'23-'24 SoCal and National Forecast and Updates

[Carlsbad7]

Well, I learned a lot! : ) I just have this concern that they package these playoffs into certain cities that may not be able to handle the proper infrastructure for a good playoff experience. If you're training refs. a month before the event, you're not prepared to handle playoffs. We had one game where the side ref. missed an offsides right in front of her (and no way in hell could the center ref be trusted to see that) and ran with the offsides player ON OUR TEAM and no call! I get sometimes it's close and the game is fast and I even never expect good reffing let alone perfect, but I expect them to catch offsides at least 50% of the time. I mean this is playoffs and the girls worked hard to get here. The parents are paying a lot of money, yet treated like they owe someone something for this experience. It is what it is, but super unimpressed with ECNL Organization.

No idea how these leagues are ran or created, but So Cal can 100% get the best competition in the nation without traveling for sub par playoffs like this. Maybe that's what I take home from this experience? There are good out of state teams, but more than 2 from CA. are probably going to Virginia, because we have such great competition here in So Cal/Cal.

Now you know how/why people spend 20k+ on youth soccer a year.

Personally I'm a fan of just doing a Socal (and AZ, NV) vs Norcal (and CO UT OR WA) tournament and not worry about East Coast and Midwest clubs.

CA clubs gain little playing outside CA.

 

[Unlucky]

Well, I learned a lot! : ) I just have this concern that they package these playoffs into certain cities that may not be able to handle the proper infrastructure for a good playoff experience. If you're training refs. a month before the event, you're not prepared to handle playoffs. We had one game where the side ref. missed an offsides right in front of her (and no way in hell could the center ref be trusted to see that) and ran with the offsides player ON OUR TEAM and no call! I get sometimes it's close and the game is fast and I even never expect good reffing let alone perfect, but I expect them to catch offsides at least 50% of the time. I mean this is playoffs and the girls worked hard to get here. The parents are paying a lot of money, yet treated like they owe someone something for this experience. It is what it is, but super unimpressed with ECNL Organization.

No idea how these leagues are ran or created, but So Cal can 100% get the best competition in the nation without traveling for sub par playoffs like this. Maybe that's what I take home from this experience? There are good out of state teams, but more than 2 from CA. are probably going to Virginia, because we have such great competition here in So Cal/Cal.

Everyone's perception on ECNL playoffs is based on their individual experiences and mine over the last few years couldn't be more different than yours, to be honest. My daughters have reached and exceeded their team and individual goals at playoffs and gained national recognition with scouts and recruiting services by playing in playoffs so I don't consider any of their experiences to have been sub par regardless of poor refs or field conditions.

I can understand complaints about travel, field conditions and refs, but unless they play every year in SD, those issues would remain. I have friends in the midwest, southeast and east who loved last year but paid twice as much for hotels and meals in Del Mar than they did Seattle. Some of their teams didn't win a match and they didn't have a great experience, but the teams who won and are going to Richmond have no complaints. Winning tends to help overlook costs and tournament deficiencies.

Fact is ECNL requires that the hosting complex has 30+ grass fields in one location and that limits the options available to less than five clubs, a few of which are located in areas that are not ideal for June playoffs due to heat and storm activity (including hurricanes) Everyone I know wishes Surf hosted every year, but we know how ECNL operates.

 

[way up]

Everyone's perception on ECNL playoffs is based on their individual experiences and mine over the last few years couldn't be more different than yours, to be honest. My daughters have reached and exceeded their team and individual goals at playoffs and gained national recognition with scouts and recruiting services by playing in playoffs so I don't consider any of their experiences to have been sub par regardless of poor refs or field conditions.

I can understand complaints about travel, field conditions and refs, but unless they play every year in SD, those issues would remain. I have friends in the midwest, southeast and east who loved last year but paid twice as much for hotels and meals in Del Mar than they did Seattle. Some of their teams didn't win a match and they didn't have a great experience, but the teams who won and are going to Richmond have no complaints. Winning tends to help overlook costs and tournament deficiencies.

Fact is ECNL requires that the hosting complex has 30+ grass fields in one location and that limits the options available to less than five clubs, a few of which are located in areas that are not ideal for June playoffs due to heat and storm activity (including hurricanes) Everyone I know wishes Surf hosted every year, but we know how ECNL operates.

