US Soccer holding us hostage

[Unregistered]

I am not a parent of an ECNL or GDA player, but every person who cares about the future of women’s soccer in our country should be alarmed by the announcement of the u15 World Cup roster. US soccer isn’t even pretending to play fair anymore. Only one player not from an academy club.

I know many of you have your preferences and biases but ask yourself if you truly believe that out of all the ECNL and non-GDA u15 players in our country, is it reasonable that only ONE was good enough for this team? That’s nonsense.

US Soccer has sent a very clear message. There is no path to the national team but through them. That is their right, I guess, but it’s holding our kids hostage (what about kids who live nowhere near an academy club?) and is bad, sleazy business.

A national team is supposed to be about gathering the best. That process is always subjective and open to criticism. But what US soccer is doing is clearly trying to drive a strong competitor out of business. And that hurts our future national team, our players, and Youth Soccer as a whole.

I predict in 10-15 years our national team will be passed up by anywhere from 3-6 other nations. We are already struggling to regain dominance. But if this pattern of selecting girls only from one platform continues, we won’t be medaling in the Olympics or winning world cups again for a long long time.

[Unregistered]

https://www.ussoccer.com/stories/201...s-championship

Most of the team is from the 2004 and 2005 age group while the tournament will have mostly 2003 players. This seems like a conscious thumb on the scales of the USSDA only point the OP made.

[Unregistered]

Why anyone has any interest in the national team is beyond me.

Hope Solo is a bitter, mean, generally awful human. Same could be said about 90% of the national team players. Drugs, depression, sour egos. Same on the men's team, which has a bunch of sad losers.

To each their own, but it sounds like a bad place to be.

Many of the men have an IQ level of a walnut.

[Unregistered]

The tournament they're playing does not look too tough, so I don't think it really matters but they clearly want to emphasize the USSDA point since they put it in the article.

[Unregistered]

Why anyone has any interest in the national team is beyond me.

Hope Solo is a bitter, mean, generally awful human. Same could be said about 90% of the national team players. Drugs, depression, sour egos. Same on the men's team, which has a bunch of sad losers.

To each their own, but it sounds like a bad place to be.

Many of the men have an IQ level of a walnut.

Tim Howard, Jermaine Jones, the dumb bald guy that is the captain and specializes in turning the ball over...all come across as unintelligent, sad humans in interviews. I hope it's not as bad as it seems.

[Unregistered]

There are segments of Spain and Italy where soccer is king but they don't give 2 ****s about that national team.

Maybe the growing apathy towards US Soccer/National team is the sign of a maturing soccer nation.

[Unregistered]

Unfair in the short term, but there overall message may not be bad. Ideally it would be best for the top players if anyone no matter your income could play with other top players, and thats what the DA originally tried to do. On the boys side its still very cheap (Timbers DA I think is 500.00 a year, which is cheaper than any club in the area, and that includes traveling and everything). On the girls side the originally tried to keep the cost very low, but the fact is they are having to fight with ECNL over players, and with all the options they aren't able to subsidize the same way the boys programs have been able to. If creating 1 path to the national team can be moved to a way to create a low income path to higher level, then we can finally engage all income levels of players, and not just the rich ones. Right now ECNL is for the wealthy families, not the inner city kids who can't afford it. DA on the girls side is heading that direction, but better than ECNL as far as overall costs go.

Plus why wouldn't the US national team, ran by US youth soccer, select from there won pool of players? that makes perfect sense. Just like if there was a US national team put together by US club soccer, they would probably pick mostly if not all ECNL players.

[Unregistered]

Tim Howard, Jermaine Jones, the dumb bald guy that is the captain and specializes in turning the ball over...all come across as unintelligent, sad humans in interviews. I hope it's not as bad as it seems.

A lot of bald guys but only one guy who specializes in turning the ball over: Michael Bradley. Great player who consistently lets his team down in key moments.

[Unregistered]

Unfair in the short term, but there overall message may not be bad. Ideally it would be best for the top players if anyone no matter your income could play with other top players, and thats what the DA originally tried to do. On the boys side its still very cheap (Timbers DA I think is 500.00 a year, which is cheaper than any club in the area, and that includes traveling and everything). On the girls side the originally tried to keep the cost very low, but the fact is they are having to fight with ECNL over players, and with all the options they aren't able to subsidize the same way the boys programs have been able to. If creating 1 path to the national team can be moved to a way to create a low income path to higher level, then we can finally engage all income levels of players, and not just the rich ones. Right now ECNL is for the wealthy families, not the inner city kids who can't afford it. DA on the girls side is heading that direction, but better than ECNL as far as overall costs go.

Plus why wouldn't the US national team, ran by US youth soccer, select from there won pool of players? that makes perfect sense. Just like if there was a US national team put together by US club soccer, they would probably pick mostly if not all ECNL players.

