Next best league to get visibility with college coaches
- Thread starter SoccerFan4Life
- Start date
Can you name one of those GA showcases? We're not in either but have friends in both leagues. Thus far I've not heard GA has the same level or quantity of horses.
Heres how local leagues + Showcases (Champions League / Nationals / whatever they want to call it) works
Theres several regional leagues made up of 8-10 teams
The top 1-2ish teams from each regional league gets to play in a "special" league made up of the best 1-2 teams from each regional league.
The teams in the special league of top teams play each other at a tournamant or Showcase that most teams will need to fly to. Showcases carry over multiple weekends and locations around the US. Takes 1 season to complete.
As you get to the end of the showcase league there will be much more interest from recruiters attending because they all know the last teams playing are the highest level of talent the league can produce.
Right now Showcase leagues are only 1/2 way through the "season". Which means there is medium to high levels of interest from recruiters reguarding players that are attending.
See how it all works? You want your kid to be on the best team in the showcase league at the end of the season. Is ECNL good at presenting a talented player to potential scouts? Yes. Is GA good at presenting a talented player to potential scouts? Yes.
If ECNL is so much better than GA are midrange ECNL players missing out on being presented to scouts? Yes.
WatchthemPlay
SILVER
1. The same colleges attend ECNL and GA showcases. GA is weaker in California, but stronger in other parts of the country. So, get on a GA team if she can’t make an ECNL team where she gets good play time. I think ECRL is a distance 3rd option and would take more individual effort to get exposure.
2. I actually know a player who didn’t play in a top league, but worked hard and attended camps at a Big 10 school repeatedly. She built a relationship and got a scholarship to play. It does happen and it definitely doesn’t hurt to be on a first name basis with college coaches. College coaches talk to other college coaches. It gets your name in the mix. It’s definitely work and the player has to be willing to put herself out there and take risks.
2. I actually know a player who didn’t play in a top league, but worked hard and attended camps at a Big 10 school repeatedly. She built a relationship and got a scholarship to play. It does happen and it definitely doesn’t hurt to be on a first name basis with college coaches. College coaches talk to other college coaches. It gets your name in the mix. It’s definitely work and the player has to be willing to put herself out there and take risks.
Numbers don't lie. My buddies dd got a very nice deal (so he says...lol) and only played High School and Rec. Super stoked for your dd
This is why I keep saying that eventually some of the SoCal ECNL clubs are going to switch over to GA. In SoCal you have 2-3 clubs that dominate.
In this situation a medium level ECNL club has to be looking at GA + thinking about potential wins vs guaranteed beatings every week.
Even a top level SoCal ECNL club should be keeping an eye on GA. What if you could switch over and run the entire league at all age levels + place crazy number of players in college.
Isnt this exactly what happened with DA 2010ish. Deja vu all over again
I know one of the top dogs buy's the other local clubs top players and then beats everyone and brags online how they develop a winning program. It does suck for the local coaches and clubs to have their "goats" bought from under them with nothing to show except, "Thanks for developing my winning team." I can see the problems with that and it's not a good way. I was suckered with free unlimited "ketchup popsicles" when I thought US Soccer, Scouts and Training Center were offering my dd a chance of a lifetime. Boy was I wrong. Pay for play runs deep. Karma also has a way of working through the sewer to clean up the poop.
So what does GA offer that ECNL doesn't? Or maybe the thing to ask is why a customer would currently prefer GA over ECNL?
They're pretty much the same thing. (From a league perspective)
What makes them different is the Clubs that participate.
In SoCal ECNL has several good clubs with proven track records. In places like the Southeast GA has good clubs with proven track records.
Right now theres more top level clubs in ECNL. But, generally college coaches recruit from both ECNL and GA. In the end you want your kid to look good at a showcase in front of scouts.
ECNL or GA you want a good coach + a club that supports your team.
The GA Commissioner, Lesle Gallimore, is what the GA has that other leagues do not have. Highly recommend listening to any interviews with Lesle about her vision for the GA. She is impressive. I’ve said this on another thread here recently—Lesle is the right person to lead a girls league to create broader pathways and better opportunities for our daughters. With more and more scandals emerging in the women’s game and youth soccer, the GA’s mission, leadership and player advisory panel is important to us.
