Say bye-bye-bye to Girls and Boys DA
- Thread starter dreamz
- Start date
From an athletic article an hour ago:
While MLS fans will be focused on the structure of the professional academies, the impact of the DA’s demise will be felt most acutely among the non-professional academies that made up the majority of the DA on both the girls’ and boys’ side.
In the 24 hours since U.S. Soccer’s decision to shutter the DA became more widely known, clubs have started to examine what their future will look like and where they can compete. ECNL president Christian Lavers said he has received hundreds of emails, texts and phone calls from clubs trying to determine next steps. The organization, which was widely seen as offering top competitive girls’ youth league in the country, has already added 14 former boys’ DA clubs to its membership of more than 100 clubs nationwide. The girls’ league already added several top clubs in recent months and announced the addition of two more clubs on Wednesday. Lavers said he anticipates substantially increasing the size of the league to accommodate more additions.
“This is an opportunity to unite some of the fractured past of soccer, with the ability to bring teams under one umbrella or one competitive framework that was not possible in the past,” Lavers said. “Certainly it’s not going to happen overnight, and probably not going to fully happen in one cycle, because we’re talking about a large number of clubs that are looking for now a different competitive platform. We are looking at how many clubs can we add and still continue to provide great service to members, still provide a coherent competitive schedule in terms of amount of games and travel, and work to add as many clubs as we can without destabilizing our program.”
Lavers said he has been in touch with leadership at U.S. Soccer about the potential structure of the league as well as about increasing the opportunity for coaching education and player development in conjunction with the federation. He called those talks “really positive.” Lavers said the ECNL’s goal is to create a more collaborative approach with directors of coaching and grassroots leaders at clubs across the country to create “an elite player pathway under one umbrella, all playing each other and not weaponizing league spots or tiering as a recruiting tool.”
Another focus for ECNL is on lowering the cost of playing. One way to directly impact those costs is to decrease travel, Lavers said, and he said he hopes the infusion of clubs into the ECNL will enhance local rivalries and decrease the amount of travel while maintaining high-level games for all teams. Lavers said the former DA clubs who are joining ECNL have agreed to play the existing ECNL clubs, a positive first step in breaking down “the barriers of who will play who.” He said he was not sure yet if the USSF had plans to continue its scholarship program that was used to help fund players across the Development Academy.
Lavers said there is a difference between the pro academies and the non-pro academies, but that he hopes to increase opportunity for players across the country and create a broader connection between the pro teams and the youth prospects at clubs around the country. He said the ECNL would not restrict its clubs from scheduling games against pro academies, as long as they give priority to ECNL scheduling.
“MLS teams are going to be scheduling games against clubs in our leagues,” Lavers said. “It may be different from one MLS club to another. We are very open to facilitating that to the degree that we can. I had some quick conversations with one MLS club already saying whether you want this to be a formal or informal arrangement, top teams (from the ECNL) or representative teams of top players from multiple teams (in the ECNL). We’d facilitate that. You want the best players to be seen by pro clubs, so if there is the potential for a pro pathway that player is not lost in the shuffle.”
Lavers said the Development Academy helped to fundamentally alter some key aspects of youth development in this country. But he added that those changes need to be buttressed by other improvements that enhance competition throughout the country, not just within certain leagues or certain tiers.
“When the DA was created in 2007, there were systemic issues of too many games and not enough meaningful games and not enough training sessions,” he said. “There was a philosophical change and it took time to grow, but that has been a positive impact of what that (DA) program did. But as it grew and as things changed, the clubs began to be distanced from each other and you started to have situations where clubs were not able to and would not play each other, even if they were in the same city or close by. That’s not a great thing for competition. It’s not a great thing to have kids drive past each other just because the structures don’t allow them to play. The challenge now is to create a collaborative program.”
While MLS fans will be focused on the structure of the professional academies, the impact of the DA’s demise will be felt most acutely among the non-professional academies that made up the majority of the DA on both the girls’ and boys’ side.