So scouts only look at the teams going to Virginia? There are over 330 NCAA D1 Schools and they only look at 88 players per age group? That's great you have no problem paying $10k or more for both playoff trips, but imagine if you saved just that over 4 years and put that towards a college fund getting 10% a year in interest/capital gains? I'll take the $50k and have control over where my daughter goes and she can go to any college soccer camp and still excel. What's more disturbing is if they are counting on finding great players with these fields with 20 set plays per game. I guess they will find the best set play girls that the top teams really practice on.

We're all stuck in the same circus. I'm just not naive enough to think that the $50k is better spent to get an eye from a scout out of Ca. as there are plenty of great colleges in Ca. that have loads of camps and ways to get seen. Being on a good team does not mean college scholarship, but it will get you an eye most likely.

So, here is my question. What if someone else's kid goes to 5 college soccer camps and shows up as well with skill, physicality, athleticism, and position dominance? Are they going to overlook that kid, because she didn't go to Virginia? Really? Maybe a coach can give a good word, but so can every other ECNL Coach and I guarantee loads of kids are getting scholarships that did not go to Virginia!??? Am I wrong? That's one very expensive pathway filled with another 50 kids or so who barely even touch the field and pay $50k. They could have been playing and training with another team and showing up prepared to dominate at the camps instead of hoping to be seen in Virginia.

This is a fallacy that coaches use. Sure, you're more likely to get a scholarship if you are on the top teams in Virginia, but you still have to show up to camp and perform well and there will be a ton more competition that have a lot of money saved from not going to Seattle or Viginia. Maybe you're wealthy and money isn't a concern? I'm good at math is all and there are a ton of D1 Teams.

 

[Carlsbad7]

So scouts only look at the teams going to Virginia? There are over 330 NCAA D1 Schools and they only look at 88 players per age group? That's great you have no problem paying $10k or more for both playoff trips, but imagine if you saved just that over 4 years and put that towards a college fund getting 10% a year in interest/capital gains? I'll take the $50k and have control over where my daughter goes and she can go to any college soccer camp and still excel. What's more disturbing is if they are counting on finding great players with these fields with 20 set plays per game. I guess they will find the best set play girls that the top teams really practice on.

We're all stuck in the same circus. I'm just not naive enough to think that the $50k is better spent to get an eye from a scout out of Ca. as there are plenty of great colleges in Ca. that have loads of camps and ways to get seen. Being on a good team does not mean college scholarship, but it will get you an eye most likely.

So, here is my question. What if someone else's kid goes to 5 college soccer camps and shows up as well with skill, physicality, athleticism, and position dominance? Are they going to overlook that kid, because she didn't go to Virginia? Really? Maybe a coach can give a good word, but so can every other ECNL Coach and I guarantee loads of kids are getting scholarships that did not go to Virginia!??? Am I wrong? That's one very expensive pathway filled with another 50 kids or so who barely even touch the field and pay $50k. They could have been playing and training with another team and showing up prepared to dominate at the camps instead of hoping to be seen in Virginia.

Yes, sometimes it happens.

Unfortunately the youth club to college pathway has a lot of bends and twists. Some clubs have agreements with some colleges in place before players even apply. Some DOCs have the same type of connections. Some coaches have the same type of connections.

This is why many get fed up and just want true Acadamies to happen on the girls side.

 

[way up]

Yes, sometimes it happens.

Unfortunately the youth club to college pathway has a lot of bends and twists. Some clubs have agreements with some colleges in place before players even apply. Some DOCs have the same type of connections. Some coaches have the same type of connections.

This is why many get fed up and just want true Acadamies to happen on the girls side.

A little math. 330 NCAA D1 girls college soccer teams. 88 starting players in Virginia. Advantage, sure, but at a $50k cost.

So, if every school has 3 or 4 scholarships (totally guessing here) to offer every year with 330 D1 teams, you get more than 1,000 potential scholarships more or less. So, you still have to worry about grades, burn out, and finishing their senior year with all it takes and with $50k less.

900 other scholarships will find other girls and those girls will have saved $50k to help pay for college as well?

