The state of my youth! It’s changed quite a bit. For one thing, Atlanta seems to have gone supernova and swallowed up most of the state’s soccer community.
This was originally a password-protected page for Patreon patrons only, but now it’s open to all.
It’s a futsal/grassroots doubleheader! After a brief intro (no full rant this week), you’ll hear from Leslie Hamer, who works with futsal at every level from the grassroots to the pros. She has been getting futsal into New York City public schools and now into colleges.
Next up: Jason Longshore, whom you may know as a commentator on Atlanta United games but has spent much of the last 12 years working with Soccer in the Streets, an organization that brings soccer (or futsal — whichever makes sense for the available facilities) to underserved communities and schools. You may know them from their effort to put a small soccer field at a MARTA (local transit) station.
You’ll find a few differences and a few similarities in their stories. They work with other organizations from municipal governments to soccer clubs to the U.S. Soccer Foundation. (Reminder: The Foundation is not the Federation, though the Fed does nominate some board members.) Both programs are fundamentally geared toward providing healthy and productive activities for underserved areas, but you’ll sometimes see players move into elite levels, including pro academies.
The bell sound is from SoundBible.com. Every other musical note and sound effect was scratched out by me in GarageBand or through GarageBand.
Sure, it helps to have a lot of snow and ice. And it helps a little to have a social democracy in which the government is happy to help with anything that makes children healthier.
But it also helps to have a “Sport for All” ethos that stresses participation over winning. And no specialization at early ages.
Those are certainly values we can consider in soccer, aren’t they?
This week: The Ranting Soccer Dad Guide to Youth Soccer is officially underway. Check out the first couple of entries and support it on Patreon.
In the podcast, I spend about five minutes explaining all that. Then I go on a rant about the generation gap in understanding soccer and why we don’t have a glorious promotion/relegation pyramid just yet. (Plus a few ideas on how to get there. Or how not to.)
And these are free.
PAGE 1: About the Area Guides — this will tell you about all the national organizations you’ll need to know to make sense of the area guides.
PAGE 2: Area Guide: D.C. metro — of course I started on my home turf.
So here’s what’s next …
Help me write the area guides …
Sound off about your area. Let me know what I should know and can’t discern easily from my own research. Contact me.
Get access to read the rest when they’re done …
Support me at Patreon, where for as little as $1/month, you’ll get access to everything I’m writing.
Made a video about it. Want to see it? Here it goes …
As part of the research for the Ranting Soccer Dad Guide to Youth Soccer, I’ve looked up where every current men’s or women’s national team player or recent call-up played youth soccer.
I started at Wikipedia but then verified every mention of past clubs (not complete, but all accurate!) using college and U.S. Soccer bios among other information. In some cases, I found more clubs on the bios and added them to the list.
Enjoy, and feel free to suggest anyone or any club that should be added.
ARIZONA
Danilo Acosta: Real Salt Lake AZ
Julie Ertz: Sereno SC, Arizona Arsenal (formerly Gilbert SC)
Justen Glad: Real Salt Lake AZ
Ashley Hatch: Legends FC (Calif.)
Brooks Lennon: Real Salt Lake AZ
Sydney Leroux: Sereno SC
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CAL NORTH
Abby Dahlkemper: MVLA Avalanche
Tierna Davidson: De Anza Force
Lynden Gooch: Santa Cruz Breakers
Nick Lima: De Anza Force, San Jose Earthquakes
Megan Rapinoe: Elk Grove United
Lynn Williams: East Fresno Fusion, CVSA, Bullard Valley FC
Chris Wondolowski: Diablo Valley SC, Mustang
CAL SOUTH
(Historical: Nomads had Steve Cherundolo, Marcelo Balboa, Eric Wynalda, Paul Caligiuri, Frankie Hejduk, Shannon MacMillan, Jovan Kirovski)
Paul Arriola: LA Galaxy, Arsenal FC
Steve Birnbaum: Pateadores, Irvine Strikers
Joe Corona: Nomads
Marky Delgado: Chivas USA, Cosmos West, LAFC Chelsea, ISES Strikers, Arsenal FC
Benny Feilhaber: Irvine Strikers
Ashley Hatch: Legends FC (commuted from Arizona)
Hailie Mace: Eagles SC
Alex Morgan: Cypress Elite, AYSO
Michael Orozco: Irvine Strikers
Chris Pontius: Irvine Strikers
Christen Press: Slammers FC
Christian Ramirez: San Diego Surf, Pateadores, Irvine Strikers
Cristian Roldan: Union Independiente FC (also national high school player of the year)
Amy Rodriguez: Laguna Hills Eclipse, West Coast SC
Brandon Vincent: Real So Cal, Strikers FC, South Coast Bayern
Jorge Villafana: Chivas USA (joined after winning reality show)
Bobby Wood: Irvine Strikers (moved from Hawaii; then moved to Germany at age 14)
Gyasi Zardes: LA Galaxy
McCall Zerboni: SoCal Blues
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COLORADO
Jaelene Hinkle: Real Colorado
Lindsey Horan: Colorado Rush
Ethan Horvath: Real Colorado
Jaelin Howell: Real Colorado
Matt Polster: Colorado Rapids (anywhere in Nevada before that?)
