Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Truth

Collapse
X
  •  
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

    Truth

    Your kid has endless opportunities in this game. ECNL, BECNL, DA, GDA, OYSA, Academies, Futsal, High School.

    Here is the truth: your kid won’t go pro. Your kid may play in college.

    The single best indicator of how far your kid will go? How much time they spend with the ball. Are they enthralled with it? Do you have to tell them to stop playing with it in the house? Do they beg you to go outside to play? All these to annoying levels, not cute levels. Annoying. They are addicted. Can’t get enough. Depressed when practice is canceled. Depressed when they lose.

    Otherwise you have a kid that likes the game. Passion is different.

    And if they don’t have it, don’t worry about all those acronyms. Don’t dump a bunch of money on puttering them on airplanes. Your kid doesn’t have it.

    And don’t let the person making a living off of it tell you any different. Not matter how cool they seem or how much fear they try to instill in you.

    Take your kid to the local club. Then take them to OMSI. Or a play. Or the park. Or a thorns game.

    Put the thousands of soccer dollars in the 529 or go on a vacation.

    #2
    Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
    Your kid has endless opportunities in this game. ECNL, BECNL, DA, GDA, OYSA, Academies, Futsal, High School.

    Here is the truth: your kid won’t go pro. Your kid may play in college.

    The single best indicator of how far your kid will go? How much time they spend with the ball. Are they enthralled with it? Do you have to tell them to stop playing with it in the house? Do they beg you to go outside to play? All these to annoying levels, not cute levels. Annoying. They are addicted. Can’t get enough. Depressed when practice is canceled. Depressed when they lose.

    Otherwise you have a kid that likes the game. Passion is different.

    And if they don’t have it, don’t worry about all those acronyms. Don’t dump a bunch of money on puttering them on airplanes. Your kid doesn’t have it.

    And don’t let the person making a living off of it tell you any different. Not matter how cool they seem or how much fear they try to instill in you.

    Take your kid to the local club. Then take them to OMSI. Or a play. Or the park. Or a thorns game.

    Put the thousands of soccer dollars in the 529 or go on a vacation.
    Thank you! Well said.

    Comment


      #3
      Well done

      Maybe the only post worth reading on this message board.

      Comment


        #4
        Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
        Your kid has endless opportunities in this game. ECNL, BECNL, DA, GDA, OYSA, Academies, Futsal, High School.

        Here is the truth: your kid won’t go pro. Your kid may play in college.

        The single best indicator of how far your kid will go? How much time they spend with the ball. Are they enthralled with it? Do you have to tell them to stop playing with it in the house? Do they beg you to go outside to play? All these to annoying levels, not cute levels. Annoying. They are addicted. Can’t get enough. Depressed when practice is canceled. Depressed when they lose.

        Otherwise you have a kid that likes the game. Passion is different.

        And if they don’t have it, don’t worry about all those acronyms. Don’t dump a bunch of money on puttering them on airplanes. Your kid doesn’t have it.

        And don’t let the person making a living off of it tell you any different. Not matter how cool they seem or how much fear they try to instill in you.

        Take your kid to the local club. Then take them to OMSI. Or a play. Or the park. Or a thorns game.

        Put the thousands of soccer dollars in the 529 or go on a vacation.

        No matter who many different ways the truth has unfolded here on the site, over the last 5+ years add yet another heartfelt one behind the thousands that came before.

        What's sad is it doesn't seem to matter to those that want to make a living off the pipe dreams of the parents.

        Comment


          #5
          I think more families are taking messages like opening post to heart. Youth soccer participation is down 15% in just three years. That's a big drop in such a short time. There's many reasons but for certain the high cost, absurd travel and competition to nowhere is finally hitting them. In the next few years there will be club and league consolidation. It's the only way they can survive as businesses. The better clubs/leagues will thrive, the bad ones will wither away.

          Comment


            #6
            Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
            I think more families are taking messages like opening post to heart. Youth soccer participation is down 15% in just three years. That's a big drop in such a short time. There's many reasons but for certain the high cost, absurd travel and competition to nowhere is finally hitting them. In the next few years there will be club and league consolidation. It's the only way they can survive as businesses. The better clubs/leagues will thrive, the bad ones will wither away.
            Not to distract from your core point, could you cite the 15% drop?

            I've seen a similar number floating out there, but it is almost always citing USYSA membership, which is obviously only a piece of the pie (albeit a very large piece) and often doesn't take into account movement to DA, US Club, etc.

            Comment


              #7
              Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
              Not to distract from your core point, could you cite the 15% drop?

              I've seen a similar number floating out there, but it is almost always citing USYSA membership, which is obviously only a piece of the pie (albeit a very large piece) and often doesn't take into account movement to DA, US Club, etc.
              Kids who don't pick the ball up in the younger years will almost never become players later. Other sports have lost some as well, while others are growing. No one had the drops soccer has.

