Why 70 percent of kids quit sports by age 13

USSoccer mandated the change in January, along with requirements for small-sided games at younger age levels. The birth year registration takes effect next season in my state (starting fall 2016) - other states may be different.
Nothing wrong with the small sided games guideline, but the birthyear registration is a horrible idea that I think will ultimately reduce the number of youth players in the sport. For referees it means each age group will be a bit younger. What we think of now as a U16 game will be more like a U15 1/2 game next year.

 

They really had to change the groupings to match international standards. Just too confusing to have one type of age grouping for travel, and another one for DA and youth national teams.
Can't imagine why it would reduce the amount of youth player in the long run...why do you say that threeputzzz?

One result is that this might be a ragged year of play all around. Teams that have played together for years are now being rejiggered, and have to learn to play with a new group.

 

I say that because young players want to play on the same team as their friends. Their friends are more often than not their school classmates. The current Aug-July soccer year matches the school year and allows competitive teams to be all in the same grade. The new system will, I believe, drive some younger players away from competitive leagues and into recreational ones where teams are formed by grade. For example a current U10 team in my state at least is normally comprised entirely of 4th graders. Next year as 5th graders, some will be U11 and some will be U12. The U12 players will now be grouped with 6th graders who go to a different school at a different location and are done with the school day at a different time. This will create logistical issues on top of the fact that little Suzy doesn't want to be forced to complete against middle school age kids and can't be on the same team has her best friend any more. I say this as a father of a player born in June, who will actually benefit from this change starting next year - but it's still a terrible idea. You say they had to change the groupings to match international standards - no they didn't. The current system works just fine. The handful of players that are so good that they are considered for national teams are already playing up. They are going to reap no benefit from this, IMHO. For the 99% of youth players below the DA level that are the lifeblood of soccer in this country this change is nothing but negative.

 

Fair points, but I imagine that a majority of rec leagues aren't bound by USSF mandates, and can keep the school ages together.
It's the travel leagues, where most kids aren't playing with their classmates anyway, that this will affect.
As a parent, I like the simplicity...if you're kid is born in 2009, he's a U8, if he's born in 2008 he's a U9, etc.

 

In my experience most kids on travel teams particularly at the youngest levels are indeed playing with their classmates.

 

Exactly, well put. It's gonna be a mess. We occasionally have kids now who miss out on a fall season because they are too old for U14's but aren't in HS yet. (got held back a year or started late due to their birthday) I imagine this problem will be exacerbated unless they have U15's during the HS season. Which right now around here (MA) they do not. Because the kids are in HS by then, normally.

 

Another wrinkle on this is that not only are we moving to birth-year groupings, but there's been a shift in what the "U" means.

My younger son was born 12/27/02 so he's a current U13 (i.e. under 13 as of August 1 prior to the playing year in question).

In fall he will be a U15 (i.e. under 15 as of the end of the calendar year).

This "double shift" impacts those with Aug-Dec birthdays; Jan-July kids will move up one year only, although the shift in frame of reference is the same.

Issue is, the playing specs are not changing, so in the case of a current Aug-Dec U11 (who is a rising U13 in the new scheme), that kid will go straight to full-field soccer after one year on the U12 field.

In time, this will sort out, and kids who work their way up will get two years on U12 fields before going 11 v 11.

But for now @akindc is right, this is going to be a ragged year all around.

 

Yup, that's what really sucks...kids with late year birthdays are really getting screwed. The best kid on my son's team this year had to move up two years like your son. Dropped down to the C team. Hopefully he'll catch up quickly and move up again, but it's gonna be tough for him.

 

I kinda think this is going to be both less news that anticipated and geographic in effect. Schools aren't uniform in the magic date (even within a city, public and private may be different) and many kids don't start with "their" class or stay back for good or bad reasons. Some kids won't like it, some will like it, and a lot will be oblivious.

(In my perfect world, we would have 18 month windows, which would make kids rotate better as to whether they were younger or older within their age group but that ain't gonna happen ....)

 

Or, he's lost the advantage of being one of the older kids . . . someone has to be among the younger kids on the team unless we go to tighter age ranges. (Yes, I get that it is a transition from being an older to a younger.)

 

It isn't just the parents! The clubs and coaches are really in a tizzy over this. Yes, it means breaking up teams that have been together for quite some time in many cases. It also means changing coaches for many players, if the club uses a coach based system rather than an age based system. It is also a problem for the U-15 age group, which, yes, could be played in the fall (for those states that play high school in the fall) because some age eligible players will be in high school already, so team formation becomes problematic when you have some of the kids who play for your club able to play in the fall but not all of them. At the other end of the age scale, our state tried to impose small sided games on the travel/classic/competitive level about 10 years ago. The clubs revolted and moved to US Club, costing the USYSA state association half of their registration. The dollars and cents facts are that small sided games means smaller teams, making the per player cost to play higher because coaches and referees don't work for less just because there are fewer kids on the team/field. And, since this means reforming teams, every club is sure that they will lose players as a result. "Bodies in motion tend to remain in motion. Bodies at rest tend to remain at rest." Newton's second law of thermodynamics. Or is it the third? Anyway......

 

For the states that have embraced the headings rule for ulittles, I wonder if it will have a similar impact?

 

I think you mean "law of motion". Thermodynamics were more Lord Kelvin's thing.

 

Your job is not to make the game fun. Your job is to make the game safe and fair. If you don't know that they change the age what have you been doing? For your information they did that before in the 1980s.

 

People play soccer because it is fun, not because it is a boring drag. Keeping the match safe and fair are simply the foundation.

 

Is there a deadline by when state associations are supposed to have adopted/be using these new requirements? When do they take effect?

 

Field size is I think next year.

 

Both are mandated by August of 2017…however, US Soccer has encouraged the age change for August of 2016, which I believe most club level teams are doing (Rec leagues may or may not be making these changes)…so in practice, its age change this year, field size next…

 

I am certainly in no way saying this transition will not be painful, but as mentioned it was changed from calendar year to what we have now with much the same gnashing of teeth as to how bad it is going to be. ODP stayed calendar year and kids came out and played ODP regardless of classmates or whatever. There will always be a youngest and oldest and they will be almost a year different. Yes it makes a difference being 364 days older than another kid but if the 364 days are between Jan and December or August and July it's still 364 days.

I think the year after the transition no one will be talking about it except possibly a few of the current older kids (post August) who will be younger kids and blaming the age shift. Those that benefit will not acknowledge it was an age shift, just their little Mia/Messi shining through as they should.

 

There is no reason to feel that something is wrong because kids get tired of organized sports. The older one gets the more opportunities there are to have fun, and other priorities such as making money and school arise.

 

Leg warmers!
Mix tapes!
Mullets!

 

Get ready, they might institute a backpass rule in a few years.