How’s the 2023-24 season going?

way up said:
The reality is there is more to it than "good enough" with girls. I think it takes almost equal mental toughness/confidence/GANAS to be "good enough".I would ask how many think their girls are athletic and tough enough? If they put in 20 hours of training a week for the next 4 years, do they have the coordination, speed, physical strength, and size to play with the best in the world? Then, do they have the mental desire and confidence to even go through all the work and sacrifice through high school? Then, will they be lucky enough to not get injuries, pregnant, and/or anxiety and depression from the sacrifice and loss of fun high school life? There will only be a handful of current ecnl players for the next then that pulled through the requirements so far.

Now, in their junior year of high school, can and will they be so dominant at their position and confident to play with the best soccer skilled athletes in the world? Right now, it's even tough sometimes to compare skills at tryouts and/or even games/showcases with many of these girls. Does your daughter have the potential to REALLY stand out against the best at 16 to 17? I'm not so confident, but we're all giving our girls the opportunity, so they can't say we didn't. LOL!

I don't know what girls level up in high school vs other girls? How do you build that GANAS? How do you avoid injuries and burn out, but work hard enough to be the best and hold onto that GANAS? I think size matters more with girls, because they may never have the same drive as boys due to the lack of rewards, so those with natural size, athleticism, and mediocre levels of GANAS may have the advantage due to easier pathways. Not saying it's all about size, but I'm already seeing coaches carry less developed players that do have size and athleticism for their future potential.

Yes, there will only be a handful that go pro, but how many will be willing to go through all this for starbuck wages? Some will and they are true warrior competitors who play for love of the game.

I'd like to think that playing ECNL their freshmen year is 1 level towards bigger opportunities? Right now, I set things up for my daughter to learn and develop in the winter, but this could lead to injuries and some teams are practicing more to help them be ready for league. If my daughter was a top 10 athletic player in her age group, I think I would care more about avoiding burn out and injury than anything. In any case, I'm here to learn from those who have already lived this, but most of us are probably enjoying the experience being part of the opportunity that most likely won't evolve. Saying this though, you won't make it big if you don't work your butt off!
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Highschool is the killer in the equation
 
way up said:
The reality is there is more to it than "good enough" with girls. I think it takes almost equal mental toughness/confidence/GANAS to be "good enough".I would ask how many think their girls are athletic and tough enough? If they put in 20 hours of training a week for the next 4 years, do they have the coordination, speed, physical strength, and size to play with the best in the world? Then, do they have the mental desire and confidence to even go through all the work and sacrifice through high school? Then, will they be lucky enough to not get injuries, pregnant, and/or anxiety and depression from the sacrifice and loss of fun high school life? There will only be a handful of current ecnl players for the next then that pulled through the requirements so far.

Now, in their junior year of high school, can and will they be so dominant at their position and confident to play with the best soccer skilled athletes in the world? Right now, it's even tough sometimes to compare skills at tryouts and/or even games/showcases with many of these girls. Does your daughter have the potential to REALLY stand out against the best at 16 to 17? I'm not so confident, but we're all giving our girls the opportunity, so they can't say we didn't. LOL!

I don't know what girls level up in high school vs other girls? How do you build that GANAS? How do you avoid injuries and burn out, but work hard enough to be the best and hold onto that GANAS? I think size matters more with girls, because they may never have the same drive as boys due to the lack of rewards, so those with natural size, athleticism, and mediocre levels of GANAS may have the advantage due to easier pathways. Not saying it's all about size, but I'm already seeing coaches carry less developed players that do have size and athleticism for their future potential.

Yes, there will only be a handful that go pro, but how many will be willing to go through all this for starbuck wages? Some will and they are true warrior competitors who play for love of the game.

I'd like to think that playing ECNL their freshmen year is 1 level towards bigger opportunities? Right now, I set things up for my daughter to learn and develop in the winter, but this could lead to injuries and some teams are practicing more to help them be ready for league. If my daughter was a top 10 athletic player in her age group, I think I would care more about avoiding burn out and injury than anything. In any case, I'm here to learn from those who have already lived this, but most of us are probably enjoying the experience being part of the opportunity that most likely won't evolve. Saying this though, you won't make it big if you don't work your butt off!
Click to expand...