Mallory Pugh: Real Colorado
Sophia Smith: Real Colorado
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CONNECTICUT
Alyssa Naeher: South Central Premier, Yankee United
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DC METRO
Bill Hamid: D.C. United, Premier AC (his father’s club — disclaimer: Ranting Soccer Dad’s son also has played for Premier AC)
Ian Harkes: D.C. United
Ali Krieger: Prince William
Midge Purce: Freestate, SAC, Bethesda, Potomac
C.J. Sapong: Prince William
Andi Sullivan: Bethesda, McLean
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FLORIDA
Jozy Altidore: Schulz Academy, Boca Raton Soccer Club
Alejandro Bedoya: Weston Fury
Morgan Brian: Ponte Vedra Storm (lived in Georgia and commuted)
Ashlyn Harris: Indialantic Force, Seminole Ice, South Brevard United, Palm Bay Rangers
Dax McCarty: Central Florida United
Graham Zusi: FC America (now GPS Orlando)
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GEORGIA
Joe Bendik: Cobb FC/SSA
Morgan Brian: Ponte Vedra Storm (Florida)
Jane Campbell: Concorde Fire, North Atlanta Soccer Academy
Sean Johnson: Atlanta Fire
Kekuta Manneh: Georgia Rush (joined Rush organization in Gambia; later moved to Texas)
Shaq Moore: Smyrna Stealth, Cobb FC (before going to Dallas and Bradenton)
Kelley O’Hara: Concorde Fire, AFC Lightning, Peachtree City Lazers
Emily Sonnett: North Atlanta Soccer Academy
Walker Zimmerman: Gwinnett Soccer Association
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HAWAII
Bobby Wood: Powder Edge FC (moved to California at age 12)
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IDAHO
Sofia Huerta: FC Nova
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ILLINOIS / CHICAGO METRO
Michael Bradley: Chicago Sockers
Brad Guzan: Chicago Magic
Eric Lichaj: Chicago Magic
Andrija Novakovich: Chicago Magic
Megan Oyster: Windy City Pride
Casey Short: Chicago Magic
Jonathan Spector: Chicago Sockers, Schwaben FC
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INDIANA
Matt Hedges: Indy Burn
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MASSACHUSETTS/BOSTON METRO
Geoff Cameron: Bayside United
Sam Mewis: Scorpions SC
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MISSISSIPPI
Marlon Hairston: Central Jackson Soccer
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MISSOURI/KANSAS: KANSAS CITY METRO
Matt Besler: KCFC Alliance
Adrianna Franch: KC Comets
Erik Palmer-Brown: Sporting KC, KC United, KC Inter, Lee Summit Soccer Academy
MISSOURI: ST. LOUIS METRO
Tim Ream: Scott Gallagher
Josh Sargent: Scott Gallagher
Becky Sauerbrunn: JB Marine
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NEVADA
Matt Polster: Colorado Rapids (anywhere in Nevada before that?)
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NEW JERSEY (split between Philly and NY?)
Carli Lloyd: Medford Strikers
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NYC METRO
Tyler Adams: Red Bulls
Juan Agudelo: Red Bulls, PASCO, NJSA
Russell Canouse: Red Bulls (after PA Classics)
Crystal Dunn: Albertson SC, RVC
Tobin Heath: PDA (NJ)
Tim Howard: Central Jersey Cosmos
Allie Long: Albertson SC, Northport Cow Harbor Mustangs
Matt Miazga: Red Bulls
Tommy McNamara: FC Westchester
Tim Parker: (where?)
