Breaking the Line: The ECNL Podcast
The Elite Clubs National League was founded in 2009 and continues to lead by daring to do things differently, embedded with grit, collaboration and tenacity – all things learned from the beautiful game. The ECNL protects and propels the integrity of the game and everyone it impacts by facilitating the perfect symmetry of excellence and humility, exclusivity and accessibility, freedom and community. We believe that challenging everyone to rise to their best creates game-changers that live well, long after cleats are unlaced. Born out of the belief in a better way. Continued in the ever-evolving pursuit of excellence.
Breaking the Line: The ECNL Podcast
Breaking the Line: Live at ECNL Boys National Playoffs | Ep. 140
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Breaking the Line returns for Episode 140, where ECNL President Christian Lavers and ECNL Vice President Doug Bracken sit down with guests on the sidelines of the ECNL Boys National Playoffs at Surf Sports Park in San Diego, California.
Lavers and Bracken open with ECNL Boys Commissioner Jason Kutney as the episode’s first guests, then bring on Ray Selvadurai, Director of Coaching at Manhattan SC, and Novi Maric, CEO of Florida Premier FC.
The entire episode is filled with incredible conversations about the ECNL, the ECNL Boys National Playoffs, the state of youth soccer, World Cup aspirations, and more.
As always, make sure to submit any questions to https://ecnl.info/BTL-Questions, to subscribe to Breaking the Line on Youtube, and to follow the ECNL on all social channels.
Welcome And Around The League
SPEAKER_01Welcome to the July 1 edition of Breaking the Line, the ECNL podcast, featuring ECNL President and CEO Christian Labors and ECNL Vice President and Chief of Staff Doug Bracken. Coming to you from the amazing Delmar, California Surf Sports Park, located just outside of San Diego, where the ECNL Boys playoffs are going on, where the ECNL Boys U1918 champions will be crowned on July 1, as well as the North American Cup champion. Today, Christian and Doug have three wonderful guests: ECNL Boys Commissioner Jason Cutney, as well as Ray Salvadurai, the ECNL director of Manhattan Soccer Club in New York, and also an ECNL board member, and Nobi Merrick, a prominent youth sports executive who serves as the CEO of Florida Premier FC. Before we get to all five of them, let's take a couple minutes and go around the league on breaking the line and start with all the teams who have won Regional League Championships. Last episode, we recognized the winners from the Regional League West and South events, and this week we'll highlight the winners from the Southeast, Central, and East. In the Southeast, congratulations to Charlotte SA for capturing the Regional League Southeast U1819 Championship and to Maddie Steele for being named the most outstanding player. On the boys' side, Union 10 FC captured the title with Mauricio Valdez earning the most outstanding player honors. The Regional League Central saw Germantown Legends win the ECNL RL Girls Central U1819 Championship, and Peyton Biggs was named the Most Outstanding Player. The ECNL RL Boys Central UAT 19 Championship will be held Thursday, July 2nd, with four teams still vying for their spot in the final. Paysetter Soccer, Tennessee Soccer Club, Tennessee United, and Boreal FC. Finally, in the East, PWSI Courage earned the ECNL RL Boys East UAT 19 Championship with Lysander Diaz Flores bringing home the Most Outstanding Player Honors, and the ECNL RL Girls UAT 19 Championship headed home with FC Stars and Most Outstanding Player winter Ava Mazafaro. Also being held at the RL Central event was the ECNL Girls UAT-19 National Finals, which set up a championship match between Michigan Hawks and MBLA. In the championship match, Addie Fife led the way for the Hawks, scoring the game's first four goals as Michigan cruised to a 5-0 win. The fourth national championship in the club's history at this level. Her performance also earned her the most outstanding player award. East Now Boys is wrapping up its national playoffs right here in San Diego, and it has been an incredible week. Across all six age groups, every conference has at least two representatives competing in the round of 16, with the Southwest and Texas Conference leading the way with 17. One representative each from those conferences will battle in the UAT-19 championship match as Legends FC will take on Tulsa SC. Check the ECNL socials to see every team who made the round of 16 and those who will punch their ticket to the ECNL Boys National Finals in Richmond, Virginia. This has been Around the League. Now let's get you out to a man who lives right here in this great San Diego area, the CEO and president of the ECNL, Christian Labors.
San Diego Surf Sports Park Spotlight
SPEAKER_06Alright, well, thank you, Ian, for that intro, even though you're not joining us. Yeah, he's off site. He's off site. He's like the voice that you hear in the ether. And it's in place of him. Once again, we have Mr. Cody.
SPEAKER_07Is he in place? Is Jason here in place of Dean?
SPEAKER_06I think the question would be if Dean was here, would Jason have the same chair or would he probably be down one chair.
SPEAKER_05I'm very happy with that introduction and happy to be here.
SPEAKER_06Well, here we are in absolutely stunning. Uh a small city in San Diego at one of, if not the nicest complex in the country. You have to say it's the nicest. I mean, when you combine the ocean and the mile that way, the views of the quality of the grass, it's hard to compete with it. I would say, in fairness to our friends, it's a crossfire in 60 acres. Yeah. When you have 60 acres in in the summer and you have Surf Sports Park here in San Diego in the summer, these are the two best facilities in the country in the summer to have post-season competition. And we're uh really grateful to San Diego Surf for uh this facility and to Crossfire for use of their facility because it provides an unbelievable stuff.
SPEAKER_07Definitely not to take anything away from anyone else, but yeah, this is this is beautiful. Wouldn't you say, Jason, we've been here several times. I mean, this is probably the best it's been, I would say. Like surface-wise.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, there's no doubt. I mean, we were here two years ago for the boys' side. Um, fields, I think, generally speaking, were still amongst the best in the country. There was probably six or seven fields here that were mint. Well, I was saying the six or seven that were just mint. So you couldn't you couldn't find something wrong with them. Um the other fields were good, right? But they weren't those six or seven fields. I think now we look at it and it's the entire complex is the same condition. These are the best fields I've seen in terms of youth soccer in in my time. And every single one of them. Everyone. Whether you're U-13, U18. There's 22 fields here that are absolutely first class.
SPEAKER_06So here we
How The Boys Playoffs Work
SPEAKER_06are, Jason. Um, give us a little overview of the event and uh we'll we'll see where the conversation takes us.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, so I mean it's it's uh for the playoffs on the boys side, it's a two-stage except for the 1819s. So 1819s are here, they'll play to a national championship this year uh for both the Champions League and the North American Cup. That's something that's really for us. We created a couple of years ago on the boys side where everyone, all 32 of those teams enter for Champions League. Based on the results yesterday, the teams that won will move on to Champions League, they'll be in that certain bracket, and the teams that did not win yesterday move into the North American Cup. So all those 16s and 16s will play for a championship, whereas the U-13s through U-17s are going to play down to a final four, which is different than the years past. So in the years past, that was a final eight, they would move on to Virginia, our second stage. Now it's a final four.
SPEAKER_06So moving down to a final four. Cool part about that is well, one, when you go there, you play one less game in the finals. Uh we'll have a first, second, third place. We'll be able to make that an even more special and unique uh environment. So every year we change the structure, every year we try and involve it to make it better, and that that was the big change, I think, on the boys' side this year.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, and we're and I think we're also just aware of the economics of it too, right? It's it's fewer teams that have to then travel across the country for for an extra event. We want to be aware of those things when make decisions for the league. And you know, for us, I think the the number of four just works better for all those reasons you mentioned, but it also saves money for certain families, right? And that's that's something that we have to be aware of all the time.
The Recruiting Crowd And Atmosphere
SPEAKER_06So yesterday we were talking about this, and I think we're working on finalizing these numbers, but we were going back and forth of whether we were 400, 450, almost 500, the number of coaches and scouts that are here from college soccer at every level to the very, very biggest names at the top of Division I to D2, D3, NAA. Uh almost every MLS club has a scout here, U.S. Soccer Scouts here. Um we'll finalize that number. It's hard to track. Yeah. Uh but what what do you what do you say about the scouting when you walk around?
