MVLA getting MLS Next??
- Thread starter theMaroon
- Start date
No inside info but seems doubtful. What would they do with ECNL boys? Can't imagine ECNL would let them drop the boys program and keep girls ECNL at the same time, the ECNL boys would wither away within a few years if they got MLS Next. SVSA is really close and wouldn't be happy about adding another MLS Next club so close.
De Anza Force has MLS Next and ECNL girls but not too many have that combination.
De Anza Force has MLS Next and ECNL girls but not too many have that combination.
HMFootballLover
BRONZE
Yeah, this is actually kinda true. MVLA had a deal to get into MLS Next, but then ECNL basically threatened to drop them completely, even the girls' side. MVLA obviously didn't want to lose ECNL girls, but the boys side really wanted that MLS Next spot.
So the top boys teams and coaches broke off and started a new club, led by Joe Cannon (who used to be MVLA’s director). The new club’s called Skyline Football Academy. You can already see it mentioned on MLS Next’s social media.
MVLA’s still keeping some boys teams, which I’m guessing will stay in ECNL Boys. Not sure what the relationship between the two clubs is gonna be going forward, or if Skyline’s gonna be totally separate from MVLA.
The new club had a tryout form up, but it’s already closed: https://skylinefa.byga.net/tryouts/ywmcv7mgap/signup
They've also got an Instagram account, but no posts yet. Haven't seen a website either, I’m guessing all of that stuff just takes time to roll out.
Here is the post to MLS Next mentioning the club:
So the top boys teams and coaches broke off and started a new club, led by Joe Cannon (who used to be MVLA’s director). The new club’s called Skyline Football Academy. You can already see it mentioned on MLS Next’s social media.
MVLA’s still keeping some boys teams, which I’m guessing will stay in ECNL Boys. Not sure what the relationship between the two clubs is gonna be going forward, or if Skyline’s gonna be totally separate from MVLA.
The new club had a tryout form up, but it’s already closed: https://skylinefa.byga.net/tryouts/ywmcv7mgap/signup
They've also got an Instagram account, but no posts yet. Haven't seen a website either, I’m guessing all of that stuff just takes time to roll out.
Here is the post to MLS Next mentioning the club:
That's crazy to me. The NorCal ECNL table on the girl's side would be decimated if MVLA left. I have a hard time believing ECNL threatened to kick them out over this. De Anza and Bay Area Surf have the MLSN/ECNL combo, why wouldn't MVLA be able to do the same considering how strong their girl's side is? In the end this doesn't bode well for ECNL on the boys side in NorCal. It's been getting weaker and weaker -- this will only add more fuel to the fire. I'm really surprised Sporting hasn't made the shift to MLSN considering their girls are in GA.
HMFootballLover
BRONZE
Yeah, that was my impression too when I first heard about it and I was also confused about how some clubs manage to be in both leagues. But apparently, things were different in the past, maybe a bit friendlier. Plus, Force and Surf are founding members of MLS Next, so they get to keep both for now.
And just to note, it's not exactly unheard of for ECNL to pull moves like this.
Regarding Sporting, my impression was that on the girls side they would prefer to join ECNL, as they lose so much talent to other (ECNL) clubs.
Interesting. MVLA should've just called their bluff. ECNL on the boys side is getting really weak. MLS2 will surpass it at some point (I think NPL already has). The spread between ECNL girls vs ECNL boys will eventually be much greater than the spread between MLSN and GA. If I'm in Vegas I'm betting on the MLSN/GA combo. Or I'd bet ECNL will eventually realize they can't win the boys side and they focus on the girl's side and become ok with the ECNL/MLSN combo. Fun times ahead.
I don't think Sporting getting ECNL on the girl's side would solve their problems, given they'd be competing with MVLA, BA Surf, and De Anza.
soccerdad247
BRONZE
Interesting. Do you have the IG link for the new clubs page?
As for the MLS next mention of the club you linked, it shows a Skyline club in the Mountain Division, not the Norcal one. And the teams listed are teams who have entered the Tier 2 division, not the Tier 1 division.
It seems more likely that ECNL wouldn't allow MVLA to enter the MLS Next Tier 2 divisions. Which would be in line with Los Gatos who got ECNL, and has clearly dropped all mention of their initial involvement in MLS Next Tier 2, along with GA. I'm assuming they bounced out of Tier 2 and GA. All their communication for next year is promoting ECNL.
I think the MLS Next post mentions two different "Skyline" clubs. Skyline Football Academy in the top tier (no mention of which division) and Skyline Soccer Association in the Mountain Division Second tier.
HMFootballLover
BRONZE
Here is their IG link: https://www.instagram.com/skyline_football_academy/
Yeah, it's definitely confusing having two clubs with "Skyline" in the name. But the other one is actually called Skyline Soccer Association, and if you check their website, they've got a different logo. For reference, here's their IG: https://www.instagram.com/skylinesoccerassociation/
As for Skyline Football Academy joining Tier 1, you can see it on their tryout link where they specifically mention Tier 1. That lines up with what I've heard too.
