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    Soccer After College

    We are in the process of discussing life priorities and where soccer fits in my daughter's life. One thing she has talked about is staying with the game after college and I am wondering how practical this may be. Though it might not be enough to retire on, in the basketball world that I am familiar with you can make some sembalance of a living playing semi-pro ball here and can do better overseas. With that in mind I have a couple of questions relating to women's soccer that hopefully someone can answer.

    1- What do women soccer players earn when the play for a team in the W League or the Women's Premier Soccer League

    2- What are the opportunities oversees and what sort of compensation is available at the various levels.

    3- What are the salary ranges in college coaching.

    #2
    Re: Soccer After College

    Originally posted by beentheredonethat
    We are in the process of discussing life priorities and where soccer fits in my daughter's life. One thing she has talked about is staying with the game after college and I am wondering how practical this may be. Though it might not be enough to retire on, in the basketball world that I am familiar with you can make some sembalance of a living playing semi-pro ball here and can do better overseas. With that in mind I have a couple of questions relating to women's soccer that hopefully someone can answer.

    1- What do women soccer players earn when the play for a team in the W League or the Women's Premier Soccer League

    2- What are the opportunities oversees and what sort of compensation is available at the various levels.

    3- What are the salary ranges in college coaching.
    She needs to think carefully about what playing as a second or third tier pro will mean to her ultimate career when she is in her thirties. I have a good friend whose son (Belmont Hill / Harvard) went off to play B league professional hockey in Germany for 5 or 6 years. He made about $30K per year, and went through 2 or 3 franchises that went bust and defaulted on contracts and payroll. He is now thirty and looking to start a career and is 7 to 8 years behind his HS and college peers. If anything college coaching would seem to be the most stable career path but unless you are with an upper echelon D1 school the money isn't great. The money in college sports is in administration as AD or an assistant. The money for coaching D3 college is in some cases less than what you get paid at a top HS job. I turned down a coaching job at a small D3 women's college when I found out what it paid. Based on what they were looking for in terms of time commitment during the course of a year it came out to about $9 an hour. And even less if you count a Friday road trip for a Saturday game. The $20 in meal money doesn't make up for much. To sum it up a career in college administration would be the best path. If you are of advanced financial means of course your daughter has more options than other folks might.

    From what I understand the low end pay in D3 is around $5K to $6K per year and I would assume that UNC, Santa Clara, or other top D1's pay in the low 6 figures with some nice perks. One other option would be doing a combined teaching and coaching gig at a private school like Berwick - you get room and board and some pretty good perks and a decent salary.

    Comment


      #3
      Re: Soccer After College

      Originally posted by beentheredonethat
      We are in the process of discussing life priorities and where soccer fits in my daughter's life. One thing she has talked about is staying with the game after college and I am wondering how practical this may be. Though it might not be enough to retire on, in the basketball world that I am familiar with you can make some sembalance of a living playing semi-pro ball here and can do better overseas. With that in mind I have a couple of questions relating to women's soccer that hopefully someone can answer.

      1- What do women soccer players earn when the play for a team in the W League or the Women's Premier Soccer League

      2- What are the opportunities oversees and what sort of compensation is available at the various levels.

      3- What are the salary ranges in college coaching.
      I understand that the minimum salary for a player in the upcoming WUSA 2 will be approx. $24K which happens to be more than MLS. Im not exactly sure what the name players such as Lilly, Wambach, etc will make but in the end, they are getting paid to do something they love.

      Comment


        #4
        Sounds like maybe she should find a real job, and continue to play the game she loves on a more recreational level. 24K/yr. would be very tough to live on! Unless daddy continues to pay the bills!

        Comment


          #5
          Or mommy! :)

          Comment


            #6
            Originally posted by Soccer Watcher
            Sounds like maybe she should find a real job, and continue to play the game she loves on a more recreational level. 24K/yr. would be very tough to live on! Unless daddy continues to pay the bills!
            Not bad for a few years especially at 21, 22, etc. I know that for the first go around with the WUSA, many rented apts together, etc.

            Comment


              #7
              Does anyone know what the W League pays? If it is around 24K then as a part time job that's not bad. I know a young woman who is playing in the W-League and coaching both club and college while going to grad school. I would guess that she probably pulls in another 7K from coaching. If these numbers are close to real, that's not all that bad for a kid starting out.

              Are there any playing opportunities for women ovreseas?

              Comment


                #8
                Originally posted by beentheredonethat

                Are there any playing opportunities for women ovreseas?
                Many EPL clubs are fostering womens teams...some have been playing for a few years but its a different mindset over there for women.

                As my daughters coach tells it:

                A girls U13 team from the states can easily play vs U16's in England and the opposite is true for boys.

                He says he gets crap for coaching a girls team

                Comment


                  #9
                  Originally posted by beentheredonethat
                  Does anyone know what the W League pays? If it is around 24K then as a part time job that's not bad. I know a young woman who is playing in the W-League and coaching both club and college while going to grad school. I would guess that she probably pulls in another 7K from coaching. If these numbers are close to real, that's not all that bad for a kid starting out.

                  Are there any playing opportunities for women ovreseas?
                  I cannot imagine that the economics of the W League would provide for a 24k salary for the players. I'm not even sure if the players get paid at all except for a very small stipend. It's great soccer to watch but the crowds are very small.

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Originally posted by beentheredonethat
                    Does anyone know what the W League pays? If it is around 24K then as a part time job that's not bad. I know a young woman who is playing in the W-League and coaching both club and college while going to grad school. I would guess that she probably pulls in another 7K from coaching. If these numbers are close to real, that's not all that bad for a kid starting out.

                    Are there any playing opportunities for women ovreseas?
                    The W League pays nothing. It's designed not to impact NCAA rules for college players. Some of the teams provide living expenses and summer jobs related to soccer. These leagues are setup for college players and those waiting for a call to a higher league or for those still playing because they just want to play.

                    Unless your planning on one of the top 20 D1 programs in the country, which would mean you're at the national level now, I wouldn't bank on playing soccer for a living.

                    Comment


                      #11
                      College coaching salary (full-time, D3): $40
                      Club coaching salary (spring season only): $4000
                      Income from summer soccer camps run at the college: $25,000
                      Waking up each day knowing I have to coach soccer: Priceless

                      Comment


                        #12
                        College coaching salary (full-time, D3): $40K
                        Club coaching salary (spring season only): $4000
                        Income from summer soccer camps run at the college: $25K
                        Waking up each day knowing I have to coach soccer: Priceless

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Unless your planning on one of the top 20 D1 programs in the country, which would mean you're at the national level now, I wouldn't bank on playing soccer for a living.
                          You know that and I know that, but I try to raise my kids so they can make decisions. The really hard part of this approach is when you color something negatively you had better have accurate information because if a teen finds out you misrepresented facts you lose all credibility with them.

                          Comment


                            #14
                            WPSL doesn't pay - in some cases it may be able to line up a job with a sponsor or youth club coaching position

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Originally posted by beentheredonethat
                              Unless your planning on one of the top 20 D1 programs in the country, which would mean you're at the national level now, I wouldn't bank on playing soccer for a living.
                              You know that and I know that, but I try to raise my kids so they can make decisions. The really hard part of this approach is when you color something negatively you had better have accurate information because if a teen finds out you misrepresented facts you lose all credibility with them.
                              Sadly, I think the girls drop out earlier from the sport due to there not being anything after college and they start to wonder why they are putting so much time and effort into it. This, in turn, probably hurts our National teams. I'm seeing it with my 16-year-old's team already.

                              Comment

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