SPEAKER_05I mean, it's it was packed yesterday, all the U17 and U-19 games, so sidelines of 50 to 60 scouts each. You know, I I my guess is just based on having done this for so long. We're we're over the 400 mark. I don't know exactly where we'll land. We'll find that out here as we go through with Athlete one, but it's just the the atmosphere that's been created. When you hear the whistles here in playoffs, you you feel something different. When you walk down to those fields where the U17s and U19s are playing, and there's 50, 60 college scouts on the sideline, that just raises the the uh the energy in the room that much more. And I think they they don't always recognize that. I I spent a lot of time yesterday talking to the college scouts and just thanking them for what they bring to the table that they don't even realize sometimes. But I think when you see the boys competing here for a championship, they're also competing in front of college coaches that can make a big decision in their life.
SPEAKER_07We were texting it as it started, and you said the energy and the vibe you felt here was the best it had ever been. Talk about that and and what you know what kind of made makes it what what what made it that for for the first couple days.
SPEAKER_05I mean winning matters. I think that's the thing, right? Like you you need you're here and for a reason. No one's here because they just want to be here. They're here because they've earned the right to be here. They're the best in their conferences, and they're here trying to play for a really cool trophy, right? So I think when you look at those things and you put that together, you then add the ambiance of this area, you add these fields and the quality, then the weather and all those things, the accoutrements to it. But really, what it comes down to is they want to win. Right. And and I think a year ago we talked about this on the podcast where no one would question the USA's style of play in the World Cup if they were winning, and we're seeing that now. What you see here is a bunch of different styles of play from youth soccer, different areas, different coaching styles, different methodologies, but everyone's trying to win. They're trying to get the three points out of each game. And the first day we already saw penalty kicks for some of the 18-19 games, and it's it feels like a World Cup final for those kids. It's amazing.
Winning Mindset And Soccer Culture
SPEAKER_06Yeah, and I'd add on the field, I think the winning part is really important. We've talked about that and want to celebrate that. And next year, almost all of our events are gonna actually have trophies in them because we feel it's important to do. But the other part of off the field, I mean it's a festival here. I mean, people who like soccer like to come here and walk around, and there's people here who don't even have kids playing that just come out because they like soccer and the vibe is cool and it's fun. And I think that's a part of growing soccer culture. When we talk about all the stuff going on in the World Cup now, where the US is and what we're doing or what the future of the game is. And we've talked about this before. The culture of having people who live and breathe soccer every day, to me, that starts with a youth environment that embraces mom, dad, siblings, makes them say soccer's fun, I want to do it ball, and I go home, I want to play in the backyard, in the garage, whatever, uh whatever that is.
SPEAKER_07I I tell you, I was fortunate enough uh just to to to connect with what Christian said. I was fortunate enough last night to go up to LA and watch the U.S. play Turkey in the Turkey A. Turkey A still in the last uh group game, which essentially the game meant nothing uh for either team, as Turkey had already been eliminated, U.S. already won the group. One, what you what you saw at the beginning uh as we walked in was that festival kind of atmosphere, which was really cool. They, you know, they have like the hype men out there getting them getting the crowd jacked up. The second thing that was the USH. East American crowd. That's that was that was my next thing was just like how many US fans were there. Like it was crazy. And of course, it's it's the World Cup, and we we we Americans would love events, you know, and like that. But the other thing what what was interesting is to me was how absolutely competitive that game was. It was clear to both teams, to me, to both teams, it was not a nothing game. It was not a throwaway game. And and Turkey, who had been eliminated, they got some pride to play for. So I think you know, learning that skill, you know, at the youth level, it's it's an important part as as they move forward. And uh uh and it was really on display last night. The U.S. ended up obviously losing the game, but what a it was a phenomenal uh atmosphere and just just enjoyable. And I I think that goes to what you were saying, Chris.
SPEAKER_06I mean, to be fair, you've heard Pachicino talk about how you have to compete, and everything's about competing. And that was one of I think the changes he talked about making that year is what it really means to compete for your spot every day, compete to win every day. You know, I I don't necessarily like the word suffering in a game, and but that seems to be a you know a popular way of describing not having the bull sometimes. But those are skills that you don't just flip off at a certain point. You have to learn what it means to compete young. It doesn't mean winning is the most important thing at any age. You know, like we don't even need to touch that. But that's what you see here with these guys and the emotion in these games.
SPEAKER_05I mean, it's it's we we have a jumbotron here where we're showing World Cup games throughout the day, and as you see passers by just stopping and watching those games, and it's it's cool. I think what the World Cup has brought to America is just this feeling that you know this this can be a soccer uh country, right? And you know, football country, but this can be a soccer country. But you see all these different people from all different parts of the country here in a small microcosm just chatting about the games that are going on, right? I think yesterday there was a random game going on, and you just see all these families rolling up and watching, and then they're just rolling out onto the field and playing and going back and watching more. We've created something here in terms of like a little mecca within San Diego of some of the best soccer players in the country, up-and-coming soccer country uh players. Some of these players on the field this weekend or this week could be playing in a World Cup, right? And and you you look at that, we don't know that someone will be, right? And and so I think when you think about it from that perspective, it changes your lens and how you're thinking about the event. But this is a this is will be a future event here for us for years to come in this location. I wonder when you look back on this year, 2026, who's playing this event right now that'll be on a World Cup roster in the future.
SPEAKER_06Well, good news is we'll have the data because we uh maybe didn't have that early on in our phase of uh of growth. The other thing I would say to that, and it struck me on walking in today, there was somebody from Coach's Voice here who's our education partner based in England, and they work with all of the academies in England and coaches throughout Europe, and they have somebody here. We just had the tournament with Coach's Voice in Everton, and we were talking about how surprised the clubs and coaches were in England about the quality of the American teams coming over. We announced a couple days ago that we're doing the same event next year, so I think the the final four here from U13 Boys will be going to the Everton International event that we're doing in conjunction with Coach's Voice next year. And I said to him, we're probably gonna have four different clubs that go to that event next year. And the four clubs that went this year surprised everybody with the level because I just don't think the top-level American kids are going over there and competing like that all the time. And then two days ago, we were here with Philippe from the Iber Cup, and the Iber Cup is one of the biggest international tournaments in Portugal, and he was here also surprised, impressed with the level. So this isn't just now a domestic event. There are people now who are aware of this event and coming to this event from all over the world and going back and saying, hey, the ECNL is a really, really great place to compete. And the American Youth Soccer Club is is rising. And I think we're gonna see that because we got more cool things coming up that we are connecting with opportunities for our teams with uh with international competition, we're gonna see more and more of that.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, I mean it just it it takes time like anything, but we've I think we've done enough over the last few years, especially with the American youth national teams that have done well. Girls have always done well, boys on the youth level level have done really well as well. And now the men's side, we're starting to show. I think that if Americans get behind this game the way that they have so far in the World Cup, it's gonna make a difference, right? That 12th man, however you want to refer to it, I think that's someone told me that's trademarked. I don't know if you could say that the 12th man. I'll ask my attorneys. But I don't know.
SPEAKER_07The Seahawks, I think I feel like they they're big on the 12th man as well.
SPEAKER_05But if you if you incorporate the fan base and now a whole country getting behind this team, this is what will happen, right? Like that that's the American spirit. When you look at um the Olympics for hockey, right, the men's and the women's program that won it, you know, Canada is a hot is a hockey country, right? And now we've beaten them both men's and women's because in many respects, just that American spirit that was behind them, now we're seeing it on soil.
SPEAKER_07Yes. Jesse's done a lot. Well, maybe he's defected by now. I I don't know.
SPEAKER_05I got a lot of respect for him. He's done he's done well. Um but I look, I I think Wisconsin guy, by the way. Is he?
