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Developing the Next Generation
U.S. Soccer’s Development Academy
program is driven by the game and
its players, coaches and referees.
This game-centric approach allows
for long-term development to occur
through a deep understanding of what
makes players successful around the
world. As the sport of soccer grows
in the United States, young players
in our country need the proper
environment to compete against the
world’s elite. The U.S. Soccer
Development Academy program provides
the optimum developmental
environment for the nation’s top
youth soccer players, coaches and
referees by emphasizing development
through quality training and
limited, meaningful competition.
Meaningful Training
Academy teams spend a greater amount
of time focused on training to
improve as individuals and as a
team. The teams and players receive
direct feedback and evaluations from
National Team Staff and ProZone
video analysis. To round-out the
complete training environment,
Academy teams
are tested in their
physical capabilities using the
Sparq (Speed + power + agility +
reaction + quickness) testing
methodology and their hydration
levels by Gatorade. They also
receive a
SPARQ training
curriculum for soccer-specific
athletic training and Nutrition and
Hydration recommendations from
Gatorade’s Sports Science
Institute.Each athlete then gains a
greater understanding of how they
compare physically against their
peers and what they need to do to
achieve their optimal performance
levels.
Competitive Environment
The Academy program features teams
from the top youth clubs from around
the country. Each Academy team plays
approximately 30 regular season
games to ensure all games are
meaningful. Games are also played
according to FIFA’s Laws of the Game
and officiated by a pool of the
nation’s top young referees in order
to prepare players for the next
level of competition. National Team
Scouts regularly attend Academy
games, so players are evaluated over
the course of the season and in
their natural positions allowing for
better player assessment.
Early Success
As the
program enters its second year, it
has already dramatically impacted
the player development process in
the United States. In 2008, more
than 100 players from Academy clubs
were included in U.S. Youth National
Teams and almost 800 graduates from
the inaugural Academy class
participated in college soccer the
following fall. Virtually all
college programs use the Academy
program as a scouting vehicle and
the program has received increased
attention from professional scouts
representing domestic and
international clubs. Visit
ussoccer.com to view the top
Academy teams in action. |
