AYSO United?

fotos4u2 said:
While I don't have any experience with United myself, we do know a lot of players who have played in the program over the years (I believe our area may have been one of the first to start it) and it seems like a good option for the lower level player. If your kid is only good enough to play on the C or D team on a big club why not do United and pay way less in fees? Especially kids who don't want to step down to rec, but want a bit more flexibility than a lot of clubs give.

Looking at the rosters of the age groups we know, I'm seeing players who we've known or played with in club. Most of those were benchwarmers on the "A-team" or maybe starters on their B or C team.

That being said, my only issue with United is that coaches are almost always parents and all the possible problems that come with that.
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I agree with that. Its the main reason that we left and returned to a club setting. The training was good, good enough for our needs at the time, but daddy ball is daddy ball. There’s just no way around that.
 
fotos4u2 said:
While I don't have any experience with United myself, we do know a lot of players who have played in the program over the years (I believe our area may have been one of the first to start it) and it seems like a good option for the lower level player. If your kid is only good enough to play on the C or D team on a big club why not do United and pay way less in fees? Especially kids who don't want to step down to rec, but want a bit more flexibility than a lot of clubs give.

Looking at the rosters of the age groups we know, I'm seeing players who we've known or played with in club. Most of those were benchwarmers on the "A-team" or maybe starters on their B or C team.

That being said, my only issue with United is that coaches are almost always parents and all the possible problems that come with that.
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Seems like different United Regions have different prices. Central United charges approximately $1500 for ulittles but the dessert Area United Charges roughly $500. So I wouldn't be surprise if the OC United would be close to $2k for the ulittles.
 
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In many regions, don't know about all, AYSO gets preferential access to fields that are not available to other soccer teams/clubs ( the smaller clubs that provide great training and nice coaches)
and at a pretty cheap price - it is not fair and equitable with other soccer organizations.

Also, if all coaches are still volunteer and fields are minimal cost why is United charging $800 plus ?
 
Soccer43 said:
In many regions, don't know about all, AYSO gets preferential access to fields that are not available to other soccer teams/clubs ( the smaller clubs that provide great training and nice coaches)
and at a pretty cheap price - it is not fair and equitable with other soccer organizations.

Also, if all coaches are still volunteer and fields are minimal cost why is United charging $800 plus ?
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I blinked at that number too. In our area the fees are $600 and $550 respectively. The variance may be because some United clubs bring in trainers (field and goalkeeper) to work with the players once a week on individual skills, and those guys get paid. Some include tournament fees, but some don't. There's the ref fee, the league fee, but also an "AYSO Club Fee" which presumably is the amount the state and national entity takes in. They also may not get a break in the field rentals...it depends on the deal they've made with P&R which in turn is usually dependent on how much redevelopment AYSO does on the fields and how much maintenance they take on not to mention political connections....in our 3rd neighboring area, AYSO neither has dedicated fields nor gets preferential treatment, and in fact uses some of the school fields in our home AYSO region.
 
Soccer43 said:
In many regions, don't know about all, AYSO gets preferential access to fields that are not available to other soccer teams/clubs ( the smaller clubs that provide great training and nice coaches)
and at a pretty cheap price - it is not fair and equitable with other soccer organizations.

Also, if all coaches are still volunteer and fields are minimal cost why is United charging $800 plus ?
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Some guy, with a big ego, in South OC uses AYSO to get the break on the fields from the city. He then added club and switches name of club every year - needs to get the best value. He changed the name (for marketing) of the rec side but still AYSO. So club gets primo fields and the guy is the exec director, manager of all teams, assistant coach on all teams and coach of 4 teams - not listed as coach of one team but is the guy yelling from the bench every game. No one performs that many jobs at a club -but a good way for no one to see how you manage the paperwork and money. So might be volunteer on the AYSO side but making the $ on the club side. The coaching isnt better but the club prices are the same. In many parts of South OC AYSO has fallen apart due to politics and coaching quality. Some people also abuse what AYSO can get you from an administrative point of view.
 
