the highschool vs soccer development academy debate

Thanks so much for posting this Heather. If people haven't watch the associated video about the gatorade boys soccer player of the year, you should take a look at it. What a great kid.

My background on this topic is similar to the author's in that I'm intimately involved with both our high school program and our local development academy club and have a boy each involved with those programs. I find it interesting and encouraging that I agree with almost everything said in this article. While I dont quite follow the author's suggested solution to the high school dilemma, I have reached the same general conclusion that US Soccer needs to work with and improve high school soccer and coaches rather than turn it's back on the institution. And there are far more reasons for this than the author takes the time to mention. Two of the biggest reasons are the academic performance component and the fact that high school soccer is free. US Soccer says over and over again how it wants to eliminate pay-to-play soccer and then it disses high school soccer, the one soccer program that is largely free across the entire country. Add to that the fact that it puts requirements on the development academies, like a minimum standard for playing facilities, that only add to the costs, and it makes no sense at all.

Basically, I have reached the conclusion that for the US Soccer Federation, the creation of the Development Academies was not nearly as much about improved player development as it was about finding a way to get it's arms around scouting the soccer talent in such a vast country. They have improved the ease and convenience of the US Soccer scouts' job, but have they improved player development? My bet would be "no" but I think the jury is still out on that one.