SPEAKER_07Is he? There's only one one good coach to ever come out of there. Jesse. Yeah.
SPEAKER_05But when you you know, when you think about what it takes to play at the next level, right, whether that's a World Cup or professional or college or what have you, you know, I look around this yesterday. I saw a number of MLS clubs all here scouting these players as well. A lot of these kids will go on to MLS academies, go on to MLS contracts, a lot of these kids will be in the national teams, you know, and we're trying to create the right atmosphere for them, an atmosphere that inspires them to be a better player. And when you look around, I you know, I didn't have this as a youth, right? I don't know I'm I know you guys didn't because you're much, much older than me. Um but when you when you look around these fields, it's an incredible environment, right? The goal celebrations for these kids running to the corner and having 60 of their clubmates there waiting for them to jump into, it's like it makes you want to go back and play. When you see the fields and you walk in the fields, you want to play again as well because they're just ridiculous. But overall, the atmosphere that we're seeing in this country right now and at this event right now, it just makes you want to fall in love with the game.
ECNL Growth And What It Means
SPEAKER_06Yeah, and I and I'm gonna say, you know, because youth soccer, youth sports in general are more and more in the spotlight for a lot of reasons, and a lot of people have a lot of negative things to say. But if you're a family here and you're a player here, there's a lot of good things going on in youth soccer in this country. The culture is growing and catching up, and as we talked, that's a big part of performance and development on an international stage. There's things we have to do better in this country, but man, this is there's a lot of really, really great things happening and a lot of improvement has happened over the last 15 years.
SPEAKER_07I think we the the the interesting perspective the three of us have in that is that we all have kids playing youth soccer. And what what they experience, my son's here playing at this event, and like I don't think we would trade that for anything, right? It's just what it what he gets from it. It's just hard for me to think about that in any kind of negative way, to be honest with you. Um, Jason, one uh last thing I wanted to ask you is because you've been you've been here for you know seven years now with the league. I I think it's a limits. Yeah, I I think we we haven't disclosed what it is, but we'll we'll let him know when the time is right. Um but I think it's always important to as you move forward to look back and and see where you were and how you grow. So talk about like I mean, we we've all been through this for for the last seven years and for a couple of us many more. Talk about the evolution and and you know not only what you've seen and how it's evolved, but what it what it means to you to be a part of it and and all that.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, I mean I look I started in 2019 pre-COVID, um, and we had 57 clubs on the boys' side when I joined, and it's just been interesting to see us grow the way we've grown, right? We're at 165 moving to 173 clubs next year. How many in the uh ECL region boys? 500? Yeah, just under 500 now.
SPEAKER_06So it's an important thing because it shows the the power, yeah, uh the competitive base and the the striving for the top.
SPEAKER_05And the pre-ECNL as well, right? I mean you I've I have children that play in the pre-ECNL now myself, so like it's it's really cool to see the growth and the breadth of what has has grown. But what I've always I I've always felt this way, the pride of what I'm seeing in the kids wearing ECNL stuff around the facility, right? To me, it's they're proud to be in the league, they're proud to be in a club that's in the league, and there's an affinity toward what we're all trying to collectively do and accomplish. And you know, all uh like youth sports, Christian, you hit the nail on the head. I mean, youth sports will get uh criticized for everything, but everything's more expensive nowadays. My groceries are three times what they were probably 10 years ago just to go out and live a life, right? But when we spend time when I spend time with my kids coaching them at different areas, if I if I spent every one of those minutes that I'm coaching in the same area where I live, I would get bored very quickly. And I know that we don't want to travel all around the world to play games, but we want to travel and experience different things, right? That's why we go on vacation. We don't go on vacation to our backyard, we go on vacation to other parts of the world. I look at soccer in the same way, right? I want to go out, I want to play against clubs that are the best, but I also want to go to new areas. I want to experience new things, maybe not Cincinnati all the time, but I like to go to different areas of the country and experience. I like to go to San Diego, I like to go to South Carolina, I like to go to Florida, I like to experience the world through the game. And my family has seen that very much right now. And to dovetail that into your question, what we've tried to create is an experience that is bigger than the league, more than a league, right? And I think when you when you really wrap that all together, it's about so much more than just adding clubs. It's about adding experiences for families, adding memories, core memories, sending teams over to Europe, bringing European and South American teams here, right? Creating things that will last forever beyond their time in the league, so that when they are done with their playing career, they come back and they coach in the league or they run a club in the league. To me, that's what we're trying to accomplish here. We're trying to inspire more of this game and from this game.
SPEAKER_07Um, all right, well, let's wrap with Jason.
Bracken Brain Buster Soccer Or Football
SPEAKER_07I do want to do, I'm gonna we're gonna go many bracken brain busters today with every single person. My bracken brainbuster today, and Christian, we can we can answer it later, is soccer or football?
SPEAKER_05Soccer.
SPEAKER_07Okay, okay. You got a why on that?
SPEAKER_05Because in this country, I believe that we are a soccer nation. And I've I I've grown up with soccer. I understand football, I understand boots, I understand all those pitch, I understand all those things. But to me, I've always said this, this is just my opinion. Uh I'm not putting this on the league. The minute we accept it's soccer, is the minute we will be the champions of the world.
SPEAKER_07Wow. Okay. So if we can get everybody on the men's national team, including our coaches, they're leading against Bosnia and Herzegovina to call it soccer, we will win the world. The minute we fully buy in, you're prognosticing. We have to fully buy in that it is soccer.
SPEAKER_06Ours. Our style. Our style. By the way, that there has been a uh way too much of every five years we're trying to take this country's ideas or country's philosophy because ours isn't good enough. One of the things I would say about the way the team is playing today with Pachin is it feels like a very American style. They're pressing, they're at it, they're aggressive, they're mobile, and that's the kind of soccer I think.
SPEAKER_05If I could bring Dempsey and McBride and Bocanegra back and have them join this team, I would do it in a heartbeat. I know I can't, but I yeah, I I agree. I I think this is a soccer country.
SPEAKER_07Yeah, love it. All right, well, thanks to Jason. Uh appreciate it. Enjoy the rest of the event, and uh we'll keep getting
Ray Joins Plus A USMNT Check-In
SPEAKER_07at it. Uh Christian will uh let's talk about the U.S. game a little bit last night while we bring on our our next uh guest. What were your thoughts?
SPEAKER_06Um I would I thought it was a great start, obviously. Yeah, they could have been two or three in that five minutes. It was a little bit dicey. There was definitely a difference between I think the uh the the first 11 and and the group last night, but uh to get those guys in, to get the minutes, because some of them are gonna have to show up as we made them. Yeah, no doubt. Um I thought the second half was a lot better than the first half, to be honest. And before I got too much farther, let's introduce Ray here. Ray from Manhattan, member of our board. Yep, also uh yeah, director of coaching Manhattan Soccer Club.
SPEAKER_02Yes, thanks. Thanks for having me on, guys. Appreciate it.
SPEAKER_06Yeah, how about those next?
SPEAKER_02Uh it's a lifelong journey for me. Right. Being 53 years old, and last time they won was when I was born. So it's been many years of pain, loyalty, support, but uh what a great team. What a great story. Great story in coaching. You know, when you talk about dealing with high-level athletes, right, and different pay scales and to keep everybody tethered to a collective goal. It's very hard to do in pro sports.
SPEAKER_07It was a very, you know, this is a soccer podcast, but it's a very New York team, too. Yeah. Like roll your roll your sleeves up for sure. Gritty Brunson for sure is a is uh I mean is the poster.
SPEAKER_02There's gonna be a lot of statues of Jalen Brunson, a lot of kids named Jalen this coming year in New York City. But that's true. Yeah, but no, it was a fantastic. And for me as a fan, I I'm comfortably numb, but you know, on to the next day and back to back to soccer.
SPEAKER_07Did you did you participate in the parade or anything?