And this is why we need an academy system for these potential elite youth girl players. If they can hang in the academy system then they are potential pro candidates. If not stick to the old ecnl-ecrl-GA/college program where over 99% will remain in anyway
 
way up said:
The reality is there is more to it than "good enough" with girls. I think it takes almost equal mental toughness/confidence/GANAS to be "good enough".I would ask how many think their girls are athletic and tough enough? If they put in 20 hours of training a week for the next 4 years, do they have the coordination, speed, physical strength, and size to play with the best in the world? Then, do they have the mental desire and confidence to even go through all the work and sacrifice through high school? Then, will they be lucky enough to not get injuries, pregnant, and/or anxiety and depression from the sacrifice and loss of fun high school life? There will only be a handful of current ecnl players for the next then that pulled through the requirements so far.

Now, in their junior year of high school, can and will they be so dominant at their position and confident to play with the best soccer skilled athletes in the world? Right now, it's even tough sometimes to compare skills at tryouts and/or even games/showcases with many of these girls. Does your daughter have the potential to REALLY stand out against the best at 16 to 17? I'm not so confident, but we're all giving our girls the opportunity, so they can't say we didn't. LOL!

I don't know what girls level up in high school vs other girls? How do you build that GANAS? How do you avoid injuries and burn out, but work hard enough to be the best and hold onto that GANAS? I think size matters more with girls, because they may never have the same drive as boys due to the lack of rewards, so those with natural size, athleticism, and mediocre levels of GANAS may have the advantage due to easier pathways. Not saying it's all about size, but I'm already seeing coaches carry less developed players that do have size and athleticism for their future potential.

Yes, there will only be a handful that go pro, but how many will be willing to go through all this for starbuck wages? Some will and they are true warrior competitors who play for love of the game.

I'd like to think that playing ECNL their freshmen year is 1 level towards bigger opportunities? Right now, I set things up for my daughter to learn and develop in the winter, but this could lead to injuries and some teams are practicing more to help them be ready for league. If my daughter was a top 10 athletic player in her age group, I think I would care more about avoiding burn out and injury than anything. In any case, I'm here to learn from those who have already lived this, but most of us are probably enjoying the experience being part of the opportunity that most likely won't evolve. Saying this though, you won't make it big if you don't work your butt off!
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Looking at some of the current top 2010s there are girls being cultivated in all different ways so it will be interesting to see how it all pans out in 4-5 years. I think the smart ones use high level soccer to get what they need out of life to set them up for life after 25.
 
Veritas said:
And this is why we need an academy system for these potential elite youth girl players. If they can hang in the academy system then they are potential pro candidates. If not stick to the old ecnl/college program where over 99% will remain in anyway
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If they create a residential soccer academy for girls, they will have a sexual harassment situation within 5 years.

NWSL had trouble at 6 different clubs (out of 9) just a few years ago. And that was with adult athletes who were in a better position to say no.

www.espn.com

NWSL bans 4 coaches for life after investigation

Four former NWSL coaches, Paul Riley, Christy Holly, Rory Dames and Richie Burke, were all permanently banned from the league on Monday.
www.espn.com www.espn.com
 
Zeke said:
If they create a residential soccer academy for girls, they will have a sexual harassment situation within 5 years.

NWSL had trouble at 6 different clubs (out of 9) just a few years ago. And that was with adult athletes who were in a better position to say no.

www.espn.com

NWSL bans 4 coaches for life after investigation

Four former NWSL coaches, Paul Riley, Christy Holly, Rory Dames and Richie Burke, were all permanently banned from the league on Monday.
www.espn.com www.espn.com
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Terrible but coming out of Portland I'm not surprised. The woke agenda over there has gotten out of hand. We need to first get rid of all the wokeness. I bet it's all woke BS.
 
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Veritas said:
Terrible but coming out of Portland I'm not surprised. The woke agenda over there has gotten out of hand. We need to first get rid of all the wokeness. I bet it's all woke BS.
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I can't believe you made this political. While I think 1/2 of the WOKE stuff is excessive and just plain wrong, if it wasn't for WOKE, our daughters wouldn't be allowed to play soccer. Our girls would be told to accept things because boys will be boys and this NWSL problem would be accepted bc it's just business as usual.