Timothy Weah: Red Bulls (moved to PSG in teens), BW Gottschee, Rosedale Soccer Club (also in Florida with West Pines United at early age)
NEW YORK WEST
Alex Bono: Empire United
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NORTH CAROLINA
Ike Opara: Triangle FC
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OHIO NORTH (Akron, Findlay, Canton, Cleveland)
Justin Morrow: CSA
Darlington Nagbe: Cleveland Internationals
OHIO SOUTH (Columbus, Cincinnati)
Rose Lavelle: Cincinnati United Premier, Sycamore United
Wil Trapp: Columbus Crew
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OREGON
Rubio Rubin: Westside Timbers, Westside Metros
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PENNSYLVANIA EAST
Russell Canouse: PA Classics (then Red Bulls)
Christian Pulisic: PA Classics
Zach Steffen: FC Delco, West Chester United
PENNSYLVANIA WEST
Meghan Klingenberg: Penns Forest FC
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SOUTH CAROLINA
Savannah McCaskill: Carolina Elite SC
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TEXAS NORTH (Dallas, Waco, Abilene, Amarillo, Lubbock, Southlake, Odessa)
Kellyn Acosta: FC Dallas
Clint Dempsey: Dallas Texans
Greg Garza: Dallas Texans (in between stints in other countries)
Jesse Gonzalez: FC Dallas, CD Independiente
Omar Gonzalez: Dallas Texans
Weston McKennie: FC Dallas
Shaq Moore: FC Dallas (briefly; see Georgia)
Abby Smith: Dallas Texans
Taylor Smith: Solar Chelsea
Chioma Ubogagu: D’Feeters
TEXAS SOUTH (Houston, El Paso, Austin, San Antonio)
Kekuta Manneh: Lonestar SC (Austin), Texas Rush (Houston; before that, Georgia Rush)
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UTAH
Kealia Ohai: Utah Avalanche
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WASHINGTON
Jordan Morris: Seattle Sounders, Eastside FC
Kelyn Rowe: Crossfire Premier
DeAndre Yedlin: Seattle Sounders, Crossfire Premier, Northwest Nationals, Emerald City FC, Shorelake Soccer Club
(This week’s podcast has been snowed out.)
A historical reminder here: Four years after Richard Nixon just demolished George McGovern 520-17 in the electoral vote, the USA elected a Democrat named Jimmy Carter.
Granted, the situation had a few unique factors. Nixon threw it all away with Watergate. Carter was a Southern Baptist, making him a little more palatable to conservatives than more modern Democrats. But he had solid progressive credentials and eventually left his denomination for that reason. And the causes of the 60s radicals were certainly not dead.
The point for soccer people? Giving up after the election of Carlos Cordeiro is simply ridiculous.
The Chattanooga summit showed a healthy willingness to innovate, though I still have doubts about the lack of experienced people working with them. Why were so few traditional USASA clubs represented, for one thing?
And now we finally have some extended thoughts — once you battle your way through SI’s obnoxious autoplay video and pop-up ads — from a presidential candidate. Unsurprisingly, it’s Kyle Martino, the “change” candidate who showed more potential than most in bridging the gap between the conservative old guard and the “hey, I just discovered soccer two years ago, and now I know everything — America doesn’t have pro/rel because it’s stupid” contingent.
Martino gives us a behind-the-scenes glimpse at how things went down, including a surprise change of opinion in the youth soccer establishment. But he isn’t griping. He understands why voters broke toward Cordeiro and sees potential in the new president.
And Martino puts the focus back where it really needs to be — youth soccer. He’s jumping into that arena himself, working with Street Soccer USA, where initiatives such as putting futsal goals on basketball courts are a natural fit.
Make no mistake — that’s where the rot lies in U.S. Soccer. It’s astounding to see exponential growth in the amount of soccer on TV and the level of fan interest while the participation level is stagnant or worse. We’re losing recreational players before they can become elite players. And we’re giving elite players a muddled pathway, with the Development Academy and the ECNL playing a giant game of Risk across North America.
U.S. Soccer took a laissez-faire attitude for decades. Then they stepped in with the Development Academy, competing with rather than bolstering programs that had been in place (and developed some damn good players), and a ridiculous birth-year age-group mandate that any veteran of youth soccer could’ve told them was a really bad idea. As Martino points out, these moves alienated and marginalized people who may not have been perfect but had valuable expertise and experience.