SPEAKER_02No, no, I don't go to gatherings. I don't go to I I stay away from gatherings for sure. But uh, yeah, I watched it. I watched it. Yeah. Gatherings I stay away from, but uh it was great for the next, great for the city. Brought it together. So it was nice.
SPEAKER_06Tell us a little bit, give us a 30-second spiel on your club.
Building Manhattan SC In An Urban Market
SPEAKER_02Yeah, man, it's our club. That's uh it's been a labor of love for me. You know, I've been here half my life, you know, 28 years, and uh, you know, it's it's coaching in an urban environment, right, and and dealing with some of the issues that that come around that field space and you know, leadership and putting in the right uh perspective of how you want to develop players and and and and uh and teams in that area. Uh amazing player pool. We're talking eight million people, right? So great diversity. Yeah, very, very, very diverse, you know, and we have a club that's really committed to that all around, not just inside the lines, you know, in developing players and teams, but outside the lines. But our mission of you know just bringing everybody together and and doesn't matter what your socio-economic background is, you know, we'll we'll make it available to you to play. You know, so it's uh it's a great place. I love it.
SPEAKER_06But you you you've got a bunch of teams here. Yeah, we do. And you've got you've had players that have gone uh through the club and gone on and have real real success.
SPEAKER_02I always tell people, you know, when you have players that go on to the professional level, you know, we help them along the way. But they're there because of them. Yeah, you know, and and their qualities that they've had. But uh uh we just had our first player that played in the World Cup uh this year for Canada, Jacob Shaffelberg, uh came through our program. Um Jack Harrison had a great career for us. Uh you know, went to college for four months. I keep you know, talk to him about that at Wake Forest and made his way through MLS and English Premier League, and you know had a lot of great coaches along the way, you know. Uh Manhattan Star Club is a great place for him, but when you have Bielsa, right? When you have Patrick Vieira, and you got you know NYCFC, you have Lampard and Purlo in your locker room and Dave Via, he's had some good people along the way to help him get there. You know, so those are two big names, and uh um but in terms of the teams here, we're super proud of the guys. We have here, uh we have our our U-14s, our under 16s, and uh our under-19s are gonna be playing around a 16 in them in less than an hour against Mustangs. So uh I think San Diego is a great motivator, by the way. As soon as you guys, as soon as you guys announce San Diego, the guys are like, oh, this is great. We got we gotta go. We gotta be there. We gotta be there. So um what a great, great facility. I mean, we we love coming here. And uh I'm pretty proud of this group. They're they're great teams, you know. They really um we got a good culture there. Uh we look for culture people, culture families, you know, all bought in, and uh our coaching staff is excellent, our prep cycle. And um, you know, we're we're excited. We're off to a good start so far.
SPEAKER_07Talk about that culture piece and how you, you know, what it what it means to you and the club and how you create it.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, you know, it's uh people throw that word culture around all the time. Sometimes, but for me it's pretty simple, it's just what we do here. Right? I I use that phrase, what we do here. And uh it's really about our our pillars and what we want to instill in our players. It uh we we feel that there are certain characteristics, whether it's work ethic, focus, you know, how we treat one another, um, sportsmanship. We talk about um you know being brave and competitive all at the same time. And we think these are things that carry with them throughout life and everything that they're doing if they if they're players that want to achieve. So um it's and it's a real brotherhood too. You know, I think ECNL has really helped in that, you know, because a lot of our young players get to see the older players play on the same day. And you go on the Instagram, you see the celllies, right? That happen all the time, and you see young players uh and jumping in piles with older players, and you know, they're they're really good role models, our older players too. They're taking that on. So um ECL has been a big uh big proponent for us and um helps breed that that that brotherhood that we have.
SPEAKER_06You talk you say things like be brave. I think that's such a big part of being a player at every level. I mean, I'm I'm I was coaching as people probably know, new nines now. Yeah, and I talk about the bravery to want the ball, yeah, the bravery to go forward and try a forward pass or a 1v1, the bravery to physically challenge. And that's with young nine nine-year-olds. So you watch it at the World Cup as well. The amount of bravery it takes for people to step into the squad. Even here, you got people all over the sidelines, you got skills, pro clubs looking at you. The bravery to want to be here. Yes, the bravery to accept the risks. Talk about how how you how you look at that when you guys are developing soccer players. I think that's a big step in our country is to develop players that we're not saying, oh, we're just gonna press you because we're gonna create chaos. We're saying no, we're gonna play and we want the ball.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, exactly. I mean, you you've even seen it with our U.S. team right now, right? Every time Christian Pallissa gets the ball, I think something's gonna happen.
SPEAKER_06You know, he's not a fan at all to know with people. You see a lot of really good players, yeah. I don't know if it I what you feel, but when I see people get in good spots and then just go back around again, sure. I'm like, come on, go at him. I I like that kind of side.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, it's it's it's the bravery to take people on, it's the bravery to be impactful. Like don't wait for somebody else, you know, and also the defensive side for me, you know, the that other side of the ball, which I think sometimes is a little bit lost these days, you know. Um that's why I'm a big Chris Richards fan these days, you know, because we finally have a center back, and I was a center back that can that can really defend and play and play through the lines, so he's shown a lot of bravery. But yeah, we think that's something in life. You know, just just if you're striving for something, you feel a little pressure because you're trying to achieve. But you gotta have that bravery to take that on. It's such an important aspect, and I think it it it carries with players and when they get older and everything they want to do.
SPEAKER_06So let's let's let's flip it
Leadership And Governance From The Inside
SPEAKER_06first. The other role you have, you joined our board about what, about a year ago, now.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, a little bit less, yeah, but yeah, absolutely.
SPEAKER_06So you were a part of the league as a director and a coach for a couple years. Um you were elected by your conference because that's how our governance is set up, is where clubs have a real voice, and you've been now on the board for almost a year. You're a lawyer, right? Which gives you a professional background and skill set that you can get that you look through. Yeah. Um what stands out to you when you think now coming behind the curtain about the league and what makes the league successful? What's important about that part of what we do in terms of American soccer?
SPEAKER_02Yeah, look, I think um, you know, just if I if I look at it just from the people that are involved, I think there's some great leaders uh that are involved on the board. Uh it's a really good cross-section, you know, of the country. You got people from from all over the place that that are involved, their clubs. But I I've been I've been pretty impressed, you know, and of course both of you have a lot to do with this as well, uh in your roles and Jason. Um but it's it's uh it's a large entity to run, and it's it's it's super impactful, you know. The the voice that we have here and the reach that we have here uh when it comes to uh how we can shape youth soccer in this country. So um but I'm looking at it from all aspects too. The um your financial, fiduciary responsibilities, legal responsibilities, everything you have, it's it's it's it's pretty impressive. Pretty impressive. So uh but I think ECNL is uh is a is a massive leader, you know, in in youth soccer. And I think the those people that are on the board and your leadership and and both yours and Jason really, you know, can can reshape this youth soccer in this country.
SPEAKER_06Well, and with that, I mean I mentioned you've been elected like everybody, but really we're one of the very few organizations that every day the people who are making the big decisions about what we do, how we do it, why we do it, we are also going out that evening and they're coaching.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, you gotta be you got people in the weeds, as I always say, and and good people, really good people. And even still, you mentioned at the conference level, right, as coaches, we're all colleagues. Everyone, everyone gets along, it's a community, you know, they have a lot of respect for one another. I I tell people all the time, uh, my my colleagues is what drives me because I know as a coach on that level, what I'm gonna see on on game day, they're prepared. So I got to be prepared as well. There's some great coaches in this in this league, and um, and the board is a is a great example of that too, just great people around the game.
SPEAKER_06So that's a big focus for us as a league now, but I think I look at it through the same lens of we empower the people that are working the closest to the problem. And as our scope of problems that we try and tackle gets bigger, we're empowering more and more people.