LGU is joining ECNL for the boys, but only ECNL-RL for the girls. They're dropping out of GA.
SoccerEnvy
BRONZE
Doesn’t make sense since Force and Surf already have this split. I would guess more a strategic branding move? Total conjecture but MVLA is not known for its boys side so maybe trying something new. Also, maybe Joe wants a separate path than Albertin especially after the negative publicity at BCFC. Definitely brings extra scrutiny to the club.
MVLA is around the 4th or 5th strongest club for boys in NorCal. I don't think this was always the case -- so they must be doing something right. Is Albertin even involved anymore at MVLA?
But yeah, this feels more like MVLA itself didn't want to move away from ECNL on the boys side and that perhaps there was a contingent that did. Who knows....
AlicanteFC
BRONZE
Please rank your top 10 clubs for Norcal, because I don't have MVLA in top 15.
I'm looking at the Soccer Ranking app that does club based rankings (you can separate boys vs girls). The app doesn't distinguish NorCal (CAN) vs SoCal (CAS), so you have to do that by hand. But here goes:
1 - Bay Area Surf
2 - De Anza Force
3 - SF Glens
4 - Placer United
5 - MVLA
6 - Albion Merced
7 - Ajax United
8 - Santa Clara Sporting
9 - Diablo Valley
10 - Mustang
It's not including Sac Republic or the Quakes, likely because they don't have enough teams to be considered in this ranking. But even if you add those two....MVLA is still in the top 10.
Do you have a better ranking system? Curious what your top 10 looks like and what it is based on.
Also you can read here how the app computes these rankings: https://usasportstatistics.net/
AlicanteFC
BRONZE
Based on watching these clubs for years at two different age divisions and league tables, here's how I would rank
Sac Republic
Bay Area Surf
De Anza
Sporting SC
SF Glens
SVSA
Lamo
Association
Odyssey
Diablo Valley
Albion Merced
Mustang
Davis Legacy
El Camino
Almaden
The real problem is that ECNL and MLS Next play so infrequently, it's hard to compare them. I'm also looking at clubs u13 and up with an emphasis on u15+. MVLA does really well before u13 so I bet that affects their ratings, but I've never seen an MVLA club and come away impressed.
Sac Republic
Bay Area Surf
De Anza
Sporting SC
SF Glens
SVSA
Lamo
Association
Odyssey
Diablo Valley
Albion Merced
Mustang
Davis Legacy
El Camino
Almaden
The real problem is that ECNL and MLS Next play so infrequently, it's hard to compare them. I'm also looking at clubs u13 and up with an emphasis on u15+. MVLA does really well before u13 so I bet that affects their ratings, but I've never seen an MVLA club and come away impressed.
AlicanteFC
BRONZE
And on no planet would I have Placer and MVLA as better programs than Sporting.
RandomSoccerFan
PREMIER
Depends on how you define better. Sporting has some good teams - but they are relatively small (albeit well-funded), and their teams are OK, but not exceptional. From 2011B and older - they only field a single team, so you'd never come across a lesser one. While the other clubs listed often have several times as many teams. Clubs like the Earthquakes can also function that way - but they are an MLS club with nationally-known and state-leading teams of most age groups they compete in. Santa Clara is not nearly at that level.
The ranking app does a good job with this. It surprises me how accurate it is at times....but yeah, no ranking system is perfect. Here's how they calculate this:
----
Q: How are club rankings calculated?
A: We use the average of the ratings of the top teams. This is equivalent to two (2) clubs playing their top teams against each other and then aggregating the scores to see who is best. We include the core competitive age groups of U11 - U17. A club must have teams in five (5) age groups to be ranked.
----
Maybe those U11 and U12 age groups are distorting things a bit. But I've seen just about all the teams play from multiple age groups from the clubs you listed. Very few are universally good -- across all age groups. That variance could also explain the ranking.
I also think MVLA historically didn't have a strong boys side. I remember that to be the case like 5 years ago. I do think they've made strides here.
Sporting is a great example. Their 2012s (pts wise Placer is close) and 2010s are really strong. Their 2008s struggle and the rest of their teams are effectively mid table. I think it's that variance that's causing the rankings to come out like they do.
AlicanteFC
BRONZE
Variance makes a lot of sense.
I think the MLS Next programs in general are ranked lower than they should be because they don't (in general) play as many tournaments as ECNL or NPL clubs, so you get a situation where Woodside's 12B NPL team is ranked 27th and their MLS Next team is ranked 62nd.
I think the MLS Next programs in general are ranked lower than they should be because they don't (in general) play as many tournaments as ECNL or NPL clubs, so you get a situation where Woodside's 12B NPL team is ranked 27th and their MLS Next team is ranked 62nd.