Logging a detail about a HS player named Jordan Franklin: Franklin, who holds a 3.5 GPA, has played soccer abroad in Portual, Spain and Columbia over the past few years during the offseason. https://www.times-news.com/sports/l...cle_a3805dc8-8713-11ec-84c8-5f90b2604978.html That could just mean tournaments, etc., and not time with clubs, of course.
Germany envies us? Spoke with a German youth coach this morning who described his envy for our 'reservoir'. In Germany, youth soccer is largely free because of volunteers/limited travel and they are having trouble finding players -- a problem compounded by COVID. 1/2— Matt Hartman (@MattSHartman) February 18, 2022 In the US we have huge barriers to entry for youth soccer players and still maintain an ocean of players. The extent to which competitive youth sports is ingrained in American culture is unparalleled outside of all but a handful of countries. It's our biggest advantage. 2/2— Matt Hartman (@MattSHartman) February 18, 2022
/We should have a Relegation Battle thread, to follow the several YsA involved in relegation battles --we have at least one in each of the Big 5. EPL: - Sargent w/Norwich La Liga: - Miazga w/Alaves - (possible) Hoppe w/Mallorca Serie A: - Tessmann & Busio w/Venezia Bundesliga: - Green & Tillman w/Furth - Pepi w/Augsburg - Bello w/Arminia - Scally w/Gladbach - (possible) Brooks w/Wolfsburg Ligue 1: - EPB w/Troyes Eredivisie: - (possible) DLT w/Heracles Super Lig: - Boyd w/Rizespor - (possible) Wright w/Antalyaspor Superliga (Denmark) - Gallegos w/Sonderjyske - Sabbi w/Odense - Amon* w/Nordsjaelland Primeira: - Mendez & Alvarado w/Vizela - Cannon w/Boavista SPL: - Harkes w/Dundee - Soto w/Livingston - Ramirez w/Aberdeen plus others in less popular leagues and lower divisions. It'd be a thread to speculate possible ways to avoid the drop, other clubs coming in to rescue our guy if they go down, etc.
Just logging a press release about the launch of a Betis-affiliated youth organization in Arizona. It's not clear (perhaps mainly because I haven't looked into it too closely) whether this is, at least for now, being positioned as a "pathway" to Spain in any meaningful way. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-rel...-in-the-us-prepares-to-kickoff-301491665.html
All coaches and other non-playing personnel are found in the YA Academy forum. Jesse has a substantial thread there.
(Personally, I'd be for using similar rules for players as we do for managers/executives -- seems reasonable that an EPL manager could be in the "main" forum. Or, alternately, a new subforum for non-players only.)
I haven't looked into it much, but this article suggests an overseas history for a player named Matt Hall: It’s a love that opened doors for him professionally, playing internationally in leagues in Denmark, Germany, Mexico as well as the MLS in the United States, which includes a stint with the LA Galaxy. https://www.13newsnow.com/article/f...oads/291-927b83e1-65c6-448a-9ceb-f61cb48e9df2 His Wiki page reads a little different. I dunno. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matheau_Hall
A collegiate hiring announcement for a guy named Kevin Boyd says: Boyd is a graduate of Tri-State University (now Trine University) where he earned All-America honors for his play in the defensive backline. Among his many honors, Boyd earned induction into the Trojans’ Hall of Fame after finishing a professional career that took him to Hamar Kameratena, a Norwegian Elite team in the country’s First Division. https://www.soccerwire.com/news/uni...hires-kevin-boyd-as-womens-soccer-head-coach/ In the YA "archives" there are references to a guy with this name who played for a German club named Eschborn. I'm not 100% sure it is (or isn't) the same guy.
Not sure there are many YAs left in Russia or Ukraine, but they are free agents now: https://www.transfermarkt.us/fifa-a...spended-transfer-window-open/view/news/401203
So, after starting to look into a player I'd seen on T'Markt who was said to be at Leganes C, it does now seem that the club has something called an "International Academy" that is at least partly pay-to-play. My sense is that while a player taking part in this program could move to the "main club," this might be -- if you understand this better than I do, please say so -- a step removed from that.
They even offer "extra services" (for extra pay) like "entrenamientos individuales" (in-person training sessions), "videos promocionales" (promotional videos) and "sesiones fotográficas" (photo shoots with members of the team). Convenient. http://soccernauts.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/C.D-LEGANES-ACADEMIA-ES.pdf Bet if you pay enough they even let you take one of the pretty girls out.