Zone One Coaching And Coach Education
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I can't tell you how important zone one is to any club. You know, not just in in in how it's run and your curriculum and things along those lines, but you know, even the size of it. You know, if you can have a large zone one in your club and it's running really well, it's gonna lead to more success in the older ages for sure. But uh, you know, zone one's an area where we can be a, I mean, like we mentioned about being a leader in in American soccer, like zone one is where we can really take um, you know, right from the start these young players and having them come in and and getting around what ECNL wants to do with it. So amazing.
SPEAKER_07There's some real uh we've talked about this before, but there's some real realities to zone one, and those realities, just to running a club, a youth club, and I'm sure you experience them, we experience them, you know, about one, you know, the more coaches that we can educate and create more a bigger pool of coaches, you know, the better that is for all of us because we know as club leaders that our biggest challenge is coaches and getting good coaches. And so, you know, what in your club then takes priority and where they go. So I think the way we've tried to look at this now, and I and I think Christian experiencing it's helped push that forward uh a lot, is providing more education to coaches in that zone so that those coaches can get better, because the reality is a lot of our young coaches in our clubs are the ones that are coaching in that zone. Right.
SPEAKER_06We talk about this here because this is the end of the youth, right? So your 17s, your eighteens here that are leaving youth soccer and moving out. A lot of what determines the quality of this play is going to be based on what is the quality of the teaching. And I'm I'm not saying even to a specific player, but the more good general coaching we have across the broad numbers of nine, ten, elevens, and twelves, yeah, the better the best players are going to be when they get to U 16, 17, and 18.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I couldn't agree with you more. I mean, when when I when people describe ask me to describe my club, it's not it's it's a school. It's a school. And you think about it as a lower school, a middle school, and an upper school, right? So at at each level you have a different level of teacher, right, that understands the psychology of the young kids and the and and what they need and keeping the fun factor in it, and also understanding you know where they are physically and and emotionally in those in those ages and to and to teach the game at the same time. I think the biggest thing for me too is also when you have young families, right, that are stepping into youth soccer to to educate them and what commitment is like and you know it's when you're eight, nine years old, what do you really know about a family, right? And well, as soon as they get to 10, 11, 12, you know more. But uh we have some lifers. Uh you see, even on my U-19 team right now, we have some lifers, I call them guys that were in our club from from under eight. We actually have that in our club. Yeah, we call lifers. In fact, on that team right now, yeah. It really it really is. We're talking eight, nine, ten players. So that really, yeah, that's a lot there's a lot there. So we're happy about that. That's amazing.
Why Travel Creates Better Players
SPEAKER_06When you take a step back here, what's what what when you get back on the plane and go back to Manhattan, or it'll be uh maybe a little colder, maybe a little hotter, I don't know, but it won't be way more humid, let's put it that way. Way more humid. What's gonna make you say, you know what, that was a really successful weekend or week here in San Diego?
SPEAKER_02Yeah, look, it's look, I mean, first of all, if the the facility is top rate here, I I I haven't been to a better facility in my entire life. Obviously the weather is tremendous, but the competition here is amazing. There's a lot of good teams from throughout the country. You know, our our conference was was pretty tough this year for us. You know, there was uh, I know it's it's there's some pretty good clubs here that are doing very well right now. So it was kind of a dogfight in a way. You know, I called it before the turn and after the turn, right? After the first eight games and the next eight games, it it was very, very tough. And I know when the league expands, right, and there's you're trying to apportion playoff spots, it's it's more difficult to make it now. And I agree with that. You you want the best of the best here.
SPEAKER_06So in 30% for most copies. Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, which and it's more difficult to make, and it should be the best of the best of the year. So um, but it's also you know, not just competing with your brothers, it's the it's the time spent. You know, uh a lot of times you don't get to spend a lot of time away from the field with families, and you know, so these guys are planning all type of activities around it, but just to compete against the top teams, right? To to see the the teams in the Midwest and California and in the South that we don't normally see. Um had a great game with Florida Premier US today, you know, my under-16s. And you know, we hear a lot about them, you don't get a chance to play them, but now we're here. So um we leave here, it's it's it's not always I mean, of course, we'd we'd love to compete for the titles as much as we can, but it's really about the experience more than anything else.
SPEAKER_06When you say that, it makes me think because Jason has talked about how you know his experience as a young player going and playing at IAX, I think it was for the National team or a real team. Sort of changed his perspective as a young, aspiring soccer player.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_06You know, we talked at the same time, this is a continent here in the US. And so you're using your example, a bunch of guys from the five boroughs going and getting the play, a really good group from Florida. We're gonna have uh Novi on here in a minute. Yeah, but very different culture, yeah, very probably different style in the way they play. I mean, that also can change perspectives and directions for these players when they say, hey, I didn't know that there were other guys like that, or I didn't know there were guys my age of the yeah.
SPEAKER_02Absolutely, absolutely, yeah. To see to see the player pools and to see some of the, you know, the um also level of coaching of our opponents are it's very, very good. So um, you know, we're we're we we always know when we come to regionals that you know it doesn't matter if you're at a wild cart, it doesn't matter if you were the first place team. No, it doesn't matter, it doesn't matter. You know, that's my son's team. What what whatever happened to get here gets all thrown out the door, and then and then when you play somebody, it's it's just great to see them, you know. So um we love the competitive and you just feel it, right? You walk around the fields, you just it feels different. Yeah, it feels you just feel the energy of of teams really competing. So I mean to play for a national championship is uh you know, not many people get a chance to do that.
SPEAKER_06So a team alive still in that?
SPEAKER_02We do, our nine uh nineteens. Like I said, they're they're in the sixth uh round of 16 right now.
SPEAKER_06Um, so that's what you've got to win five games. Let's see. Yes, to win to win, yeah, to win it five games, yeah. Five games, single knockout. Yeah, you get through that. That is that is a murderer.
SPEAKER_02That is a war of attrition sometimes. But uh, the guys are doing great, they're excited about it. And uh our sixteens are in preliminary play right now. They have a day off today, and then they they get out to play two. So they off to a good start, though. Off to a good start, won their first game, and then uh our our fourteens, our under fourteens, they had a great match at FC Dallas. I mean that game could have gone either way, just watching it. End up 0-0, but just tremendous game just to watch that.
SPEAKER_06So to your point, the off days on these events are are helpful for recovery, but it's also where a lot of memories get made. So you're gonna have guys going in jumping in the Pacific Ocean doing the water.
SPEAKER_02Which I might be doing later in the two minutes. I'm not going in there. I'm not going in there.
SPEAKER_04It's a little sharky, sharky, sharky.
SPEAKER_02Well, they know we're they know we're tourists when from New York when we go jump in because like it's I don't know, everyone else who's from around here is in a wetsuit right now. So you know we're they know we're tourists when we go in there. So but uh no, it's uh I mean this is a great, great area, and we we just love coming here. So um, but we're off to a good start. We're hoping to uh be there at the end.
SPEAKER_06Plus, it's awesome. I remember when your club came in, and it was a big big moment for us.
SPEAKER_02Big moment for us as well.
SPEAKER_06We always say leagues don't develop soccer players, clubs do, coaches do, and to your point specifically, the credit is always to the player. But you guys have come in, you've made the league better. Um it's awesome to see you guys having the success to have you now with us from uh from a board spot is awesome. Thank you.
SPEAKER_07And I know you're an avid listener of the podcast, so you'll know that uh we have a brack and brain buster. Uh we're doing a mini version today. Okay. And the mini uh mini version is uh soccer or football.
SPEAKER_02Well, I do know the origins of the word soccer where it came from. Okay. It used to be called association football, right? So that's where you get your soccer from. Uh it. I'm an American guy, I gotta go with soccer.
SPEAKER_07All right, two for two.
SPEAKER_02There you go.
SPEAKER_06We are.
SPEAKER_02Let's own it. Yeah, and you know, just look, I'm really proud of the national team. Really proud of the national team. They kind of all start the same way. Right, let's get after it.
