer Girls DA was created for elite clubs and gutted us club of nearly all it's top shelf clubs, teams and players.Just an FYI, teams with great players attract college scouts. Graduation year teams attract kids who are in the same grade. Colleges want great players & students regardless of grade.Most recreational HS aged players do end up realizing their goal of making the HS varsity side, it's really that bad, so they have a great chance.

BTW college coaches don't even consider attending HS games.

Round and Round you go, still spinning to nowhere fast.

[Unregistered]

You're missing the point. There are options for the 99.999%. Lots of them. Demanding the highest levels locally or nationally operate in the best interests of your kids instead of what's best for the top players is the definition of entitled.

This may come as a surprise to you, but there are talented soccer players in Oregon and beyond who want to play soccer at a competitive level, and in many cases play in college, but who do not aspire to play professionally or on the national team.

Please enlighten me as to what leagues within the state of Oregon, or the Pacific Northwest, are in place for these players to play with school year teams. I'll wait. And sorry if I am "entitled" for asking you to provide evidence of your "options."

[Unregistered]

This may come as a surprise to you, but there are talented soccer players in Oregon and beyond who want to play soccer at a competitive level, and in many cases play in college, but who do not aspire to play professionally or on the national team.

Please enlighten me as to what leagues within the state of Oregon, or the Pacific Northwest, are in place for these players to play with school year teams. I'll wait. And sorry if I am "entitled" for asking you to provide evidence of your "options."

Just about every club team in Oregon will allow friends from different birth years to play together from Division I level down to rec. The younger kids simply join the older team.

Those players who choose friendship over competition need to be the ones who make the sacrifice and possibly play below their talent level. Don't force the rest of the kids who are choosing competition over friendships to dumb down their own experience so your kid can play with friends. Talent aside, you're completely dismissing the wants of the competitive minded kids who are trying to max out their own individual potential as a player.

[Unregistered]

Yes, girls lacrosse is currently the fastest growing sport in the nation. Meanwhile, girls soccer, with their shortsighted "make decisions to benefit the .001% and call everyone else entitled for objecting" (as evidenced by an earlier post in this thread) continues to decline. Well done!

Ecnl will switch to the obviously best path to college by going to graduation year. Let GDA get the .01% that want to go pro.

[Unregistered]

The birth year switch was an idiotic idea. It benefits exactly no one.

Nobody cares.

[Unregistered]

Ecnl will switch to the obviously best path to college by going to graduation year. Let GDA get the .01% that want to go pro.

Best colleges are always DIII, so US Club has perfect path and fit for the affluent travel parents!

[Unregistered]

Ecnl will switch to the obviously best path to college by going to graduation year. Let GDA get the .01% that want to go pro.

Ecnl is still relevant and actually the top market in places like Cal North, NE and NW. However, Ecnl has definitely been greatly weakened by the addition of GDA. The only way ecnl will survive long term is to offer the best college path by switching to Graduation Year age groups. The goal for 99.9% of girls and their parents is to play in college. Parents will be willing to pay for the best college path. If they don’t switch, GDA eventually pushes out ecnl.

[Unregistered]

Ecnl is still relevant and actually the top market in places like Cal North, NE and NW. However, Ecnl has definitely been greatly weakened by the addition of GDA. The only way ecnl will survive long term is to offer the best college path by switching to Graduation Year age groups. The goal for 99.9% of girls and their parents is to play in college. Parents will be willing to pay for the best college path. If they don’t switch, GDA eventually pushes out ecnl.

NW only has Seattle are clubs that are nationally relevant and their best clubs both boys & girls play in the DA.


US Club has the perfect platform for the eventual DIII player, no athletic scholarships available and parents cover the bill. Just like their current league.

[Unregistered]

Because you develop a system to maximize the chances to produce the .001% players not cater to the parents of the kids who want to be able to brag about their kid playing in the premier division/ecnl/gda. There are plenty of fun options where classmates can play together if parents would put aside their entitlement image issues and allow them to sign up for lower level leagues. Allow the kids who play for fun to do that, and allow the players who want more to do that without the burden of carrying an underserving classmate on a supposed 'select' team.

The programs for the .001% should be developed unfettered by what is good for the rest. Historically, in this country this is where we screwed up: letting rec mindset dictate top end.

The opposite is also true however: don't mess up soccer for the rest of us to develop the top .001 or to create a monopoly on them. Outside the top .001%, there are different needs (and varied needs - there more than just "rec" and "elite" needs, with a couple of layers in between)- and what is good for the top .001% should be irrelevant here.

Over the last few years, that is where we have screwed up nationally, at state level, and in big clubs. So much has been designed for the purported elite; fouling up the game for the rest. Throw in the financial incentives + prestige to being the "sole, only" pathway and we get a never ending cycle of league wars, all in the hopes of monopolizing access to the next stage, whatever it is.

Again, there is no innocence here: federation, OYSA/Timbers, ALL of the big clubs.

US Soccer/MLS (and maybe another 20-80 clubs nationally) wants to groom the top .001% - fine fund it and go with it. Again to get that % at age 25, you need a broader funnel than what MLS/NWSL can offer, but it isn't infinite.

However, keep the rest of us out of it. That's not entitlement - it is common sense. Keeping kids playing sports, parts of teams/community, is a social good.

[Unregistered]

The programs for the .001% should be developed unfettered by what is good for the rest. Historically, in this country this is where we screwed up: letting rec mindset dictate top end.

The opposite is also true however: don't mess up soccer for the rest of us to develop the top .001 or to create a monopoly on them. Outside the top .001%, there are different needs (and varied needs - there more than just "rec" and "elite" needs, with a couple of layers in between)- and what is good for the top .001% should be irrelevant here.

Over the last few years, that is where we have screwed up nationally, at state level, and in big clubs. So much has been designed for the purported elite; fouling up the game for the rest. Throw in the financial incentives + prestige to being the "sole, only" pathway and we get a never ending cycle of league wars, all in the hopes of monopolizing access to the next stage, whatever it is.

Again, there is no innocence here: federation, OYSA/Timbers, ALL of the big clubs.

US Soccer/MLS (and maybe another 20-80 clubs nationally) wants to groom the top .001% - fine fund it and go with it. Again to get that % at age 25, you need a broader funnel than what MLS/NWSL can offer, but it isn't infinite.

However, keep the rest of us out of it. That's not entitlement - it is common sense. Keeping kids playing sports, parts of teams/community, is a social good.

You started so well and ended so poorly. What you want exists today if you simply allow your child to play below the Premier division where playing with classmates is allowed. Asking for a special league or rule changes for everybody so your child can play in a league labeled Premier or ECNL or GDA is entitled behavior. Check the ego and let the kids choose their path.

[Unregistered]

Ecnl is still relevant and actually the top market in places like Cal North, NE and NW. However, Ecnl has definitely been greatly weakened by the addition of GDA. The only way ecnl will survive long term is to offer the best college path by switching to Graduation Year age groups. The goal for 99.9% of girls and their parents is to play in college. Parents will be willing to pay for the best college path. If they don’t switch, GDA eventually pushes out ecnl.

Ecnl might be the best path in the NW and other areas for now but GDA is thinking of allowing hs soccer to entice more of the better players over to Academy. Ecnl will lose many players if GDA does that.