In the 24 hours since U.S. Soccer’s decision to shutter the DA became more widely known, clubs have started to examine what their future will look like and where they can compete. ECNL president Christian Lavers said he has received hundreds of emails, texts and phone calls from clubs trying to determine next steps. The organization, which was widely seen as offering top competitive girls’ youth league in the country, has already added 14 former boys’ DA clubs to its membership of more than 100 clubs nationwide. The girls’ league already added several top clubs in recent months and announced the addition of two more clubs on Wednesday. Lavers said he anticipates substantially increasing the size of the league to accommodate more additions.
“This is an opportunity to unite some of the fractured past of soccer, with the ability to bring teams under one umbrella or one competitive framework that was not possible in the past,” Lavers said. “Certainly it’s not going to happen overnight, and probably not going to fully happen in one cycle, because we’re talking about a large number of clubs that are looking for now a different competitive platform. We are looking at how many clubs can we add and still continue to provide great service to members, still provide a coherent competitive schedule in terms of amount of games and travel, and work to add as many clubs as we can without destabilizing our program.”
Lavers said he has been in touch with leadership at U.S. Soccer about the potential structure of the league as well as about increasing the opportunity for coaching education and player development in conjunction with the federation. He called those talks “really positive.” Lavers said the ECNL’s goal is to create a more collaborative approach with directors of coaching and grassroots leaders at clubs across the country to create “an elite player pathway under one umbrella, all playing each other and not weaponizing league spots or tiering as a recruiting tool.”
Another focus for ECNL is on lowering the cost of playing. One way to directly impact those costs is to decrease travel, Lavers said, and he said he hopes the infusion of clubs into the ECNL will enhance local rivalries and decrease the amount of travel while maintaining high-level games for all teams. Lavers said the former DA clubs who are joining ECNL have agreed to play the existing ECNL clubs, a positive first step in breaking down “the barriers of who will play who.” He said he was not sure yet if the USSF had plans to continue its scholarship program that was used to help fund players across the Development Academy.
Lavers said there is a difference between the pro academies and the non-pro academies, but that he hopes to increase opportunity for players across the country and create a broader connection between the pro teams and the youth prospects at clubs around the country. He said the ECNL would not restrict its clubs from scheduling games against pro academies, as long as they give priority to ECNL scheduling.
“MLS teams are going to be scheduling games against clubs in our leagues,” Lavers said. “It may be different from one MLS club to another. We are very open to facilitating that to the degree that we can. I had some quick conversations with one MLS club already saying whether you want this to be a formal or informal arrangement, top teams (from the ECNL) or representative teams of top players from multiple teams (in the ECNL). We’d facilitate that. You want the best players to be seen by pro clubs, so if there is the potential for a pro pathway that player is not lost in the shuffle.”
Lavers said the Development Academy helped to fundamentally alter some key aspects of youth development in this country. But he added that those changes need to be buttressed by other improvements that enhance competition throughout the country, not just within certain leagues or certain tiers.
“When the DA was created in 2007, there were systemic issues of too many games and not enough meaningful games and not enough training sessions,” he said. “There was a philosophical change and it took time to grow, but that has been a positive impact of what that (DA) program did. But as it grew and as things changed, the clubs began to be distanced from each other and you started to have situations where clubs were not able to and would not play each other, even if they were in the same city or close by. That’s not a great thing for competition. It’s not a great thing to have kids drive past each other just because the structures don’t allow them to play. The challenge now is to create a collaborative program.”
Hired Gun
SILVER ELITE
Slammers was in the first year...
The article has links that then go into greater detail on the boys pathway versus the girls pathway.
Pats Boys = ECNL
Pats Girls = ECRL
A lot of travel for those players!
Just heard on the news, no one may be driving past each other for sporting events until 2021. Who would want to risk their child's health for youth soccer! We could certainly space six feet apart at the fields, but soccer is a contact sport. Kids can be infected but with no symptoms and pass it on to other players and then they could pass it to their parents or other siblings. The next season may not happen at the clubs or high schools. Hopefully by spring of 2021 things can look more normal, maybe .
Soccerdriver1
BRONZE
This is a genuine question, not trying to start anything and don’t know your background on this topic. What is your issue with ECNL and ACL injuries?