My point is where is the $50k best spent. Good for you if you think 6 potential games out of state at the cost of $50k over 4 years is a better use for your potential college athlete. 2 years of free community college and that $50k can probably get you a degree from UCLA without soccer!

I will concede everyone different, but I will also concede many people I know don't even own homes going through these decisions. Don't drink the kool aid if you can't afford it!

All I hear about is burn out and they want to have fun in high school, so just understand probability and best use of money is all I'm saying. You don't need Virginia is your kid is a baller and more than anything, WANTS TO STILL PLAY AND DOMINATE after those stressful tournaments and constant pressure filled events.

 

[sockma]

Are they flying first class and stay at Four Seasons?

Our previous experiences have been close to his 5K for two people.

Flights, food, hotel, car rental and some entertainment. It's definitely going to cost close to that without first class or four seasons. Hotel for 5 nights is about 1500. Car Rental and gas is another 700. Round trip Flights are 600-1000 per person right now, depending on your airport. Food will be 150-200 a day for two people because you have to stay in the team hotel. Team bonding events and indoor entertainment costs another few hundred dollars because there's nothing to do in Richmond in July.

Yes, you can cut prices down if you share a hotel and a car but that means you are in a small hotel room with another family for five nights because you can't sit outdoors as the weather is very bad. I don't recommend sharing a hotel room because you'll be stuck in the small room a lot due to the weather.

Sharing a car helps save $350.
Even if you share a hotel and car, you're still at about 3500.

Virginia Finals does not have many college coaches.

ECNL needs to move their finals to a better location with better weather, where coaches are willing to attend. The girls deserve it.

 

[Unlucky]

So scouts only look at the teams going to Virginia? There are over 330 NCAA D1 Schools and they only look at 88 players per age group? That's great you have no problem paying $10k or more for both playoff trips, but imagine if you saved just that over 4 years and put that towards a college fund getting 10% a year in interest/capital gains? I'll take the $50k and have control over where my daughter goes and she can go to any college soccer camp and still excel. What's more disturbing is if they are counting on finding great players with these fields with 20 set plays per game. I guess they will find the best set play girls that the top teams really practice on.

We're all stuck in the same circus. I'm just not naive enough to think that the $50k is better spent to get an eye from a scout out of Ca. as there are plenty of great colleges in Ca. that have loads of camps and ways to get seen. Being on a good team does not mean college scholarship, but it will get you an eye most likely.

So, here is my question. What if someone else's kid goes to 5 college soccer camps and shows up as well with skill, physicality, athleticism, and position dominance? Are they going to overlook that kid, because she didn't go to Virginia? Really? Maybe a coach can give a good word, but so can every other ECNL Coach and I guarantee loads of kids are getting scholarships that did not go to Virginia!??? Am I wrong? That's one very expensive pathway filled with another 50 kids or so who barely even touch the field and pay $50k. They could have been playing and training with another team and showing up prepared to dominate at the camps instead of hoping to be seen in Virginia.

This is a fallacy that coaches use. Sure, you're more likely to get a scholarship if you are on the top teams in Virginia, but you still have to show up to camp and perform well and there will be a ton more competition that have a lot of money saved from not going to Seattle or Viginia. Maybe you're wealthy and money isn't a concern? I'm good at math is all and there are a ton of D1 Teams.

Where did I say scouts only look at teams going to Virginia? In reality, most of the college scouts were gone by the U15 Round of 16 matches since the 08s and 07s finished the day before so whatever scouting they did wasn't limited to the teams going to Virginia.

The whole ROI analysis for club soccer has been rehashed a hundred times and there are several proven paths depending on the kid and the family situation so I'm not going down that path, but the kids that I know love to compete and win and that's what fuels them so this is the path we have chosen and it's working. It's certainly not for everyone, but they love it.

 

[Unlucky]

Our previous experiences have been close to his 5K for two people.

Flights, food, hotel, car rental and some entertainment. It's definitely going to cost close to that without first class or four seasons. Hotel for 5 nights is about 1500. Car Rental and gas is another 700. Round trip Flights are 600-1000 per person right now, depending on your airport. Food will be 150-200 a day for two people because you have to stay in the team hotel. Team bonding events and indoor entertainment costs another few hundred dollars because there's nothing to do in Richmond in July.