We also appreciate how hard the GA is working for its players and it has 100% delivered for my daughter so far. Others have posted great links and stats showing the depth of the GA college recruiting exposure. The GA also provides many US Youth National Team scouting opportunities. My daughter recently earned a spot at the U14 USYNT Talent ID West Region Mini-Camp in Chula Vista in Feb. She has never done any of the ODP, PDP, etc. events that I’ve read about on this forum. The opportunity was purely from the exposure she received through the GA. For us, the excellent coaching, club location, league leadership, mission and national team/college exposure opportunities are a great fit.
rainbow_unicorn
PREMIER
Let's be honest, there's no way a So Cal ECNL club voluntarily leaves on their own anytime soon
rainbow_unicorn
PREMIER
There is something wrong with the USYNT selection process if they are selecting players based on the club that the ynt scout coaches at rather than selecting based on soccer ability alone.
How long before the AZ ECNL clubs figure out that they could switch from ECNL to GA + have their own AZ league + stop driving out to CA every week?
How long before Sporting, Rebels, or Pat's get tired of being pummeled each week?
rainbow_unicorn
PREMIER
Pretty sure Pats was ecstatic when ECNL dropped Strikers and gave Pats a spot. Pretty sure if Sporting and Rebels told their families that they are moving from ECNL to GA that they would be up in arms and would look to move to other ECNL clubs. This isn't a knock on GA...rather its the reality of parents wanting their kids to play at the most competitive level.
Your prob right about Pats.
Rebels could switch + nothing would change. Unfortunately for the border parents theres no other options.
This will never happen. Right now GA is a distant second and they will never have their own GA league in AZ. They have what 2 teams? FC Tucson and Del Sol and Tucson got GA like last year. What people forget is that what is left of GA in SW is what ECNL wouldn't take. They are literally the ECNL rejects. The three teams that have ECNL girls in AZ are overjoyed they are in the SW as they get to play in the highest level of competition and the same scouts that look at Surf, Beach and Legends see them too. You are really getting carried away here.
Also GA still drives to SW and in the case of DPL because they split AZ some are now in Mountain West ... so no more nice drives to LA or SD... its mucho denero flights to Salt Lake and Denver. I think the local GA teams may be a bit nervous as they may get moved to Mountain West as well.
SoccerFan4Life
PREMIER
Thanks everyone for all this great feedback. Clearly there’s a few options out there and it’s a matter of deciding on the commitment needed to make the drive and pay those $$$$. I am it doing it for an investment because clearly the ROI doesn’t come out positive. I’m doing more to give my dd a chance to make it to any college where I don’t need to pay more than $25k a year. My niece made it to ucla and it definitely was not the dream move that her family expected. I do think that unfortunately there’s so many talented kids that cannot make the jump to these top leagues and will be overlooked by coaches.
I've heard of several that had buyers remorse after going to UCLA. That's the problem with playing for college super teams. Either you're a superstar yourself + will likely play pro soccer or you ride the bench + if you ride the bench you'll likely get replaced.
Is it a coincidence that both Mallory "Pugh" Swanson and Trinity Rodman both left UCLA asap to do other things? Could it be because the coaches at the time were treating players like cattle? I doubt much has changed but at least top talent now has outs transfer portal, going pro + colleges no longer hold all the cards.
So true. Plus you have all that homework, mid terms, finals are not for the faint of heart and really only play about 3 months of "games." Lot's of girls just want to play soccer only after HS. Spring games seem to be getting better. My dd played with & against some very, very good players, excellent students, excellent people and like Maps once said, true Unicorns of the sport and I was not a dumb dumb with my eyes and what it takes to play at Big U. She balled against Olivia, Alyssa, Trinity, Reilyn, Simone, Sofia, Ella, Ally, America, Maggie, Elisa, Ryan and one of the best of the best Jasmine. If it was only about soccer, soccer and just soccer & more soccer and no school, then I think my kid would have a chance to play some meaningful minutes at "some" of these college academies. The grind to squeeze out the best cream is very intense from what my pals have said. I know one kid that got a 10% offer at Big U. 35+ players and she knew no way she would play so she took a better deal and got to play some minutes as a FR. Good luck to your player