Seems like there’s a lesson in all that for the “change” movement as it focuses on the other aspects of change, from promotion/relegation to … promotion/relegation. Yeah, there’s not much else.
Bring the new ideas. Have good honest discussion about them. But don’t marginalize the people who have built things that work. Even the people who’ve built things that didn’t work have experience worth sharing. You learn more from failure than success.
Opportunities are still there. But an “us vs. them” mentality isn’t going to help. Gotta build some bridges if you want to get across the river.
Do you know Mike Davitt? Until a few weeks ago, I didn’t, either. He’s a longtime soccer coach who, like many longtime soccer coaches do, also became a soccer parent. He’s originally from Kearny, N.J., hallowed ground for U.S. soccer.
After listening to a few of my rants, he emailed me and said he didn’t think youth soccer was doomed. It might even be a good thing.
I’ve been hoping to find people like that for the podcast, and so we chatted. Our conversation (starting around the 15:00 mark) ends up with an interesting idea on educating coaches, which is an issue that popped up in the big election. We talk about the positives of having an alphabet soup of leagues and organizations, how to help parents make educated decisions (23:00, including a suggestion that we should stop using the word “academy” unless you’re in the DA), how to watch out for players’ self-esteem (32:40), and how to keep score.
But first, I ranted. A little. I talked a bit about the big Chattanooga summit (4:25 mark) that may be the first big step toward a new pro league.
If you came here from my Soccer America piece, skip ahead to the 25-minute mark. Or maybe go back to the beginning of this conversation around the 18-minute mark to hear Foudy talk about pay-to-play and the chase for results. Or back to 13:20 to hear the entire youth soccer discussion.
Today’s guest has an impossible task: Make me feel better about youth soccer, and soccer in general, and youth sports in general … maybe just life in general. But she’s faced tougher tasks. She’s Julie Foudy, Hall of Fame soccer player and ESPN journalist.
After I make an announcement and then rant about curling commentary, the interview starts around the 13:20 mark with a discussion of what’s good about youth soccer, whether soccer can have the same supportive atmosphere of extreme sports (20:30), the lack of women in coaching (26:20), her experiences as a soccer parent (31:20) and then U.S. Soccer politics, including the role of the Athletes’ Council (40:10). She also talks a bit about the U.S. women’s team heading into the SheBelieves Cup (51:10).
We, the media, have failed you.
We’ve been distracted by the drama. The politics. The personalities.
Not that the personalities aren’t important. The next U.S. Soccer president has to build bridges and trust. The right personality to do that is essential.
But we’ve failed to shed enough light where it needs to be:
Youth soccer.
Soccer has grown by leaps and bounds in this country in terms of viewership, sponsorship and just a general sense of “bigness.” Youth soccer has not kept pace.
Where we need more outreach, we’ve gotten more elite programs.
Where we need more kind introductions to organized play, we’ve gotten ham-fisted mandates such as the birth-year age-group switch, which U.S. Soccer is only now beginning to realize was a colossal mistake from idea to execution. There is no elite player-development reason for forcing the other 90% of the pyramid to have less fun playing rec soccer and perhaps — just maybe — advancing into elite soccer.
We’ve forgotten that every elite player starts as a rec player. It may be in organized U5 soccer. It may be playing on a tennis court in an apartment complex where the residents have marked out some makeshift goals.
We’ve focused on the Athletes’ Council — a group of good people getting their names dragged through the mud by tinfoil-hat conspiracy theorists. And frankly, they’re too focused on meeting amongst themselves. Heather O’Reilly didn’t need to fly across the Atlantic to talk with Shannon Boxx and Kate Markgraf. They should be out talking with state youth representatives.
The state youth reps have been forgotten. They’ve been upstaged by the athletes and the adult associations, some of whom have not covered themselves with glory in this process and may have frankly demonstrated that they have too much of the vote. Maybe USSF can bring in colleges and combine them into the Adult Council? Might help.
But it’s our fault. We, the media, have forgotten to talk about all this. All the reasons why youth soccer has been stagnant, both in terms of adding rec players and developing elite players.
So it’s up to you … well, mostly the Athletes’ Council. Leave your meeting room. Go to the bar. Talk to the states. See why they’re frustrated. Then vote accordingly.
Duresport.com 