Yes, you can cut prices down if you share a hotel and a car but that means you are in a small hotel room with another family for five nights because you can't sit outdoors as the weather is very bad. I don't recommend sharing a hotel room because you'll be stuck in the small room a lot due to the weather.

Sharing a car helps save $350.
Even if you share a hotel and car, you're still at about 3500.

Virginia Finals does not have many college coaches.

ECNL needs to move their finals to a better location with better weather, where coaches are willing to attend. The girls deserve it.

GA moved their finals to Richmond next week to facilitate college coach attendance so I'd expect there to be a good group.

 

[way up]

Where did I say scouts only look at teams going to Virginia? In reality, most of the college scouts were gone by the U15 Round of 16 matches since the 08s and 07s finished the day before so whatever scouting they did wasn't limited to the teams going to Virginia.

The whole ROI analysis for club soccer has been rehashed a hundred times and there are several proven paths depending on the kid and the family situation so I'm not going down that path, but the kids that I know love to compete and win and that's what fuels them so this is the path we have chosen and it's working. It's certainly not for everyone, but they love it.

Of course, the kids love it. Mommy and daddy give up 2 weeks of work and more plus $10k for playoffs and nattys. All for 6 games with suspect referees, fields, etc. The question is are you doing what's best for your kid financially? If you're rich, you have no reason to worry.

You are explaining how the bench players fall for the sham of these teams though perfectly! I just hope they love their team mates and the experience as much as they are praying for the dreams of scholarships. I had an experience last year that proved to me how subjectivity and politics play. Being on a great team guarantees you an eye only!

I get it though and I do love the competition. I just hated the style of soccer, fields, and refs at Seattle.

One would say that I'm very LUCKY! My daughter gets to play several of the teams going to Virginia in league, so we don't need the playoffs, but I will encourage my daughter to win and make them regardless. We get Virginia Nattys all the time in So Cal! We are very blessed here!

 

[sockma]

GA moved their finals to Richmond next week to facilitate college coach attendance so I'd expect there to be a good group.

haha....GA should have moved to a better location if they want to faciliate college coach attendance.

 

[way up]

Everyone's perception on ECNL playoffs is based on their individual experiences and mine over the last few years couldn't be more different than yours, to be honest. My daughters have reached and exceeded their team and individual goals at playoffs and gained national recognition with scouts and recruiting services by playing in playoffs so I don't consider any of their experiences to have been sub par regardless of poor refs or field conditions.

I can understand complaints about travel, field conditions and refs, but unless they play every year in SD, those issues would remain. I have friends in the midwest, southeast and east who loved last year but paid twice as much for hotels and meals in Del Mar than they did Seattle. Some of their teams didn't win a match and they didn't have a great experience, but the teams who won and are going to Richmond have no complaints. Winning tends to help overlook costs and tournament deficiencies.

Fact is ECNL requires that the hosting complex has 30+ grass fields in one location and that limits the options available to less than five clubs, a few of which are located in areas that are not ideal for June playoffs due to heat and storm activity (including hurricanes) Everyone I know wishes Surf hosted every year, but we know how ECNL operates.

So, I think this was the event that tested my daughter and I with our passion to win, because you're right. The thrill for playoffs is winning and advancing. The problem with this is the thrill gets more and more expensive and stressful for the parent. So much so, you have to ask yourself "Is it worth it?". Not going to lie, deep down I wanted to win our last game to go to Virginia, but I've never been happier with a loss in my life! I was super happy with the performance of my daughter and her team. We had great competition and lots of drama that led to an enormous celebration for our bracket win. Maybe it was worth the $5k?!!?? LOL! Do I want to try out luck in Virginia, HELL NO! There has to be a better way though.

Red cards for confused young girls from overreacting referees just ruined our trip altogether though amongst all the other let downs with referees. So you say the teams going to Virginia are not complaining........yet that is! Yet! Let's see how that experience goes as the stakes go up and Ca. teams end up having to play each other. in Virginia. I saw several girls without a lot of play time crying like babies, so not everyone happy. I can promise you that! I can truly see how some of this can lead to that burn out everyone talks about for the parents and the kids.