- Two thirds of BDA clubs are pay to play. Only MLS clubs are free. Almost all GDA teams are pay to play. Scholarships are few and far between and rarely cover travel. That locks out a lot of talent based on affordability.

- Many players don't have access to a DA club in their area or the local DA club sucks. That locks out a lot of talent based on geography.

- Having one path for selection makes it much to chummy and ripe for politics and favoritism.

So no, there should never be one path

[Unregistered]

There are segments of Spain and Italy where soccer is king but they don't give 2 ****s about that national team.

Maybe the growing apathy towards US Soccer/National team is the sign of a maturing soccer nation.

We'renot a soccer nation. Every few years a few non fans like to cheer on the national teams. It generates as much national pride as track or luge

[Unregistered]

Why anyone has any interest in the national team is beyond me.

Hope Solo is a bitter, mean, generally awful human. Same could be said about 90% of the national team players. Drugs, depression, sour egos. Same on the men's team, which has a bunch of sad losers.

To each their own, but it sounds like a bad place to be.

Many of the men have an IQ level of a walnut.

Didn't Wambach get busted for DUI and discuss her drug issues?

[Unregistered]

What to Solo, Wambach, Bradley, and other dinosaurs have to do with the U15 team?

[Unregistered]

- Two thirds of BDA clubs are pay to play. Only MLS clubs are free. Almost all GDA teams are pay to play. Scholarships are few and far between and rarely cover travel. That locks out a lot of talent based on affordability.

- Many players don't have access to a DA club in their area or the local DA club sucks. That locks out a lot of talent based on geography.

- Having one path for selection makes it much to chummy and ripe for politics and favoritism.

So no, there should never be one path

This is exactly the point. IF there was a truly free (or very low cost) GDA available to ALL players, regardless of geographic location or financial situation, then fine. Select a national team from that platform because that platform encompasses all players. But what we have in DA and GDA is far from that. By only choosing players from the GDA clubs, you are eliminating:

Players who choose to play HS sports (which every study has indicated is beneficial for players)
Players who don't live near where the GDA clubs are (look at the GDA map on US soccer - huge swaths of the nation don't have a club within hundreds of miles)
Players who are playing for a very strong and successful ECNL club and don't wish to change (can you honestly say to me that the girls on the So Cal Blues 01 and 02 teams - most who already have top D1 commits - are not good enough to be brought into a national camp?)
Players who live near a poorly run GDA program (such as in Oregon)

In 5-10 years, if GDA wins this big war and succeeds in driving ECNL out of business (which is very obviously the only purpose of GDA), then and only then should they only look at GDA players for the national team. Until then, as long as there is a thriving ECNL league with many top players, stubbornly refusing to consider them hurts our future national teams. But hey, Ego over Ethics, right?

[Unregistered]

This is exactly the point. IF there was a truly free (or very low cost) GDA available to ALL players, regardless of geographic location or financial situation, then fine. Select a national team from that platform because that platform encompasses all players. But what we have in DA and GDA is far from that. By only choosing players from the GDA clubs, you are eliminating:

Players who choose to play HS sports (which every study has indicated is beneficial for players)
Players who don't live near where the GDA clubs are (look at the GDA map on US soccer - huge swaths of the nation don't have a club within hundreds of miles)
Players who are playing for a very strong and successful ECNL club and don't wish to change (can you honestly say to me that the girls on the So Cal Blues 01 and 02 teams - most who already have top D1 commits - are not good enough to be brought into a national camp?)
Players who live near a poorly run GDA program (such as in Oregon)

In 5-10 years, if GDA wins this big war and succeeds in driving ECNL out of business (which is very obviously the only purpose of GDA), then and only then should they only look at GDA players for the national team. Until then, as long as there is a thriving ECNL league with many top players, stubbornly refusing to consider them hurts our future national teams. But hey, Ego over Ethics, right?

US Soccer DA has been up and running since 2007 on the boys side. This happening gutted usys of its elite teams and players,no crying no complaining everyone just moved Forward. It's worth noting US club soccer didn't say boo about it.

US Soccer expanded the DA to girls in 2017 and USYS did not get upset but a small group affiliated with US club soccer is losing their mind over US Soccer's DA today.

The response is inconsistent from US club soccer for boys Versus girls.

Not very intelligent Messaging from US club soccer.

[Unregistered]

US Soccer DA has been up and running since 2007 on the boys side. This happening gutted usys of its elite teams and players,no crying no complaining everyone just moved Forward. It's worth noting US club soccer didn't say boo about it.

US Soccer expanded the DA to girls in 2017 and USYS did not get upset but a small group affiliated with US club soccer is losing their mind over US Soccer's DA today.

The response is inconsistent from US club soccer for boys Versus girls.

Not very intelligent Messaging from US club soccer.

Because US Club built from nothing a nationwide program to support girls when US Soccer passed on it 10 years ago.

They, built, something . . . that bureaucrats over the last 2 years have tried to emasculate.

Throw in that many US Club members find the GDA restrictions/absolutism misguided.