Grace T. said:
I blinked at that number too. In our area the fees are $600 and $550 respectively. The variance may be because some United clubs bring in trainers (field and goalkeeper) to work with the players once a week on individual skills, and those guys get paid. Some include tournament fees, but some don't. There's the ref fee, the league fee, but also an "AYSO Club Fee" which presumably is the amount the state and national entity takes in. They also may not get a break in the field rentals...it depends on the deal they've made with P&R which in turn is usually dependent on how much redevelopment AYSO does on the fields and how much maintenance they take on not to mention political connections....in our 3rd neighboring area, AYSO neither has dedicated fields nor gets preferential treatment, and in fact uses some of the school fields in our home AYSO region.
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As far as I know the coaches in Central United do get paid especially the DOC that came from NOMADS. I know a few of the coaches and there not there to volunteer which also came from the OC. Seem like other regions have it good then.
 
Not_that_Serious said:
Some guy, with a big ego, in South OC uses AYSO to get the break on the fields from the city. He then added club and switches name of club every year - needs to get the best value. He changed the name (for marketing) of the rec side but still AYSO. So club gets primo fields and the guy is the exec director, manager of all teams, assistant coach on all teams and coach of 4 teams - not listed as coach of one team but is the guy yelling from the bench every game. No one performs that many jobs at a club -but a good way for no one to see how you manage the paperwork and money. So might be volunteer on the AYSO side but making the $ on the club side. The coaching isnt better but the club prices are the same. In many parts of South OC AYSO has fallen apart due to politics and coaching quality. Some people also abuse what AYSO can get you from an administrative point of view.
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Report him to the City.
 
Fact said:
Report him to the City.
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Im sure they know, but might be worth sending off a note. But the dude is known by everyone around - refs, coaches, etc. Real Douche. I told the guy he sounds like a used car salesman, but found out I wasnt far off. Insurance Salesman, but not the helpful kind. Only people out of the loop are parents and poor kids who get short end of the stick. The kids wont improve. Sad part is he can feed the club side by pushing them into Signature and eventually into Club. So can keep the system going. People like this do eventually get into an argument with the wrong person or piss off the wrong parent.
 
Regions are moving complete Extra teams into the United program in addition to looking for players. Not all are mom-coached, but worth reminding that even those AYSO Advanced coaches (minimum for Extra) = 3 different weekends of training to earn that rank.
 
jrcaesar said:
Regions are moving complete Extra teams into the United program in addition to looking for players. Not all are mom-coached, but worth reminding that even those AYSO Advanced coaches (minimum for Extra) = 3 different weekends of training to earn that rank.
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I'd also add that in comparison to the new E-equivalent grassroots license (2 hours class/2 hours field/some online stuff) the AYSO Core coaching program (let alone the AYSO Advanced coaching) is just so much more intensive. It's possible the requirements now for AYSO United far exceeds regular club entry-level training, though I hope US Soccer may put some restrictions on the Grassroots coaches (licensed only provisionally, rec only, or under the supervision of a higher license).
 
I'm not advocating for or against United other than it's a better choice than a Slammers or Beach 3rd or 4th team when factoring all things in (costs, coaches, atmosphere).
 
The coach training isn't necessarily the issue but the attitude - AYSO has traditionally been about fun and equal play time for all and have been critical about kids leaving to play in club. Now they are in the club circuit and it's about winning and charging high fees like the other clubs. What happened to the AYSO way?
 
