MLS Next News

Interestingly there adds for MLS Next tryouts are already up. The thing that caught my eye is a line that girls are welcome to try out. That's odd, because of all the discussion on the transgender thread, U14 is the year when the boys begin to pull away from the girls physically.
Not too surprising for U13. Other U13 MLS Next teams already roster girls. The gender gap just isn’t very big yet.

Besides, from the club’s perspective, they will get girls to try outs who might never consider LA Bulls otherwise.
 
LA Bulls makes sense geographically but is a bit out of left field...not a huge club and hasn't made much of a mark on the boys end.
We're on the East Side, but I had never heard of LA Bulls until I saw the announcement. Breakers and Santa Monica UnitedSurf, sure, but not da Bulls.
 
Interestingly there adds for MLS Next tryouts are already up. The thing that caught my eye is a line that girls are welcome to try out. That's odd, because of all the discussion on the transgender thread, U14 is the year when the boys begin to pull away from the girls physically.
Looking for the next Alyssa or Giselle Thompson, both of whom have played MLS Next with TFA through high school (before Alyssa left to go pro with Angel City FC).
 
No matches are able to end in a draw, as they instead go into a shootout. What’s the thought process behind that?
I assume you are quoting the rules for the MLS Next Flex event in Maryland in May. They need one winner of each bracket to qualify for playoffs in Dallas the next month. Ties complicate that where there are only three games for each team. They could have just done the typical tie-breaking procedure to determine the bracket winner, but there would have been arguments about whether goal differential encourages running up the score or goals against encourages packing it in, etc. Instead, they decided to do PKs, which at least provides the kids and GKs something more fun and exciting than tie-breaking rules and it doesn't take up much time. You still get more points for a regular time win than a shootout win, so there's no incentive to hold out for a tie. These rules are now being used in all games in MLS Next Pro as well.
 
I assume you are quoting the rules for the MLS Next Flex event in Maryland in May. They need one winner of each bracket to qualify for playoffs in Dallas the next month. Ties complicate that where there are only three games for each team. They could have just done the typical tie-breaking procedure to determine the bracket winner, but there would have been arguments about whether goal differential encourages running up the score or goals against encourages packing it in, etc. Instead, they decided to do PKs, which at least provides the kids and GKs something more fun and exciting than tie-breaking rules and it doesn't take up much time. You still get more points for a regular time win than a shootout win, so there's no incentive to hold out for a tie. These rules are now being used in all games in MLS Next Pro as well.
True, that will provide our players more fun than just tie-breaking. I guess tie games will complicate the point system. Thank you for information.
 
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