Gio Reyna to Dortmund

I have no idea if this is your model, but where I grew up, there were “clubs” in my city described as “Travel teams” which were the teams kids had to try out for and if they make it, they pay the $10k to play, travel, coaching, etc. typically the coaches also were connected to the middle and high school teams as head coaches since their players are in school for 7hrs and training wouldn’t start until afternoon - this obviously made ends meet financially for them with benefits and such.

These travel teams were affiliated with the areas league play where 10-12 age group teams (non-travel teams) played matches every Saturday with reduced fees and typically the coach was a knowledgeable parent; the travel teams would play an age group (2 years) up so the skills were more comparable and fair. These leagues paid for the fields and upkeep and whatnot (14+ leagues x 10-12 teams each was substantial in additional to adult leagues also paying), and it wasn’t beholden to the travel team club to maintain it. As such, there were no free rides/sponsorship on either the travel teams or the regular league teams and all were pay-2-play by the parents or sponsors if a team could land them.

In that setup, if a player later was signed by Dortmund or another pro club, I would not expect them to get solidarity payments in any capacity because the teams/clubs weren’t covering the costs of training/coaching - the families were.

This is how I describe the USA youth soccer pyramid.

Recreational/Rec Soccer = Teams formed from players within a Club's geographic area and the Club organizes leagues of teams in the same age group hopefully with an emphasis on fun and introduction to the Sport.

Club/Travel = The Club forms teams at each age group to play against other Clubs who are doing the same thing in the same geographic area. The travel teams are coached either by parents or professional coaches depending on the size and the way the Club is run. Typically practice and play indoors through the winter.

Premiere= Teams pulled from the best of the Club/Travel players who compete against other Metro areas in and out of the State. This is the level that starts to get expensive with coaching/travel expenses.

Development Academy=Professional affiliates and top premiere clubs/teams playing regionally and nationally at the highest level of competition.

This description isn't perfect because there are so many different structures in youth soccer, but I think its a good generalization.

My club has about 900 kids playing at the Rec and Travel levels. We try to make sure everybody can play at either level regardless of whether their parents can afford to pay the fees. Every year we have 8-15 kids who are recruited and play DIII college ball. Typically there are 1-3 teams who are capable of and play at the Premiere level at Travel costs. Being President of a Club is a pain in the ass but coaching youth soccer is a lot of fun.
 
This is how I describe the USA youth soccer pyramid.

Recreational/Rec Soccer = Teams formed from players within a Club's geographic area and the Club organizes leagues of teams in the same age group hopefully with an emphasis on fun and introduction to the Sport.

Club/Travel = The Club forms teams at each age group to play against other Clubs who are doing the same thing in the same geographic area. The travel teams are coached either by parents or professional coaches depending on the size and the way the Club is run. Typically practice and play indoors through the winter.

Premiere= Teams pulled from the best of the Club/Travel players who compete against other Metro areas in and out of the State. This is the level that starts to get expensive with coaching/travel expenses.

Development Academy=Professional affiliates and top premiere clubs/teams playing regionally and nationally at the highest level of competition.

This description isn't perfect because there are so many different structures in youth soccer, but I think its a good generalization.

My club has about 900 kids playing at the Rec and Travel levels. We try to make sure everybody can play at either level regardless of whether their parents can afford to pay the fees. Every year we have 8-15 kids who are recruited and play DIII college ball. Typically there are 1-3 teams who are capable of and play at the Premiere level at Travel costs. Being President of a Club is a pain in the ass but coaching youth soccer is a lot of fun.

And the scary thing, in my experience, is that nonsense politics, personal biases and petty adults are equally present at all of these levels above rec (and sometimes even at rec!).

My son had played at each of these levels and we've never escaped it.
 
And the scary thing, in my experience, is that nonsense politics, personal biases and petty adults are equally present at all of these levels above rec (and sometimes even at rec!).

My son had played at each of these levels and we've never escaped it.
I see a pattern..... the connecting variable in those scenarios is Fred Mertz.....
 
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Should he have played for NYCFC and MCFC already? I'm not sure he is/was quite ready for that last year.
Yeah, misread the LFC- was thinking it was a dual-MLS contingent of games.