Soccer43 said:
The coach training isn't necessarily the issue but the attitude - AYSO has traditionally been about fun and equal play time for all and have been critical about kids leaving to play in club. Now they are in the club circuit and it's about winning and charging high fees like the other clubs. What happened to the AYSO way?
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I said this in a prior post months ago- but when clubs started offering up multiple teams in Flight 3, the clubs started dipping into the AYSO pond. This is just aysos way of responding.
Yes, the fees are more. But you gotta pay more to player under Cal-South and Coast. And you gotta pay referees.
 
jrcaesar said:
Regions are moving complete Extra teams into the United program in addition to looking for players. Not all are mom-coached, but worth reminding that even those AYSO Advanced coaches (minimum for Extra) = 3 different weekends of training to earn that rank.
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jr you forgot one thing everyone passes...but I do agree that the length of training is good.
 
As someone involved in the AYSO United program, I feel the need to respond here. Yes the club is moving into Orange County, replacing Pacific Soccer Club (the old AYSO club). In Orange County at least, they have some decent teams who will be playing at Silver level next year. Yes the coaches are all professional coaches, in the South Orange County one anyway. The fees are around $1500, but I think for teams who don't have a professional coach (two sessions a week plus weekend games) and have a parent doing it, it goes down a lot. It is still amusing to hear the opponents parents whisper "Its ok, they're an AYSO team" and then see the looks on their faces when they are 3-0/4-0 down.

With regards to the 'AYSO way', the teams are encouraged to maintain the core philosophies, so rosters are small and players get at least 50% of every game.

Overall, I think AYSO just wants to keep its players. So many club programs are propped up by players who come from AYSO, so why not provide a club program for them and keep them in the club? Its still young as a club and I'm sure there are different problems in different parts around SoCal, but it's a very good option to have and we are pleased it is around!
 
Call it what you want but it is a money grab by an organization that had always prided itself on taking the moral high ground , "for the children"
 
Like I said, I'm sure the program is viewed differently in different areas, but down here in South Orange County, we are happy with it. The program is definitely focused on the children and their individual development first.
 
Not_that_Serious said:
Some guy, with a big ego, in South OC uses AYSO to get the break on the fields from the city. He then added club and switches name of club every year - needs to get the best value. He changed the name (for marketing) of the rec side but still AYSO. So club gets primo fields and the guy is the exec director, manager of all teams, assistant coach on all teams and coach of 4 teams - not listed as coach of one team but is the guy yelling from the bench every game. No one performs that many jobs at a club -but a good way for no one to see how you manage the paperwork and money. So might be volunteer on the AYSO side but making the $ on the club side. The coaching isnt better but the club prices are the same. In many parts of South OC AYSO has fallen apart due to politics and coaching quality. Some people also abuse what AYSO can get you from an administrative point of view.
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This guy is involved in AYSO in South Orange County? Not at AYSO United though surely?
 
Last year I spoke to the "corporate" guys at AYSO HQ who were looking for fields. The subject of AYSO United came up. My understanding of the company line at that time was that AYSO's base mission is to make "soccer available to all." Their recreational/core programs have grown and flourished under their volunteer model, but they were losing advanced players who were underserved.

AYSO recognized that their model of all volunteers had flaws when it came to higher level play and training ... the Dads and Moms simply were not equipped. After years of watching kids leave the program to play club soccer (including the kids of the guys I spoke too), AYSO came to the conclusion that their current programs did not adequately serve a class of their members and their "Extra" program wasn't cutting it, therefore, an actual "club" program that still adhered to the AYSO principals was needed. The "Matrix" programs were a regional response, but AYSO National made the decision to create a competitive program that would compete against the "Club" teams in various regions against US Youth Soccer and US Club Soccer affiliates.

The claim that AYSO is abandoning their principals is a little unfair. Competing in Cal South and the affiliated leagues is far more costly than AYSO's rec model. Referees need to be paid, tournaments are not free, competition level fields need to be secured, coaches paid, etc. Charging the AYSO United parents fees to cover these costs is abundantly fair. What you won't have with the AYSO United model is a DOC pulling down $155k+, which should help the program keep its fees on the lower side.

AYSO United teams still maintains the AYSO 50% play rule.

Note, my kids have never played in the AYSO program, so I'm not a homer.
 
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