              "Over the past three years, the percentage of 6- to 12-year-olds playing soccer regularly has dropped nearly 14 percent, to 2.3 million players, according to a study by the Sports & Fitness Industry Association, which has analyzed youth athletic trends for 40 years. The number of children who touched a soccer ball even once during the year, in organized play or otherwise, also has fallen significantly."

              https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/14/s...h-decline.html

              Comment


                #8
                Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                Not to distract from your core point, could you cite the 15% drop? I've seen a similar number floating out there, but it is almost always citing USYSA membership, which is obviously only a piece of the pie (albeit a very large piece) and often doesn't take into account movement to DA, US Club, etc.
                AYSO is bigger numbers than DA US Soccer or the USYS competitor US Club combined.

                DA & US Club have impacted the USYS numbers since that's where (USYS) they all came from.

                US Club programming has had the the greatest impact on the cost of soccer due to their 'Travel' model.

                Participant numbers, understand that US Club doesn't seem to have this number readily available & US Soccer DA could be figured out if one took the time to do the math on their DA club listing.

                USYS Currently 3 million

                https://www.usyouthsoccer.org/about/...-youth-soccer/

                AYSO Currently 630,000

                https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Americ...r_Organization

                Comment


                  #9
                  Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                  I think more families are taking messages like opening post to heart. Youth soccer participation is down 15% in just three years. That's a big drop in such a short time. There's many reasons but for certain the high cost, absurd travel and competition to nowhere is finally hitting them. In the next few years there will be club and league consolidation. It's the only way they can survive as businesses. The better clubs/leagues will thrive, the bad ones will wither away.
                  I see many more players we know dropping out of soccer.

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                    I see many more players we know dropping out of soccer.
                    I see horrible teams leaving the state to fly and play other horrible teams. It's awesome and fuels enthusiasm for this great sport.

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                      I see many more players we know dropping out of soccer.
                      Birth year keeps messing up our teams and we need to keep mixing back in the 8th & 9th graders and even worse at soon to be juniors and seniors. We’ve lost about a dozen players each year due to that alone.

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                        Birth year keeps messing up our teams and we need to keep mixing back in the 8th & 9th graders and even worse at soon to be juniors and seniors. We’ve lost about a dozen players each year due to that alone.
                        Why is birth year still having any impact? The change was made over 3 years ago, so that is the only year it should have had any impact. I guess I could see some trickle down effect 2 years ago, but 4 seasons on it shouldn’t be felt at all.

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                          Why is birth year still having any impact? The change was made over 3 years ago, so that is the only year it should have had any impact. I guess I could see some trickle down effect 2 years ago, but 4 seasons on it shouldn’t be felt at all.
                          The birth year change was one of the dumbest moves ever. Young kids, especially girls, want to play with their classmates. Middle schoolers and high schooler mixed is just plain dumb. Numbers are down across the country primarily due to birth year.

                          This is what happens when consultants with without practical front line experience get involved.

                          Many of the greatest players of all time started playing soccer because their friend from school was playing in 2nd grade.

                          Comment


                            #14
                            Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                            Your kid has endless opportunities in this game. ECNL, BECNL, DA, GDA, OYSA, Academies, Futsal, High School.

                            Here is the truth: your kid won’t go pro. Your kid may play in college.

                            The single best indicator of how far your kid will go? How much time they spend with the ball. Are they enthralled with it? Do you have to tell them to stop playing with it in the house? Do they beg you to go outside to play? All these to annoying levels, not cute levels. Annoying. They are addicted. Can’t get enough. Depressed when practice is canceled. Depressed when they lose.

                            Otherwise you have a kid that likes the game. Passion is different.

                            And if they don’t have it, don’t worry about all those acronyms. Don’t dump a bunch of money on puttering them on airplanes. Your kid doesn’t have it.

                            And don’t let the person making a living off of it tell you any different. Not matter how cool they seem or how much fear they try to instill in you.

                            Take your kid to the local club. Then take them to OMSI. Or a play. Or the park. Or a thorns game.

                            Put the thousands of soccer dollars in the 529 or go on a vacation.
                            Signed,

                            The Parent Of The Kid Who Didn't Love It As Much As I Did

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                              The birth year change was one of the dumbest moves ever. Young kids, especially girls, want to play with their classmates. Middle schoolers and high schooler mixed is just plain dumb. Numbers are down across the country primarily due to birth year.

                              This is what happens when consultants with without practical front line experience get involved.

                              Many of the greatest players of all time started playing soccer because their friend from school was playing in 2nd grade.
                              It effects our club every year. The 8th & 9th grade mixed team leaves the 8th graders with no team and many quit. Due solely to birth year, the u18s and u19s now have to merge 1.5 teams into one team so, again, about 10-12 quit. This happens every single year at every single club and will continue to drive players to quit.

                              Comment

                              Previously entered content was automatically saved. Restore or Discard.
                              Auto-Saved
                              x
                              Insert: Thumbnail Small Medium Large Fullsize Remove  
                              x
                              Working...
                              X