SC Soccer Forums SCSoccer.com Forums Club Soccer & ODP How much are monthly club/ training fees for each club in SC?

the club model in the usa is based on winning and money not player development. even odp (supposed pathway to the national team) has a big cost associated with it. plus, odp has really become a recruiting tool for college coaches and nothing to do with player development or identification.

Your generalization is not applicable to the USSF Development Academy.

You could argue, however, that the big clubs get alot (or several) of the best players from smaller clubs because those individuals want to win a state cup or play in premier league. I would be interested to see how many kids on the U16 and up teams developed at smaller, less successful clubs and then moved for the success? No doubt, the big clubs are training their kids, but they are also very good at convincing/recruiting the best to play for them.

Oh Hursty, I expected so much more ...

Have you ever looked at a roster closely? How many players from the immediate community?

For homework, compare a roster at U13 and then again at U16.

Recruiting.

If development was taking place, would recruitment be necessary?

Yes. I know. There are exceptions.

20K refers to the number of club players in SC.

I see your argument. But I still believe it is coaches who dictate travel.

"If the club model is not based on player development, how long do you really think they are going to succeed?"

An interesting question. What exactly is the club model? And how do clubs define success? Clubs have different missions and measure themselves accordingly.

I know of clubs that exist because they want to grow and deepen the player pool for the local high schools they serve.

I know of clubs that exist becasue they are trying to bring competitve soccer to kids who currently can't afford to play.

Big clubs like CESA and SCU.....exist to be all things to their customers. To a Premier family......the objective is to win, period. States, Regions, Nationals. Thats why they recruit kids in from outside of their normal area. To a Challenge family it might be to provide value via reasonably high quality training and competition without the cost and pressure of being on a Premier team. CESA is also focussed on building large recreational and adult programs.

Those are 3 different club models who would absolutely define "success" differently. And while development is a part of all three.....where it pegs out from a priority perspective is going to differ. If your objective is to win....then development,while important, still takes a back seat to the more quantifiable objective of winning.

Its interesting to me in looking at USSF Academy rosters in Charlotte......to see the number of kids who cut their teeth at smaller clubs. Not a majority by any means....but still a surprisingly high number.

Our CESA premier team actually did better when we had just upstate players playing together, and that's not to say the players from the other parts of the state were not equal or better. When we started adding players from the coast and midlands we didn't win state for 3 years in a row. I would go to the practices and there would be maybe 8 premier players from our team practicing. The out of town players from our team would practice in their hometown with a group of different aged CESA players. There's not alot of continuity when the full team only practices 1 day a week together. How many athletic teams that you know do this? Do you think CESA looked at player development on this one or do you think there more interested in expansion of their club.