Substitution rules are damaging US development

There is blame on both sides the clubs/coaches and parents. I see most of it being on the clubs but parents fall into the keeping up with Jones’s scenario where they think their kid is as good or better then their neighbors.

Most parents biggest problem is rewarding their kids for goals. As it usually takes away from what the coach is trying te teach. My youngests team (u15) still has parents that do this and it shows in their child’s play.

The system in NTX, at least, is geared against the parents. Coaches and clubs have full control once a parent signs the contract and are all about the money. The clubs are set up so that they get their money first and then the coach gets paid. Therefore if a coach doesn’t have a full roster he doesn’t make as much.

The problem with that is that parents cannot pull their kids from a team where they aren’t getting playing time due to the contract and NTX rules. If they do pull their kid and the coach won’t sign a release (which most wont unless the parents pay in full for the year) then that kid can’t play on another club soccer team until the next year. Which could cause a child to fall further behind the pack.

Bottom line the big clubs/coaches hold parents and players hostage. There are numerous examples/stories out there. One will argue that it’s to keep coaches from recruiting/poaching during the season which some coaches do. There are a couple issues with using that excuse; NTX only holds one time period for parents to petition for a release if their current coach won’t sign one, it would become obvious if a coach was recruiting/poaching & that would mean a coach who wanted to do that couldn’t commit to a full roster at seasons start (July 1st).

This goes on in all sports that have competitive levels. As a country we’ve turned youth sports into a business in lieu of remembering that it’s for the kids.

My boys have played and/or still play sports (soccer, baseball, football, hockey) on the competitive level. I been involved as a parent, manager and coach so I have seen it from every side.

Goal04ref00TxSoccer Lurker........All good points, however, not really relative to this topic. From time to time other folks get on here and think they have the answer to the Big question of why USA can't get it right. I have stated before that the USSF rarely if ever select the BEST U.S players for national teams. Sometimes I look at the USMNT and scratch my head and ask...Are these REALLy the best this country has to offer? The same when I see USA U15, U17 U18 and so on. Some players on these teams are not even the best players in their area. This system has been a system of who you know and politics. Also it is kind of funny to see the outrage of the USA failing to get to the WC. It's not like we light it up when we do make it....