 

[soccermax2]

Our previous experiences have been close to his 5K for two people.

Flights, food, hotel, car rental and some entertainment. It's definitely going to cost close to that without first class or four seasons. Hotel for 5 nights is about 1500. Car Rental and gas is another 700. Round trip Flights are 600-1000 per person right now, depending on your airport. Food will be 150-200 a day for two people because you have to stay in the team hotel. Team bonding events and indoor entertainment costs another few hundred dollars because there's nothing to do in Richmond in July.

Yes, you can cut prices down if you share a hotel and a car but that means you are in a small hotel room with another family for five nights because you can't sit outdoors as the weather is very bad. I don't recommend sharing a hotel room because you'll be stuck in the small room a lot due to the weather.

Sharing a car helps save $350.
Even if you share a hotel and car, you're still at about 3500.

Virginia Finals does not have many college coaches.

ECNL needs to move their finals to a better location with better weather, where coaches are willing to attend. The girls deserve it.

The VA humidity in July is absolutely horrible! My older kid went there to play & transferred out after two years because of the weather & culture. Tuff on a Cali kid but you know how it goes, mom and dad know nothing.

 

[crush]

Yes, sometimes it happens.

Unfortunately the youth club to college pathway has a lot of bends and twists. Some clubs have agreements with some colleges in place before players even apply. Some DOCs have the same type of connections. Some coaches have the same type of connections.

This is why many get fed up and just want true Acadamies to happen on the girls side.

It's called, PAY FOR PLAY. I still remember one asshole who.........never mind, you guys know the story. I feel like the sea of change is finally coming. Soccer is too damn expensive, and the middle class and the poor know what I'm talking about. I just flew to LA on United on "economy" to save a few bucks and it was like Spirit Airlines. Horrible seating. I flew on Spirit to Seattle with my family of four in 2017 to save money and it was horrible experience. The mandatory "team" dinners killed me. I was poor at that time because......Anyway, I experienced the joy of winning a Natty but the cost was too much. Like I said before, CALIFORNIA NEEDS IT OWN LEAGUE. Nocal and Socal. The winners of each region play for finals and then play for a real Natty. The non-playoff teams have to pay the winning team for all travel cost

 

[SuperSoccerStar]

The fields in Seattle were ridiculously small. I hope ECNL rethinks the finals and the location in Virginia. Its really a joke going for possibly one meaningful game. Maybe more teams go to Virginia and you do tournament play? One and done is not enough to justify going out there especially when your playing a local team the first knockout game. I don't know how you fix the socal dominance in playoffs though. That's only going to get worse with 9 teams going to playoffs starting next year. Even more will have a chance to make it to the finals. Its where the best girls are though so what can you do.

 

[way up]

The VA humidity in July is absolutely horrible! My older kid went there to play & transferred out after two years because of the weather & culture. Tuff on a Cali kid but you know how it goes, mom and dad know nothing.

I'm going to open up the whole can of worms. To think we place so much emphasis on these out of state playoffs is terrible for US Soccer. I don't think it's our culture to win that disrupts American Soccer Progress. It's the emphasis on so much travel and money to compete at the highest levels which leads to such robotic, controlled soccer games and styles to win, because so much pressure, money, and time are invested. You don't have a soul if you are spending this much money and not feeling the pressure as a parent at these events. We really wonder why parents get so passionate and aggressive?

How can you expect great soccer when the prize for advancing out of regular playoffs is another $5k trip to Virginia? Congratulations, you need to take another loan out, so you can drag your sorry a$$ on another flight from the car to the ticket to the baggage claim to the jet to the rental to the hotel to your room to your phone to find dinner. Go to bed early, because if your kid doesn't perform well, they will sit on the bench for all your hard work! Don't do too much on your trip, because they may slow down a tick and cause a foul that leads to a game loss after the team spent almost $100k for the trip. Hey, at least you might get to play a few teams from Ca. though in the nattys!??? LOLOLOLOL!!!!

Remember though, this is "their journey". This is about them not you! Just make sure and fork out all the money, your time, and your soul for them to play robotic soccer in another state where you can celebrate like you won world cup. Sure, some teams play great soccer and deserve everything at these events, but the play is so diluted with these refs and all the set plays.