SPEAKER_06Totally new lineup, and they started with the same mentality.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, yeah, yeah. You know, unlike yesterday, they played a bunch of guys to keep them tethered because you never know when you're gonna need them and get some World Cup experience. But each game has been great. The level of mobility is amazing. What I'm seeing, the pressuring there. Like I said, Chris Richards is my guy. Absolutely love him. He's the guy said his most important.
SPEAKER_07We said last week my my bracket brain buster was who what's who's the one who's the one guy that the U.S. can't can't afford to lose? And we both said Chris Richards.
SPEAKER_02And his agent should be very happy soon because they're gonna he's gonna get a he's gonna get a good contract coming up, you know, really soon. You think some teams will some clubs will come in for him? Oh, yeah. Yeah, they got to. I was just you just beat me to it. You know, Antonio Freeman Freeman was uh Brett Farr's favorite receiver. Right. So uh you're you're a pack, you must be a Packer fan.
SPEAKER_06What is it?
SPEAKER_02Talk about that level of athlete that's now coming uh to um to our sport, which is great. But you know, uh it's Bosnia, right? Bosnia Bosnia and Herzegovina, yep.
SPEAKER_06But you know what? I just jump on that because you have a lot of people say, Oh, we're gonna have the best athletes. We have really good athletes, but it's athleticism is not gonna be a core differentiator. And what we do see now, I mean, think about that. You have an NFL wide receiver Super Bowl champion star whose son has chosen soccer. Yeah, what does that tell you about the growth of the game and the culture in our country? Because that would have been unfathomable 20 years ago.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I mean, there there are a lot of athletes that have talent for the sport, like they're born with it, but I think like you know, this example of the World Cup, right, to See some success. I call that an ignition moment. That's an ignition moment where people are watching and they're like, wow, that's pretty cool. I'm gonna gravitate around the sport. And if we you know you get your round of 32, round of 16, if we're start getting into those deep runs and playing at home, obviously is tremendous. But it's an initial ignition moment.
SPEAKER_07Yeah, I think it's hell that what they've done so far is you know obviously put huge like you know uh ignition into it to it, but I do think it's it's really important for them to keep going. And I know it's you know the the the margins are so thin, you know, as you get to that to that the as you move on, you play against these teams that have advanced. But I don't know what you thought about that. I I it just feels like it's so important that they win this next game. You know what I mean?
SPEAKER_02Yeah, you know, it's a well first of all I think we have the team to do so. Yeah, I totally agree. You know, um when people ask me about the national team, I there's two things, and I I I think I I like the head coach. Okay. Um he's embraced he's embraced America. He has, he has, and I think also, you know, he's he's been around the game, he's been around at some high levels. Um I think you're gonna see uh a lot better, you know, kind of tattooerization if we go up against a European power, you know, uh this time around. But uh I think he's done a great job. And uh uh yeah, yeah, I think this this this round of 32 game is for me personally, I think it's something that we you know we should we should be we should be getting past. Probably I would say it'll probably be the most washed American game ever.
SPEAKER_07Absolutely on the men's side, certainly. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, for sure. Yeah, I agree. I agree with that. That'd be sweet.
SPEAKER_02It's a great time. It's a great time, you know. And I am gonna be at the final. Yeah, it's my birthday. And we appreciate that you invited us.
SPEAKER_07Come on in if you like, we'll figure it out.
SPEAKER_02You know, but uh it's actually my birthday, believe it or not. Okay. So I guess if you prorate that over 53 years, yeah, prorate that over 53 years, and probably the next time the World Cup comes around, I will be uh in the nursing. We'll be together, we'll be together like eating yellow. Yeah, pretty much. Pretty much, yeah. It's uh it's oof, man. But yeah, so not too bad. We'll gotta go. But uh it's it's uh it's been a great time, especially in New York City, but all the games that have been in in EdMed Life, and you know, um, it's it's amazing time, amazing time in this country.
SPEAKER_07Well, Ray, thank you for everything you do uh for us and thanks for joining us. And uh thank you. Yeah, we look forward to watching your teams. Good luck and uh race over the field, Dave. Yeah, yeah, go get them. Which would be great. All right, go get them. Thanks so much,
Nobi On World Cup Watch Parties
SPEAKER_07man. Thank you. Our next guest will be interesting to see whether he goes soccer or football, Christian. Novi. I think it might be different. You think so? All right. Well, how are you, man? Sir, how are you? Doing well. Doing well, dude. You guys are uh well, we should let you, he should introduce himself. Introduce yourself and then we'll we'll get into this.
SPEAKER_03I mean, I don't I don't and not you know Novi Merrick, Chief Executive Officer of Florida Premier FC.
SPEAKER_07Ah, there it is.
SPEAKER_03It's very, very business like proud Croatian on top of it. I am proud American too, but really proud Croatians.
SPEAKER_07Right now, dude, like I'm I you guys uh you guys Instagram follow it. I'm like it's you guys are crushing it. Um the thing that has been super cool that I've seen on there and I wanted you to talk about is these World Cup watch parties that you guys are doing, which is super uh super cool. Talk about that.
SPEAKER_03So we've been really big on activating during the World Cup, uh doing World Cup watch parties for the community. We had over 2,000 people at each game. We do street soccer style activations for the kids, and mostly because we want people that have never watched the game before, introduce them to the game, and there's no better time than the World Cup right now. So it's been very helpful activating all the different programs for the community that's not familiar with the game, introducing them to all of our different programs like Rec Plus, Happy Feet, which is our younger ones, which it's been very, very beneficial. So when did you when did you leave Croatia? Uh we left Croatia 27 years ago, and then I moved to Germany, lived in Germany for nine years, and then moved to the United States. Okay.
SPEAKER_06And I asked that question because you're talking about activating those types of things around the World Cup, which is about building culture, right? It's a long-term, like create soccer in a community type thing. But you're now you're in Tampa, you guys are very well known in Tampa, uh, you're very well known across the state of Florida in soccer. And if you look from a culture perspective at the change you've seen in the US and your time here, comparing that to Germany or or uh when you were young in Croatia, but you're still very involved with a lot of Croatian activities. How do you see culture here changed over the last five
Belief And The US Soccer Rise
SPEAKER_06years, ten years? What do you see coming after the World Cup?
SPEAKER_03So the change has been tremendous. I know a lot of people always talk about USA's up and coming. I completely disagree. I think we've been on the map already the last five years. Uh the game has evolved tremendously, and a lot of people don't play it. And I know everyone wants to find something that we can do better, but where the clubs uh have gotten in the player development the last five to ten years is tremendous. Even when we take our teams overseas and play the top European academies, there is not a huge difference, like everyone else is saying. So I think we should be very proud where US soccer has gotten, and I think here in the next five to ten years, we're gonna make huge strides like we have been in the last 10 years.
SPEAKER_07So, what does that mean, you think, at the at the international level for the US? Making great strides. Is that competing to win a World Cup, you think?
SPEAKER_03It is, yes, and I think the team that we have currently, I know a lot of my friends in Europe, they all look surprised after the first two games, and they're like, no, we didn't know USA was that good. I've been telling them all these years that we have a lot of great young players, and what's impressive, it's not that we have 20 good players. You have uh over 100 players currently playing in top European leagues from the United States, so our depth and how many players we're developing is tremendous. In the past, you had the Landon Donovan's, you had the Eddie Johnson's, you had Clint Dempsey, three, four players. I think we're developing much more, much deeper pool of players, which is amazing to see.
SPEAKER_06How much of that, you know, your Croatia is a small country, but very small country. Luca Modric was a great talent. Yeah, everyone. How much of the the growth and the next steps uh in success is just about people believing it. You know, and instead of people apologizing for what we don't do and apologizing for all this other stuff, saying, you know what, no, no, we're proud of what we do, and we're gonna go believe we can do it, and we're gonna just get out of here.
