SC Soccer Forums SCSoccer.com Forums Club Soccer & ODP Have Club Soccer commitments gone to far for our kids?

I must confess. I have a family member in the upstate who is contemplating playing club soccer at the travel level. The family was all gung ho on doing it, but have heard unfavorable things the past couple of weeks about costs and commitment to this club. This is no reflection on any specific club or area. Were just trying to help her make a decision because she also plays basketball and would like to do that at a competitive level as well. A friend of ours told us get info from both sides, which we have already received from the club. My friend told me about this website and said I would get a more objective view because parents frequent this site. Your input is much appreciated.

gbdawgs,
Tell them to play at the classic level..The costs and commitment are usually not as high and the player can get a feel for if this is something they want to pursue..

By the time a kid is 15 or so they need to pick what they want to do. If hey are still playing multiple sports they are probably not college bound in either.

Really?

What do you mean by "not college bound"? Can you have a nice competitive club soccer experience, and then decide perhaps to not play varsity college soccer and enroll at Clemson or USC? If a kid does this, is he or she a failure? Did the kid, or better yet, the parents, make "a mistake"?

I'm going to try to avoid being snarky, despite my strong urge...

Hurst is right. A majority of kids continue to play competitively throughout high school with zero intent of playing in college. We play because we enjoy the sport (whichever it happens to be) and enjoy the competition. There's no need to "pick" a sport if you're enjoying all you are doing and it certainly doesn't hinder any development later in life.

gbd: Depending on the child's age, it is possible to play club soccer in the fall and AAU in the spring. I think organized activities are very important. Healthy activities tend to teach hard work, discipline, teamwork, time management, organization, goal setting, sportsmanship, and they give a kid the feeling of belonging. Club does not interfere with prom or Friday night football games. For those that are truly gifted and dedicated, it provides a way to prepare for the collegiate setting. Soccer is a sport that is very family friendly, too. Travelling gives the parent and child time together that they might not otherwise have.

observer: that's not what i'm hearing from a very reliable source. homecoming, prom's, friday night football is being missed by premier teams. you don't lose over 25+ players out of a pool of 50 girls because their number one love is soccer. when i was 17/18 i was more interested in hanging out with my friends than spending a fri-sat night in a hotel with my parents and i'm 50 years old.i'm sure things havent changed that much. i'm just hearing that CESA is making their u18 girls play in three leagues this coming year. I don't think it's the clubs fault,but I do think some parents need to have their head examined if their putting their child through this.

gbd - you are on the wrong track helping a family member make a decision to play travel soccer based on a single team's situation. even more so with looking at a u18g team. there's usually some craziness with u18 teams as players make decision to play/not to play in college.

i'm not sure what u r really up to talking up this 1 team situation so much.

gbd: Club season starting at U15 is only in the fall. Region III games are about 5 or 6 weekends scattered from August to November. (Region III is their schedule, they do not do challenge league and some of their games are at home) State Cup is 2 weekends in December. ECNL is about 3 or 4 weekends scattered throughout the year. If your kid is not a premier player, then club is just in the fall. Prom is typically in April or May. Football games are almost every Friday night in the fall. Whichever weekend you play at home or don't have a game, attending football games is definitely an option. I hope that organized activities tend to keep kids from doing things that are illegal.