We'd look like the country of Iran without WOKE.
 
Zeke said:
If you want to know the odds of becoming an elite pro player, count the number of American NWSL players who were born in 1994.

It's about ten.

That tells you roughly how many 2010s will have a ten year pro career. About 10.
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I beg to disagree. I think there will be at least 11. It’s a particularly strong age group…….
 
Veritas said:
Terrible but coming out of Portland I'm not surprised. The woke agenda over there has gotten out of hand. We need to first get rid of all the wokeness. I bet it's all woke
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I too, wish we could go back to those glory pre-woke days when there was no sexual harrasment or abuse.

geesh.
 
sockma said:
I can't believe you made this political. While I think 1/2 of the WOKE stuff is excessive and just plain wrong, if it wasn't for WOKE, our daughters wouldn't be allowed to play soccer. Our girls would be told to accept things because boys will be boys and this NWSL problem would be accepted bc it's just business as usual.

We'd look like the country of Iran without WOKE.
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Things are "woke" until right wingers lose the argument with the American people ... then the same ideas are called "mainstream." Then the people who fought against "woke" ideas claim they were with them all along.
 
Surfer_dad said:
I beg to disagree. I think there will be at least 11. It’s a particularly strong age group…….
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One additional comment on this subject. If women go pro at an early age, they will probably make the minimum salary, currently what, $35,000? If that same player, who was good enough to go pro, gets a full ride to a Stanford, USD, USC, Pepperdine, etc, their scholarship is worth approximately $85,000 tax free. To me, the choice should be easy if you weigh the benefits of getting a degree at a great university plus the soccer all for free vs the pressure of professional sport at very low pay. AND, the decision to go pro now can be made after college by a far more mature girl/woman. Seen many top women soccer players, capable of playing pro choose motherhood over professional sport. Just sayin…….
 
Surfer_dad said:
One additional comment on this subject. If women go pro at an early age, they will probably make the minimum salary, currently what, $35,000? If that same player, who was good enough to go pro, gets a full ride to a Stanford, USD, USC, Pepperdine, etc, their scholarship is worth approximately $85,000 tax free. To me, the choice should be easy if you weigh the benefits of getting a degree at a great university plus the soccer all for free vs the pressure of professional sport at very low pay. AND, the decision to go pro now can be made after college by a far more mature girl/woman. Seen many top women soccer players, capable of playing pro choose motherhood over professional sport. Just sayin…….
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Couple of things...

- 35k per year for the lowest paid in the NWSL? No, with the newly increased salary cap it's more like 60-65k
- Stanford yearly tuition is 58,416, USD yearly tuition is 54,554, USC yearly tuition is 64,726, and Pepperdine tuition is 63,142.

What this tells me is that unless you're getting a full ride (most are not) and going to some of the most prestigious schools (most are not) college over pro doesn't make sense. (assuming your player has the ability to play professionally at an early age)

UC Irvine yearly tuition (a much more realistic school) is 13,939 in state, and 44,011 out of state.

To me it looks like playing professionally has finally become a viable option when compared to college for girls.
 
Carlsbad7 said:
Couple of things...

- 35k per year for the lowest paid in the NWSL? No, with the newly increased salary cap it's more like 60-65k
- Stanford yearly tuition is 58,416, USD yearly tuition is 54,554, USC yearly tuition is 64,726, and Pepperdine tuition is 63,142.

What this tells me is that unless you're getting a full ride (most are not) and going to some of the most prestigious schools (most are not) college over pro doesn't make sense. (assuming your player has the ability to play professionally at an early age)

UC Irvine yearly tuition (a much more realistic school) is 13,939 in state, and 44,011 out of state.

To me it looks like playing professionally has finally become a viable option when compared to college for girls.
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So lets look at the girl who skipped college to go pro and made lets say even 70K per year (which is not enough to even live in a house in OC). What does she do after 7 years and her career is over? Average age of NWSL retirement is 26. Does she go back to college? She's not getting a scholarship so shes going to need to pay for it. Did she make enough in the NWSL to live and pay for college? Lets say she figures out how to pay for college. 4 years later shes almost 30 and completing for jobs with 23 year olds. Playing womens professional soccer if your going to skip the college route is kinda really dumb life decision. Oh and if you lets say make the USWNT and you play until 30.5 years old what do you do then? Your probably in an even worse situation.
 
