And so beware of fake posters who knock other programs on here because they are affiliated with one who doesn't give money out, or could not match another person in a bidding war.
Some of the particular teams are no longer in their glory and so they are trying to dismiss rival academies who can support and maintain a DA program properly. Parents should research the coaches and the academy. If you have an 05 and they are acting like it's just business as usual and it's just another year then run- you are at the wrong place.
Giving money out doesn't make you evil or a lesser club- just like playing long ball doesn't make you a bad soccer player. Parents who search for the best deal again I have respect for because this is a huge committment. It's a life changing one honestly and I respect the time and effort some people put into this. I also respect that a lot of families are seeing this as a long term choice and relationship.
There are many ways to get perks at clubs and the fees are a small part of it. Maybe the fee was high but they are getting subsides. The poster who wrote about being discreet was right on the money.
There is something to be said for clubs who have embraced this academy system and tried to do the right thing with field space, education, financials, training. Now you all know what a huge Beach fan I am so this isn't a knock on any of you but other people with their bias are now treading around and it's too early for fake news
Not knocking on anything, as the comments remain civil so far. The argument started because of the following comments:
Post#3: "Love your post. We already subsidize the A team at every club."
Post#5: "You are correct not all, I would say 99% but there is still that 1% out there."
Post#7: "With all the avenues of information distribution available to parents today (other parents, blogs, boards, observations, etc.), it amuses me that there are still parents out there (and not just the U littles with their blinders) that don't know that at any mega club, their child is either on the A team or they are paying for someone else's kid who is".
Kicker and I have responded that this is not true at Beach, in the sense that most or any significant number of players in their A teams do not get a free ride based only on skill. I cannot say if this is true at other clubs, I have no knowledge about it.
Do some teams at Beach get subsidized by other teams? Maybe, but not in the form of full rides. Before this year all girls practiced the same number of days, in the same fields (maybe an exception could have been the old academy teams, which may have practiced one more day and had the top coaches, but I do not know for sure). Furthermore, I have seen what people call top coaches (e.g. Mauricio and Anton Arrache), train flight II teams. I suspect that now the DA teams are getting partially subsidized, in the form of the fee paid by these players not fully covering the extra number of hours of practice.
I think that the argument about giving extra DA scholarships to girls from lower income families is mute. Those scholarships exist from US soccer; and I am also sure that any DA club will not miss on any deserving "poor" player, the clubs will pay for them.
Regarding the argument about whether big clubs should subsidize their DA program using revenue from other teams, not only I agree with it but when we began talking about it last Winter I added that in exchange, the clubs should commit to keeping a large (but not all) % of DA slots reserved to players developed by the club (so that subsidizing families were happily on board, and to make sure that the clubs commit to development at the younger ages). I was laughed off by the usual suspects. One could argue how much subsidy should there be: a full or fractional ride for every DA player? In the case of Beach, it seems that the managers of the club have decided (I have not talked to them about this, I am just speculating) that every player in the club from a family wealthy enough to pay, will pay the same amount, the standard club fee. When I first read the DA application, I expected that a large club like Beach should commit to fully funding the DA program (for my own benefit and to ensure a successful bid). However, I think that a partial subsidy in which every player in the club pays the same amount stands on "higher moral ground".
And I am aware that if I do not like this model, I can go elsewhere with a fully subsidized DA program.
