Say bye-bye-bye to Girls and Boys DA
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Don’t count me in with DA/USSF on that. They are not me, and I am not them.
If you are working on the ACL and concussion issues, I wish you all the luck in the world.
Ya, I know. But sometimes expressing a little anger is good therapy. You can ignore me if you’d like.
Sorry for my outburst.
CopaMundial
SILVER ELITE
Having my DD play in both ECNL (3 clubs) and DA (two clubs, one that changed from ECNL to DA), I can say that in terms of injury prevention, DA has far better training and injury prevention protocol, but only if clubs embrace it completely. We are extremely grateful for aging out at a club that was very very good with college prep and had a training regimen that included a fantastic strength, recovery and prevention program on Mondays, along with 3 other days of training. This Monday training was also mandatory. The excellent trainer was also at all games, warmed up the girls and warmed them down. Unheard of at most clubs. Also, by far, refs at DA level (specifically showcases) were far more trained and accountable. This should be the norm at any elite level, including ECNL. Next, if ECNL is slated to take over the top level of soccer in the US, they need to enforce video and stats reporting. I think it's very helpful for development and recruitment. Just my .02. My kid just aged out. But what I learned is that winning doesn't mean the best training or care for your player. Not all clubs follow or adhere to guidelines. Your body is important and it's up to you to take care of it, but it sure helps when your club thinks about it also, not just winning. Every league will have 3 top teams in each age group and everyone else will fight. At the end of the season, clubs that don't take care of their players, struggle with injury. And last, you can get recruited and find your right home, no matter if it's DA or ECNL. It's all a bunch of politics. Find a good place, a good coach, a competitive team and focus on being your best, strongest and healthiest. Focus on your preferred schools and work on those. You don't just go to an ECNL showcase or DA showcase and walk off the field with a coach handing you a paper to sign. It's not how it works. As we see today more than ever, health is most important. Sorry for those affected. It sucks. But stay positive, patient and think of it as a marathon. Not a sprint. Good luck to all and cheers to our 2020 players!!! We see you and are so proud. Stay strong!
ECNL has been the top league in the US for years. It is not 'slated' to take over the top level of soccer. It never left. Put down the cool aid. US Soccer tried, and failed to knock it off its perch. DA folded for whatever reasons they choose to site, but the reality is, several top clubs were leaving on a near bi-monthly basis.
ECNL is required to have trainers at games, too. My daughter's club did ACL prevention. It is not a DA thing. It is a club thing.
ECNL is required to have trainers at games, too. My daughter's club did ACL prevention. It is not a DA thing. It is a club thing.
CopaMundial
SILVER ELITE
OK soapbox. I'm not saying one is better than the other. I'm saying DA had a training and club mandate and ECNL does not. Never did. There should be no hate for either league. We should wish the best for the players. Some didn't have a choice to move from ECNL to DA. It just happened. All I can attest to is that DA gave clubs a more serious plan, whether it was followed by all, def not. But the plan was good. Better than ECNL, in term of player training and limitations. No HS and limited subs, stupid on DA's part. Now, IF ECNL is to be top dog (stop thinking they always have been because the ONLY ECNL team that wears that undefeated ring is Blues Baker), they should look at what they can do better and mandate it. Period. Again, I've been in both and no skin in the game. Kool-aid has never been my favored drink. It's not only about winning, but it's also about player health and development. I'm not going to pick one league over the other. They both have positives. Everything they do shouldn't just work for the organization, the club or board, but for the player. And you shouldn't just be worried about ACL prevention. Just sayin'
I wouldn't have anything to do with USSF. After not having any guts or leadership to contact member DA clubs about their laughable excuse for their fold, they say this: Please contact us to learn more about how you can play a role in developing a new unified and comprehensive structure that develops world-class players through an elite competitive pathway.
What a complete sham of an organization....
Goodbye USSF. The war of 2016 is now officially over. With that said, my dear friends on here will be happy to know I have no more rants left with this American made company called, United States Soccer Federation. I've been harsh on the GDA and all those super great coaches that are no longer around. To all the parents who stayed and tried to make the GDA work, I'm sorry it came down to this. 99% of us have been screwed over. I can read the pain you all have and I've had the same pain for three years. To Will, Ernie and Cindy, sorry to see that you were left to pick up all the trash left by the others. Executives making $700,000, $400,000 all while little girls were being lied to and used. Shame on you who are responsible for all this sh*t!!! You will be held accountable some day 
Blaming everything on Corona, smh! That was a weak excuse but I understand why. I will move on to ECNL and HS Soccer threads. Lastly, to all you who keep saying, "You need to find a good coach and that's it, " I say, "That sounds so easy, yet it's next to impossible."
Blaming everything on Corona, smh! That was a weak excuse but I understand why. I will move on to ECNL and HS Soccer threads. Lastly, to all you who keep saying, "You need to find a good coach and that's it, " I say, "That sounds so easy, yet it's next to impossible.""Hey Bro - I got your text and hear that you are confused about what that recent letter from US Soccer means. I'll try to explain it to you, I know it was confusing. See below, the bold parts can explain what you were confused about..........