This was my first year seeing this and I can now see what others are talking about. At least at home, I'm not giving up $5k for the experience. Our club fees, league, training, friendlies, etc. are 100% worth the time and money. The playoff experience is very unimpressive imo. I'd rather see Surf vs Blues at Great Park with a coach refereeing where they build their creative soccer skills and systems for great soccer.

I wish there was a friendly alternative to playoffs with seeding and such for teams that want to avoid the massive expense and time for 6 or 7 games with good teams in every region. There are so many other ways to develop soccer systems/styles/creativity of teams instead of going to Seattle or Virginia. I'm trapped in this circus and just hoping someone wakes up and pushes a better process to build better soccer players and teams rather than intense/robotic/expensive soccer playoffs.

 

[way up]

The fields in Seattle were ridiculously small. I hope ECNL rethinks the finals and the location in Virginia. Its really a joke going for possibly one meaningful game. Maybe more teams go to Virginia and you do tournament play? One and done is not enough to justify going out there especially when your playing a local team the first knockout game. I don't know how you fix the socal dominance in playoffs though. That's only going to get worse with 9 teams going to playoffs starting next year. Even more will have a chance to make it to the finals. Its where the best girls are though so what can you do.

In fairness, we had great out of state competition. It's just we have an enormous amount of great competition right here and paying twice the amount of club soccer fees to advance all the way to finals for 6 or 7 highly pressured games with robotic soccer to avoid mistakes and plenty of other issues to boot should be fixed asap imo.

You're right though. What can we do other than whine on a forum?! I can't believe there is not another option is all. Alternative tournaments in lieu of playoffs/showcases/etc.? I'm someone who thrives on winning and the fool I am will be there to bankrupt my kids college fund to go to Virginia next year I'm sure! LOLOL! Signed Helpless not from Seattle! At least I'm home now!

 

[way up]

In fairness, we had great out of state competition. It's just we have an enormous amount of great competition right here and paying twice the amount of club soccer fees to advance all the way to finals for 6 or 7 highly pressured games with robotic soccer to avoid mistakes and plenty of other issues to boot should be fixed asap imo.

You're right though. What can we do other than whine on a forum?! I can't believe there is not another option is all. Alternative tournaments in lieu of playoffs/showcases/etc.? I'm someone who thrives on winning and the fool I am will be there to bankrupt my kids college fund to go to Virginia next year I'm sure! LOLOL! Signed Helpless not from Seattle! At least I'm home now!

I meant showcases/tournaments/friendlies in lieu of playoffs maybe? I don't know. I'd truly rather play a showcase.

 

[way up]

The fields in Seattle were ridiculously small. I hope ECNL rethinks the finals and the location in Virginia. Its really a joke going for possibly one meaningful game. Maybe more teams go to Virginia and you do tournament play? One and done is not enough to justify going out there especially when your playing a local team the first knockout game. I don't know how you fix the socal dominance in playoffs though. That's only going to get worse with 9 teams going to playoffs starting next year. Even more will have a chance to make it to the finals. Its where the best girls are though so what can you do.

SuperSoccerStar - You're not saying that 9 teams from The Mojave and Sonoran Conference go to playoffs are you? I heard something about combining leagues, but I never heard they are increasing the amount of teams going to playoffs?

 

[SuperSoccerStar]

SuperSoccerStar - You're not saying that 9 teams from The Mojave and Sonoran Conference go to playoffs are you? I heard something about combining leagues, but I never heard they are increasing the amount of teams going to playoffs?

There’s no more divisions just the southwestern conf, everyone plays eachother once and 9 teams out of 17 go to the playoffs. Considering the talent in Southwest I’m not hating the increase in teams. Theres a disadvantage now for playing a team on the road vs home and less games now in the season to secure your spot.

 

[sockma]

There’s no more divisions just the southwestern conf, everyone plays eachother once and 9 teams out of 17 go to the playoffs. Considering the talent in Southwest I’m not hating the increase in teams. Theres a disadvantage now for playing a team on the road vs home and less games now in the season to secure your spot.

9 seems a lot. Are we counting north american cup, showcase A and B too?

 

[rainbow_unicorn]

6 out of 17 went to playoffs and 2 participated in NA cup this year for U15