SPEAKER_03So, Christian, that's what I love to hear. Because I truly believe if you don't believe it, you will never succeed. So it's first all of us, right, believing it. And when people are on podcasts and talking about what we are doing wrong, I think it's more coming together and coming up with solutions and ideas. How do we improve and give credit where it's due to all of US soccer and all the different leagues that we have taken huge strides? And look at this here. You have thousands and thousands of top players everywhere you look around. We're competing at a very high level. So again, I believe in if we do not speak it in as hey, we will be the best, it will never happen. So I think more people believing and talking positive about it, that's what we've done with our club. I mean, we talked it into our coaches, talked it into our players, we will be the best, and I think that's the attitude the US needs to have, and I think a lot of people have it. We just need everyone else to join in, and I think we're getting there.
SPEAKER_07So talk about the talk about the evolution of Florida premiere, um, and and how you guys have built it and where you are now and and where you think it moved forward.
How Florida Premier Scales Culture
SPEAKER_06You guys are the top club in the country now. No question. That's a very proud moment for you, um, because that was probably not the case seven, eight years ago. It was that you were growing and building it, but now people know your club, and when they play your club, they say, Oh man, this is a big day because we're playing Florida Premiere.
SPEAKER_03So when we started Florida Premiere, it was a very small neighborhood club. We started with 15 teams. We're up to over 500 teams currently, and it was built with the slogan One Club, one family, about culture and making sure we are focused on the younger ages. We have a program called Happy Feet. It's an 18 months, a six-year-old program, which we put a lot of resources in, start investing in the young ages and putting all of our resources in the development stage, and then over the years, with quality, we were able to develop really good younger teams. We invested a lot into coaching, resources, and then with quality and the culture we've built, people wanted to come join. So we have now, we believe, the strongest coaching staff in the country because a lot of the people from the outside that were seeing what's happening inside of Florida Premier wanted to join, and our retention rate on our staff is 99%, and I think that plays a huge part in our success because over time, when we talk about culture, we were able to retain it, and we have a lot of people that have been with us since day one that understand what we want, and now when the new people come in, it's very hard for them not to follow it because everybody's so bought in. So it's we're very passionate, but we also are big on development, younger ages, and investing in coaches. I mean, most of our monies in the club goes back into coaching, and I think with that, with the success, when they say with quality, then the quality comes as well.
SPEAKER_07And then you guys uh came into the ECNL and obviously have just grown in prominence and and what you've done. Talk about why why ECNL, what's important about it to you guys.
SPEAKER_03ECNL played a huge part, the Florida premiere success. I know when I met with Christian the first time, I was begging him. I'm like, give us a chance, we'll prove tell me if I'm wrong.
SPEAKER_06I believe that was at the Arena in Las Vegas. It was, that's correct. That was like 2000, 16.
SPEAKER_032016, yeah. Wow, so good memory. Yeah, good memory. So now we told Christian, just give us a chance, we'll prove you that we belong in the league. From day one, I told Christian I believed in his vision as to what he was trying to create with the league. We believe in the 99% and what Christian was doing with the league, building the ecosystem where every player in your club is part of it and is taken care of and has a pathway to the top league. So that's the way to go. And Christian's passion for the league and his belief, always saying in every convention we are the best. That's I mean made us believe, and we wanted to follow his footsteps and follow you guys' path. And it really paid off for us as to where we are today as a club, now on the boys and girls side, and now that we have built out the entire ecosystem with the RL, now with the N1, the pre-CNL leagues. Now you have a full pathway in one league, which makes a huge difference, and we've been loving it, so it's been great. Yeah, it's awesome.
SPEAKER_07Talk about the teams you have here and how you guys are doing so far.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, we're doing great. We have the uh 19th now in the Sweet 16. I guess we've got to be a good one.
SPEAKER_07Yeah, you beat my beat my club yesterday. So yeah, I'm sorry. That's all right. That's right. I was like, well, you know, we you know, we come out here and compete. Yeah, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make it awkward. No.
SPEAKER_03Oh nine, same thing. Uh, they're top of the group. 10th 11th is doing well as well. It's just being here, a lot of people uh don't understand how hard it's to get here. So just for our teams, the number of teams we get to qualify every year, we're very proud of because it is a really hard task, it's very competitive, the league has gotten stronger every single year across the board. So for any team that's here at the playoffs, they should be very proud just to be able to participate in the playoffs.
SPEAKER_06So you you just referenced that pyramid of ECNL, ECL Region League, N1, you know, pre-ECNL at the bottom, you know, all the way down, you got your happy feet, which I've heard a lot of really good things about that program in terms of getting young people into
US Versus Europe Academy Structures
SPEAKER_06soccer. Um how do you compare the structure that we have in American youth soccer to we talked about culture before, but how do you compare it? Because you're texting teams, you're traveling to Europe, you've got former players in pro leagues in Europe, so you're seeing some the structures in various European countries. How do you compare what we have here in the US and within our ECNL US club soccer pyramid to what you see in other places?
SPEAKER_03I mean, I think in Europe it's completely different. When you talk about a professional academy, they're only a lot of times focused on eight teams, which again on the development side, you with the fully funded academies in Europe, if you have 20 coaches focused on eight teams, you should be able to develop top-level players. I think we operate on a much higher scale because I have a lot of friends that run professional academies in Europe and they're in charge of these academies, and they're very impressed that we are able to run organizations at such higher bigger scale, and the amount of players they're very touching, it's impressive. So, what I think a lot of the clubs in the United States have gotten better at is making sure that we are right, reinvesting the resources that we have as clubs back into top coaches, coaches education, and being able to develop more quality players because if you look at how many kids are playing in our ecosystem, the numbers are tremendous. Now it's as a country and as organizations figuring out how do we develop more quality coaches where we can develop more quality players. We always say better coaches equals better players. So now that's what we're really focused on is what can we do as a club to help develop these coaches because we have the players. Now it's making sure that the coaching is at the highest level, like they are in the professional academies, which is always a challenge as well, because again, Europe has been doing it for much much longer than us on the soccer side at the highest level. But I think again the strides we're making are huge strides, and I think we're getting very, very close to be caught up with Europe.
SPEAKER_06So that's interesting because we were talking to Mark Howard from Oklahoma a couple weeks ago when he sent that his team went to Everton for the ECNL Everton Invitational. Um and he played, he grew up in the Man United Calvin talked to people there, and he said one of the things that was said to him is people couldn't believe the quality of the teams that were there, especially from what you know we call pay-to-plays uh academy. This is as good as a pro academy. You talk about there's a big difference that a fully funded everything's very pro-academy, which to be fair, the ML MLS and some of those leagues are doing more of that, and that's that's having positive results.
Pay To Play Scholarships And Solutions
SPEAKER_06But the bulk of this country, the 99%, is going to be an amateur youth soccer. And what I what I hear you saying, and I you know, I don't want to put words in your mouth, is that that 99% is doing a pretty good job and a consistently better job of pushing up really, really good players.
SPEAKER_03That is what I'm saying, and I think as the non-pro fully funded academies, what we have been doing with Florida Premiere is sponsorships and then having huge funds available where no kids are left behind. So there's always a way to find ways where yes, it's pay-to-play, but there's always ways to create funds within the organization. We give out close to $300,000 in hardships and scholarship money where every kid is every year, so that way every kid is never left behind. So we make sure we've never turned the kid down, we work with the families. So there is ways to get to that where every kid gets the opportunity, and that's how it should be because this beautiful game, right? It's made for everyone, and we as organizations need to keep finding creative ways how to get to that. Because in Europe, I think personally they have it easier because of the transfers. You can develop a player, sell a player for five million, and all that finds a training company. That is correct, which is a huge problem that nobody talks about. That we're putting a lot of work in the background to develop these players.
SPEAKER_06We you can't finance the players play and not put money down into youth soccer.
SPEAKER_07It's important that you're right though, it's what people don't talk about. We experience it, you know, but nobody talks about that as a solution. You know, if if there is a problem, but you talk about solutions.