He thinks he is flexing on me because I’ve been critical of GDA’s platform as dangerous, especially its limited substitution rules. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that making 7 14 year old girls play a full 90 minutes every game is unhealthy. It is a point that I have supported with many different medical studies for over the last couple years. He’s just bitter the GDA has gone down and that I’ve been rubbing it in his and his GDA Mafia friends’ faces. And if you are new here, as background, it is also useful to know that the daughter of the other GDA Mafioso who mocked me ultimately tore her ACL.
Stated differently, @dad4 is still driving the GDA clown car although all his bozo friends weren’t quite as clownish and quietly piled out through the trunk a few days ago. So sad.
I would like to know how this is useful? You are an asshole for sure! GDA or ECNL, tearing an ACL has no relevance.
Since there is a separate acl thread somewhere, shouldn't this thread be limited to, in your case, gloating on the destruction of the DA?
USSF is expecting to spend $12.7 million on outside legal fees in 2020, on top of $1.1 million for the internal legal department. The original budget for outside legal was $3 million, so they are over budget by almost $10 million. DA expenses for all of 2020 were projected to be $8 million, and with the early stoppage of play, were likely to be considerably less. Lawyers vs. kids?
jpeter
PREMIER
$10m is a drop in the bucket compared to what some of club and MLS academy have been spending ~ 4m+ per for some such as Galaxy, Sounders, Dallas, etc. MLS took their money and want to get paid for developing players at least for the boys, girls mentioned also.
There another "elite" league with USYS collaboration
Major League Soccer launches new elite competition for youth academies | MLSSoccer.com
MLS launches new elite competition for youth academies
www.mlssoccer.com
The Merry-Go-Round continues trade one league name for the other, how this all.shakes out will take some time.
Not ECNL specific. DA is no better.
My son had a very bad concussion. It left me with a really bad opinion of youth sports safety in general.
ACL just happens to be the most common major injury for ECNL/DA. Concussions are up there, too. So those two get my attention. ECNL/GDA have the worst injury rates, so they get the spotlight.
I'd love to have EOTL be able to shut me up by pointing to a mandatory ACL tear prevention program for all ECNL, and data supporting the declining ACL tear rates that resulted. Or a new policy banning headers until 16.
Case of 805 and a handwritten thank you note for either one of those.
Soccerfan2
GOLD
Anyone have info on the NorCal scene in the Bay Area? What becomes of Quakes and Thorns?
maestroFRSM
SILVER
Anyone have any idea which of the local non-MLS clubs may be joining LA Galaxy and LAFC in the new MLS developmental league?
jpeter
PREMIER
So far Albion, Nomads, TFA, LAUFA has been mentioned.
There will be at least two clubs that will have teams in both. Could be more, when you ask players which they prefer? Wonder what they will say?
vegasguy
GOLD
Valpo cancelled awhile ago. Cindy cancelled yesterday and the press release said they would honor scholarships for those that stayed and if they left they would grant the transfer without protest.
I will tell you why. It is because ACL injuries are incredibly serious and something I have put much effort into learning about and helping educate people. Folks like @dad4 and his predecessor have routinely mocked those who’ve presented serious and important information of this issue. They’ve ridiculed those who have supported their statements even when they cited medical research. They’ve been complete pricks, stifled discussion that doesn’t suit their pro-GDA, anti-science beliefs and have routinely bullied people. But that does not deter me because I will bully people right back. I am perfectly happy to play that game, with the difference that they just make stuff up while I present the truth even when it is painful and even cringeworthy. I am glad to throw people’s s**t right back at them. I have zero respect for them, and treat them as such.
If you really believed that ACL discussion has no relevance here, you might have mentioned that to @dad4 the four times he brought it up thinking he was clever.
Yes, ACL injuries are serious. Unless you have first hand experience, you are the cringeworthy prick. You don’t know shit.
There is no Pro-GDA, anti-science beliefs just your own crap about putting anyone down who took the DA road. ACL injuries are not a topic you should bully anyone about. You are a dick, plain and simple.