Development Academy Administrators, Coaches, and Parents:
It is with profound disappointment that we have made the decision to end the operation of the US Soccer Development Academy, effective immediately (We wanted to do it sooner but couldn't find a good excuse to blame it on before now).
This was an incredibly difficult decision to make, but the extraordinary and unanticipated circumstances around the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a financial situation that does not allow for the continuation of the Development Academy into the future. (It wasn't really that tough to decide as it was quite obvious it wasn't working but we certainly can't say that.) We know that suddenly discontinuing a program that has been with US Soccer for many years is shocking, but these unprecedented times require acting now. (We have actually been planning this for months, looking for an out. When the COVID-19 situation happened, we quickly jumped on that as it was as good a time as any to get out of this mess when everyone is busy focusing on other things and probably the only time when no one is playing soccer so we're thinking no one will really notice it is gone.)
We are proud of the tremendous amount of hard work and dedication that everyone involved has contributed to the Development Academy clubs throughout the years for the benefit of thousands of young players. (We are mostly appreciative of the jobs we all had while the DA was going on. It was quite a ride. We realized early on that we weren’t helping any players but we were in it by that time and had to pretend it was.). A sincere thanks goes to all of you at the grassroots level where the most important work is done. We are grateful. (Maybe if we tell you that you are awesome you won’t be mad at us.)
We know you will have a lot of questions about what this means for the future of your club, and we recognize those concerns. (Thankfully for us, we have no responsibility here or any obligation to do anything to help any of you – so good luck on that.) While we do not have all the answers on what the future will look like across the youth soccer landscape, as the governing body of the sport in the United States we are committed to doing as much as we can to assist during these extremely challenging times. (We really have no answers for you but we can’t say that. Nor do we feel any responsibilities to provide any answers. This is the best time for this because none of us are even in the office to answer your phone call. The last statement is completely meaningless but it sure sounded good to add it.)
In the immediate future, we will continue to engage all stakeholders across the youth soccer landscape. (Yes, you are right, this doesn’t mean anything either but it sounds good to use buzz words like “engage” and “stakeholders”) At the same time, we will also look to increase our efforts on coaching education as well as being engaged and active in the identification and scouting of youth players across the country for all our National Teams. (We figured out that maybe we should have been doing this all along but it was so tempting to try to take over all soccer and make everyone do it our way that we couldn’t resist going there)
In the absence of the Development Academy, we can still take the lessons we learned over the years and continue the implementation of high-quality player development environments across the country. (We really didn’t learn any lessons but in order to not look bad we have to say it this way. We have to stay relevant so we are saying we have something to do with creating these player development environments but we all know that when we tried that it didn’t work out too well). Thanks to your hard work and collaboration, the Development Academy set the bar for elite player development. (Ok, ok, even we don’t really think this but when you put in the words “collaboration” and “elite” and “development” into one sentence everyone feels better). Finally, we have every confidence that all of our membership will work together to implement the Academy philosophy and standards that are important to provide players the best environments to reach their full potentials. (We don’t know why y’all would do that as the standards of the DA were a bust and the whole system failed but we still think we know what is best)
In spite of this difficult financial decision, we are committed to working together and look forward to a bright future. (The finances and COVID-19 really don’t have anything to do with ending the DA but they are the best excuses we have and it wasn’t going to get better so we had to cut and run now.)
Please stay healthy and safe (always a nice way to end a letter, makes us sound like we really care about you).
Will Wilson Earnie Steward Cindy Parlow Cone
US Soccer Secretary General and CEO US Soccer Sporting Director US Soccer President
(By the way, please don’t blame us. Everyone else was either fired or resigned and we were left with this mess.)"
Development Academy Administrators, Coaches, and Parents:
It is with profound disappointment that we have made the decision to end the operation of the US Soccer Development Academy, effective immediately (We wanted to do it sooner but couldn't find a good excuse to blame it on before now).
This was an incredibly difficult decision to make, but the extraordinary and unanticipated circumstances around the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a financial situation that does not allow for the continuation of the Development Academy into the future. (It wasn't really that tough to decide as it was quite obvious it wasn't working but we certainly can't say that.) We know that suddenly discontinuing a program that has been with US Soccer for many years is shocking, but these unprecedented times require acting now. (We have actually been planning this for months, looking for an out. When the COVID-19 situation happened, we quickly jumped on that as it was as good a time as any to get out of this mess when everyone is busy focusing on other things and probably the only time when no one is playing soccer so we're thinking no one will really notice it is gone.)
We are proud of the tremendous amount of hard work and dedication that everyone involved has contributed to the Development Academy clubs throughout the years for the benefit of thousands of young players. (We are mostly appreciative of the jobs we all had while the DA was going on. It was quite a ride. We realized early on that we weren’t helping any players but we were in it by that time and had to pretend it was.). A sincere thanks goes to all of you at the grassroots level where the most important work is done. We are grateful. (Maybe if we tell you that you are awesome you won’t be mad at us.)