SuperSoccerStar said:
So lets look at the girl who skipped college to go pro and made lets say even 70K per year (which is not enough to even live in a house in OC). What does she do after 7 years and her career is over? Average age of NWSL retirement is 26. Does she go back to college? She's not getting a scholarship so shes going to need to pay for it. Did she make enough in the NWSL to live and pay for college? Lets say she figures out how to pay for college. 4 years later shes almost 30 and completing for jobs with 23 year olds. Playing womens professional soccer if your going to skip the college route is kinda really dumb life decision. Oh and if you lets say make the USWNT and you play until 30.5 years old what do you do then? Your probably in an even worse situation.
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You think a player is going to make 65k for 7 years? No, that's not going to happen. They might make 65k 1-2 years but after that they will either make much more per year or get dropped from the team/traded.
 
Say you made 65k played professionally for 2 years and saved everything you could. What would that leave you about 50k after housing food and taxes?

UC Irvine is 12k per year for in state. Or 48k for 4 years.

Seems like you just paid for college.
 
Carlsbad7 said:
Say you made 65k played professionally for 2 years and saved everything you could. What would that leave you about 50k after housing food and taxes?

UC Irvine is 12k per year for in state. Or 48k for 4 years.

Seems like you just paid for college.
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BTW, this is why it's so important that girls have a bridge like MLS Next provides for boys.

Now that there's enough $$$ on the table to make girls playing professionally interesting. There also needs to be some way for youth players to understand if they have what it takes to play professionally.

MLS Next allows boys youth players to play against MLS Academy teams in league without sacrificing their amature NCAA status. This gives players a choice to either play professionally or in college. (Assuming they have the opportunity )
 
TeamDadJokes said:
You say you’re going to graduate college with a $65k a year salary? That’s typically not the case for most college graduates. $65k a year as a new pro doesn’t seem too far off when comparing to a new grad salary.

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I’m sorry, what I meant to say is, $65k as a new grad (60th percentile) and the average national salary for workers is $59k and average salary for NWSL is $65k it doesn’t seem too far off to play NWSL and then go to college on the side. To me that sounds like a win win. You get professional experience while going to college part time. Then when you’re done playing and you’ve completed college there’s life after soccer and not a student loan and no experience.
 
TeamDadJokes said:
I’m sorry, what I meant to say is, $65k as a new grad (60th percentile) and the average national salary for workers is $59k and average salary for NWSL is $65k it doesn’t seem too far off to play NWSL and then go to college on the side. To me that sounds like a win win. You get professional experience while going to college part time. Then when you’re done playing and you’ve completed college there’s life after soccer and not a student loan and no experience.
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That's how I see it as well. It all depends on the school you choose to attend.

Also if you're under 18 there's all kinds of special rules NWSL clubs need to follow (can't trade without permission, etc)

When the NWSL average was 35k I agree that college was a better play 99% of the time. But now that the lower end is 65k things have changed and I'd put it more at college is better 85% of the time. For me the breakeven point is 100k for NWSL lower end. If this happens there will be players lined up to skip college.
 
I understand the base/minimum is nothing to be impressed with , but read this CBA .

- provided housing with no more than 2 roommates , stipend for housing if you want to find your own place
- car allowance
- solid road trip per diems for all three meals

I’m not saying they are living the life of luxury that you envision a pro athlete should be living , but this is a better deal than the vast majority of entry level jobs out of college

 
If I had a daughter that had pro potential , which I don’t , so this is easier for me to say I wouldn’t be concerned with them going pro because of potential earnings or lack there of , I’d want to know

1 . Do you really truly love the sport , because this will be your life . Are you prepared to handle soccer as a job?

2 . Are they mentally strong enough to handle the grind that is elite / professional soccer
 
Brav520 said:
I understand the base/minimum is nothing to be impressed with , but read this CBA .

- provided housing with no more than 2 roommates , stipend for housing if you want to find your own place
- car allowance
- solid road trip per diems for all three meals

I’m not saying they are living the life of luxury that you envision a pro athlete should be living , but this is a better deal than the vast majority of entry level jobs out of college

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Well, housing stipend is certainly helpful to this equation and it's certainly getting better!
 
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