SPEAKER_03So there's always a solution. I think it's again people coming together and finding solutions and not always criticizing them. And I always I try to listen in the background to everyone talking. It's more, let's come together in a room and find ways to make it even better because it's already great, but how do we make it even better, right?
SPEAKER_06We we have uh a principle in our internal uh staff that's called Take Your Monkey With You, which is don't come with problems and not solutions. And so I think a lot of times when people talk about hey, this is bad, that's not that's gotta be better. That's great. But what's the solution?
SPEAKER_03No, I agree. Just to talk about again the US youth soccer landscape and the national teams, that's another thing. Uh, we are on both the boys and girls side developing top players, and I think that's gonna continue. It's again recruiting, scouting at every event has gotten much, much better, and I think as a country, I think if you keep improving that, that's gonna make a big difference as well on the national teams. Touching more kids and giving more kids opportunities because there is so much talent out in the country, we see it here from smaller clubs that we've never heard of, you always have two free special players that need to be given those opportunities.
SPEAKER_06And you talk about it in your club, but when you come and watch the way these teams play, and you listen to not everybody, but you listen to some of the coaches about the feedback, the tactics that they're talking about, the decisions, and it's a high bug.
SPEAKER_03No, and I agree with you, Christian. And if you look at Florida premiere, currently we have 65 ex-professional players all over the world. They play in the World Cup, played in the Champions League, so there's more people from outside the country. They want to come to the United States because they do see the opportunities. Because if you look at Europe and if you talk a lot of their coaches, they don't have those same opportunities at the scale that we have, which is again a huge benefit with creating leagues like ECNL and more clubs getting the opportunities to play at the highest level because you are getting much more quality coaches coming into the country, which
Croatia Talk Football Vote And Wrap
SPEAKER_03is amazing.
SPEAKER_07So as we uh kind of wrap here, talk about uh what you think Croatia's uh prospects are. Croatia's prospects. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_03So on Saturday against Ghana, I think it's gonna be a tough game, but hoping we just need a tie or hopefully a win, and then we move on to the next round, which we're gonna play Colombia, so we're gonna have a war in my household because my wife is Colombian.
SPEAKER_04So it's gonna be a fun one.
SPEAKER_03So we're looking forward to tomorrow. So I'm hoping that they win and uh but you're also cheering hard for the US. Yeah, I mean every game wins. Yeah, it's great. Again, I feel American, I've been here for a very long time. My kids are American, they've been born here, so a huge USA fan. Croatia, and I have to cheer on Columbia too.
SPEAKER_06Otherwise, so last question for me. Uh great logo. They uh hammer, right?
SPEAKER_03It's torn, yes. It's the store. So, what's the story on your logo? So, Vespasco uh Youth Soccer Association, that used to be called Thunder, and that was the tour on the logo. So when we changed the name, whenever more locations joined us, and that name didn't fit any longer, we wanted to make sure that we credit the past, and that's how the tour uh stuck with us and we are for the Premier FC, and then we go as Thunder as well.
SPEAKER_07So that's that's very cool. All right, well, I know you're uh a listener uh to the podcast, so you know we at the end we always do this uh quote brack and brainbrusher question, and we're keeping it simple today. We're very interested in your response. Yeah, you're probably the most you're probably the most unpredictable person that we had. It's very simple. It is soccer or football?
SPEAKER_03Football.
SPEAKER_04I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
SPEAKER_06When we embrace saying soccer is when we win the World Cup.
SPEAKER_03So you again I I I love soccer, but again, the game, right in the entire world is called football. But again, yeah, fair, fair enough.
SPEAKER_07Fair enough. Well, we're respectful, you know, answers here. Thank you for all you do. And um, you know, happy to see your teams out here. Uh well, we weren't so happy yesterday, maybe uh, but uh you guys deserved winners of that. But uh good luck to the to your teams in the weekend and um enjoy the weather, right?
SPEAKER_03Thanks, Doug and Christian, and I appreciate both of you what you've done for the country with the ECNL, and last thing, ECNL is the best league in the country. Thanks, guys. Love that. Thank you. Thanks, Dovi. Thank you.
SPEAKER_06Uh wraps it up. Yeah. We probably went a little bit long. JP's probably gonna tell us to cut it, but unbelievable event. You can hopefully some of the sounds and the cheers in the background come through on the audience here.
SPEAKER_07Um what I what I take from that, Christian, those just those conversations is I I think you can't uh state enough what kind of leadership exists in this league. From from, and I don't mean you know from the grassroots up, yeah. And and and because it's so important for us.
SPEAKER_06And but by the way, people he's got a really interesting background. Totally. Uh Mark Howard played, played growing up in Man United. He's an army. Ray's a lawyer who's lived in the in the boroughs. Jason Cudney, our boys' commissioner, built a stadium in Pittsburgh. So you have people that are leading in this league that have come from so many diverse backgrounds, a lot of different soccer backgrounds, some at the highest level. Wonderful. Right? Some just being American players going through the college system, professional experts, but to your point, it's it's really important.
SPEAKER_07And and the biggest point I want to make about that is we must leverage that knowledge and that experience uh as we continue to build youth soccer in this country, make it the very best we possibly can. The people who are doing it, I mean, when you talk about Novi and what he built he's built in Florida over the last you know 10 or 12 years, or or what Ray has done in a in a really hard you know setting in in urban man, you know, in Manhattan. I just think those people have such a unique perspective on on not only the game, but just how to, you know, how to build uh the game in this country. And what is so interesting about this country is how big it is. And because it's so big, it's really hard to kind of sometimes get your arms around the whole thing. But man, we got to talk to the guys that that are doing it day in, day out, and the leaders uh, you know, like Ray, like Novi, like Jason, like you know, all the we could say that about many, many people, right?
SPEAKER_06Those guys, absolutely, you got an incredibly urban environment in the cold northeast. Yeah. Great players and you mentioned. Yeah, you got an environment in Florida where it's hot and humid, a much different culture, yeah. That are separated by I don't even know how many hundreds of mines. Very different, but you know, they come together here and they believe in what we do. Yeah. When I say we, I talk about all of the people here, the hot the directors, the coaches. The ECNL has brought them together. And the players here, there's gonna be players here that go on all over the world to play it. The future of American youth soccer is being written by the coaches and clubs in this league. And it's really cool that they come together with this league because together we are incredibly influential. We have opportunities. No, we talked about it. Scale is important. Yeah, you need scale to do certain things. We have that here. There's been a lot of improvement over the last 15-18 years. There's more um the future is bright, it's bright because of guys like Dodd and a lot of the other people here that are helping to make this one better.
SPEAKER_07Yeah, I'll steal uh Page Chino's you know, why not us? Why not us, Christian? All right, my uh last question before we wrap here soccer or football? I gotta go with soccer. I gotta go with soccer too. Let's I I uh Jason inspired me there. I think it was a good one. Yeah, I agree. Let's lean into it. Um, and let's let's let's go with soccer. Let's go fighting out there with some soccer. And you know what?
SPEAKER_06Yeah. We have an incredibly likable Nash in going, yeah, playing well. A country that is unified behind it in a time where there's been so many arguments. So let's go USA. Hell yeah. See if we can uh knock down a few more games here and being going.
SPEAKER_07It'd be amazing. Well, I know uh you live here, but uh I'm gonna go enjoy this weather because it's 90 degrees with 90% humidity in Cincinnati, I'm sure. But uh I'm gonna keep taking it. Yeah, you are. So thanks for joining us, and uh I think uh next time up we'll be live from the girls' playoffs in Seattle. Um I'm sure they'll be working hard to top this, although it'll be tough. All right. Thank you all. Good luck to everybody.
SPEAKER_00I'll just say. Thank you for listening to Breaking the Line, the ECNL podcast. And remember, if you have a question that you want answered on Breaking the Line, the ECNL podcast, email us at info at theecnl.com.