We know you will have a lot of questions about what this means for the future of your club, and we recognize those concerns. (Thankfully for us, we have no responsibility here or any obligation to do anything to help any of you – so good luck on that.) While we do not have all the answers on what the future will look like across the youth soccer landscape, as the governing body of the sport in the United States we are committed to doing as much as we can to assist during these extremely challenging times. (We really have no answers for you but we can’t say that. Nor do we feel any responsibilities to provide any answers. This is the best time for this because none of us are even in the office to answer your phone call. The last statement is completely meaningless but it sure sounded good to add it.)
In the immediate future, we will continue to engage all stakeholders across the youth soccer landscape. (Yes, you are right, this doesn’t mean anything either but it sounds good to use buzz words like “engage” and “stakeholders”) At the same time, we will also look to increase our efforts on coaching education as well as being engaged and active in the identification and scouting of youth players across the country for all our National Teams. (We figured out that maybe we should have been doing this all along but it was so tempting to try to take over all soccer and make everyone do it our way that we couldn’t resist going there)
In the absence of the Development Academy, we can still take the lessons we learned over the years and continue the implementation of high-quality player development environments across the country. (We really didn’t learn any lessons but in order to not look bad we have to say it this way. We have to stay relevant so we are saying we have something to do with creating these player development environments but we all know that when we tried that it didn’t work out too well). Thanks to your hard work and collaboration, the Development Academy set the bar for elite player development. (Ok, ok, even we don’t really think this but when you put in the words “collaboration” and “elite” and “development” into one sentence everyone feels better). Finally, we have every confidence that all of our membership will work together to implement the Academy philosophy and standards that are important to provide players the best environments to reach their full potentials. (We don’t know why y’all would do that as the standards of the DA were a bust and the whole system failed but we still think we know what is best)
In spite of this difficult financial decision, we are committed to working together and look forward to a bright future. (The finances and COVID-19 really don’t have anything to do with ending the DA but they are the best excuses we have and it wasn’t going to get better so we had to cut and run now.)
Please stay healthy and safe (always a nice way to end a letter, makes us sound like we really care about you).
Will Wilson Earnie Steward Cindy Parlow Cone
US Soccer Secretary General and CEO US Soccer Sporting Director US Soccer President
(By the way, please don’t blame us. Everyone else was either fired or resigned and we were left with this mess.)"
@everyoneonhere I woke up this morning feeling sick to my stomach. I had so much pain I got lower back pain from it. I feel like I woke up from a 3 year nightmare of USSF coma. The destruction and pain caused by this company, USSF is so clear, they could only blame it on Corona. They think they got out of this one. I read it again this morning and I'm super duper angry. Be careful what you say to me today. Go ahead and make fun of me today. We ALL have a right to complain and be angry. All this false and misleading information makes it worse. This is far from over. These clubs (nat all, some did very well as partners with USSF) have been wronged big time. Parents have been wronged big time and more importantly, the girls have been treated bad again by some men who don;t care about girls. It's so obvious. Run, run and run some more until we catch you.....lol!!!!!
(Also by the way, a few of us are going to cut a deal with ECNL before we tell the others. Shhhhhh!)
Ansu Fati
SILVER
just to be clear, its USYS- US Youth Soccer- that issued that statement.
not USSF- United States Soccer Federation, or United States Space Force. (I agree, both are complete shams)
Wow! Class act.
jpeter
PREMIER
Who else is there that sanctions, registers, and provides insurance? Would love another alternative.
Usclub is about the only one I can think of who is a member of ussf but MLS is not going to go into business with them.
Cal south is USYS so I dunno if there are many options?
This new "elite" MLS / USYS league might be drawing clubs away from Cal South so wonder what there respond might be?
SouthBayFutbol
BRONZE
Thank you for the reply (condescension and all...) but is your point that only founding members should return to ECNL?
Doesn't you're theory go out the window when ECNL made a club grab to combat the formation of DA? I don't blame them for doing that, it was the right thing for them to do, but none of those clubs had anything to do with building & owning the league from its inception. Also, you did not address that some of those clubs do not, under any measure, rate as "Elite" which I thought was the point of Elite Clubs National League and their Mission Statement to "Raise the Game..."
US Soccer (with coincidental & very suspect ties to a newly transitioned ECNL club NC Courage) left hundreds of players and dozens of clubs across the country high and dry with no plan. ECNL could do right by those players and put politics aside. Or is it more important to settle grudges than it is to get the best clubs together to play?
I've said it before and will say it again. One of the main factors in accepting new clubs right now that no one is talking about. IF THEY ADD TOO MANY, THEY DON'T HAVE ENOUGH ROOM AT THEIR SHOWCASES TO PUT ALL TEAMS AT 1 COMPLEX. This is much more important then anyone gives credit for. Some politics of course is there like anything, but this is one of the biggest factors. Otherwise the product you give clubs won't be nearly as good and that's a big negative.
The trouble with adding another alternative is that there aren’t many girls playing at a top level. Every time you add an alternative, travel times increase. The more we go that route, the more soccer gets limited to rich families with lots of time.
The best situation would be if we could fix the organizations we have. Not sure that is possible, though.
The Outlaw *BANNED*
PREMIER
Haven't heard anything but it seems like you could justify an ECNL club, perhaps 2, in the South Bay. Yes?