Logging this article since it mentions some degree of effort to recruit Jewish athletes from around the world to play in Israeli leagues, including soccer and basketball. At a high level this type of thing doesn't seem to be that new but this specific organization might be; I admit I'm not an expert here. https://www.jta.org/2022/03/11/spor...-to-temporarily-play-in-its-pro-soccer-league
Here's a death notice for an Israel-born man who played for Maccabi Haifa as a youth and, I would guess, became a U.S. citizen later in life. It also includes this amusing anecdote: Mookie first saw American football at a 1960 game between Georgia Tech and Georgia and afterward mentioned to classmate -- and football captain -- Gerald Burch that he easily could have made all of the short range field goals that Tech's place kicker kept missing with toe kicks. Burch went to get a football and said "show me." Mookie did not miss a kick, and shortly thereafter found himself in front of legendary coach Bobby Dodd, who made Mookie a kicker for the team -- but only in practices, because kicking soccer style, or "sidewinder," was far too unconventional at that time . . . until Pete Gogolak did it for Cornell the following year. https://www.ajc.com/news/obituaries/sternberg-shmuel/3KEEZYJCYRE6LAY736CCE3DIMU/
Just logging this here because it's pretty clearly just a camp-type thing, though I guess all the world's a stage. Two local youth soccer clubs are sending players to England in the coming weeks, with players training with and experiencing the life of amateur and pro soccer players overseas. The Matrix Soccer Academy and Salisbury United Soccer Club are sending seven local players combined on the 2022 Southampton North American Select Tour, led by Southampton F.C. of the Premier League. https://www.delmarvanow.com/story/s...s-england-premier-league-football/7140175001/
Here's an interesting (German) profile of a guy named Rudi Haßler, who apparently had a big scoring reputation in Germany's lower divisions and had some kind of sniff from Eintracht Frankfurt but didn't make it. He's now in his '40s. There is a sad personal component, in that -- if I'm reading things correctly -- not only did his mother die young, but later in life, when he was trying to reconnect with his American father, he learned that his father was also looking for him but had also died. https://www.giessener-allgemeine.de/giessen/rudi-hassler-tore-und-tragoedien-91480665.html
This story (rather responsibly) doesn't overplay this as some kind of tryout but a bunch of Houston players are apparently headed to Argentina to train with Rosario Central. And I suppose it could be a tryout to some degree! https://www.houstonchronicle.com/ne...ton-teens-get-once-in-a-lifetime-17209851.php
Active Yanks Abroad in Europe relegated this season, so far (the Scandinavian teams won't end their season until October): #1 Julian Green (Fürth, BuLi --> 2.BuLi) #2 Patrick Tillman " #3 Josh Sargent (Norwich, EPL --> Champ.) #4 Tyler Boyd (Rizespor, Süper Lig --> 1.Lig) #5 Jose Gallegos (SønderjyskE, Superliga --> First Division) #6 George Bello (Arminia, BuLi --> 2.BuLi) #7 Gianluca Busio (Venezia, Serie A --> Serie B) #8 Tanner Tessmann " #9 Matt Miazga (Alavés, LL --> LL2) #10 Luca de la Torre (Heracles, Ered --> Eerste) #11 Jonathan Gomez* (Real Sociedad B, LL2 --> Primera RFEF) #12 Charlie Kelman (Gillingham, EFL L1 --> EFL L2) * Gomez has played for the USA but most recently for Mexico, his international status remains undetermined.
Huh: Coaches from the Royal Dutch Football Association will be on Maui in June to host a three-day youth soccer camp. The purpose of the camp is to identify Hawaiʻi youth soccer players for an opportunity to travel to the Netherlands and train in the Dutch professional youth academy system. https://mauinow.com/2022/06/02/coaches-from-professional-clubs-to-host-youth-soccer-camp-on-maui/
They aren't hosting camp in Alaska in winter to identify Alaskan youth players by any chance? And we are complaining about our Fed.
Looks like there wasn’t a thread for Josh Pynadath’s brother Jason, so just noting that he signed with Lehigh from someplace called Wooter Academy in the Netherlands.
Looks like another one of those Europe-based programs that do ... I dunno, a bunch of things I guess: Weeks after crossing the stage at Samohi, Will Barker will be lifting off on a flight to Spain, en route to what he hopes will become a professional soccer career. Barker, who has been playing soccer since age five, will be playing soccer for Sporting Club Madrid in La Liga, the Spanish football league, while also attending classes at St Louis University in Madrid. https://www.smdp.com/soccer-playing-seniors-ready-for-international-competition/218395 https://www.sportingclubmadrid.com/
Starting this Fall, PL2 will be a U21, rather than a U23, league: https://www.premierleague.com/news/...the,EFL Trophy and international competitions. Clubs will, however, be permitted to use five (previously three) over-age outfield players and one over-age goalkeeper, in order to transition from its under-23 format. The current average age of players in the league has been 19, so this should have little impact.
This (German, paywalled) article appears to be about a German coach who runs some kind of comap or other program to help Americans find clubs there. https://www.shz.de/sport/vfb-luebec...nge-amerikaner-auf-dem-weg-zum-profi-42398324