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    Steve Gans - Soccer America Interview

    https://www.socceramerica.com/public...-for-docs.html

    Examples all seemed to be about the Bolts.
    -Ainscough needs to stay in his lane
    -Payne coached/favored his stepson throughout the showcase and recruiting process.

    #2
    And in the 5 plus years as a board member for the very same club he wasn't there for his own self interest x2? The endless NTC's etc... Joker. Is this resentment?

    https://www.socceramerica.com/public...flaws-the.html

    Of all three mentioned, did any of their offspring have a meaningful D1 Career?

    Comment


      #3
      About the only thing good about Cordiero’s election as USSF president is that Gans didn’t get it. Total douche. So sad we have such an incompetent group of people running soccer in this country.

      Notice that at the top of his list of things for club DOC’s and Boards to concern themselves with are mergers and contracts. Where is player development or safety? Where is the focus on the customer (parents/players)? No, first and foremost in Gan’s mind is the business of the club itself. The only mission for the club is to make money and protect its legal interests, the player be damned!

      Any question why the richest country on Earth can’t produce world class players when you have guys like Gans running the show?

      Comment


        #4
        Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
        About the only thing good about Cordiero’s election as USSF president is that Gans didn’t get it. Total douche. So sad we have such an incompetent group of people running soccer in this country.

        Notice that at the top of his list of things for club DOC’s and Boards to concern themselves with are mergers and contracts. Where is player development or safety? Where is the focus on the customer (parents/players)? No, first and foremost in Gan’s mind is the business of the club itself. The only mission for the club is to make money and protect its legal interests, the player be damned!

        Any question why the richest country on Earth can’t produce world class players when you have guys like Gans running the show?

        The richest country on earth does produce world class players.....just not in soccer

        Comment


          #5
          Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
          And in the 5 plus years as a board member for the very same club he wasn't there for his own self interest x2? The endless NTC's etc... Joker. Is this resentment?

          https://www.socceramerica.com/public...flaws-the.html

          Of all three mentioned, did any of their offspring have a meaningful D1 Career?

          1. "noah" played 6 years of DA? The DA only started the the U12-U14 very recently and there are a total of 6 DA age groups....and the kid skipped his senior year. My math doesn't come out to 6.
          2. What club did he play for in his senior year?
          3. What club did the other kid play for?
          4. As for travel....the only ones who get burned out are the parents. The kids seem to love it!!

          Joy and Passion are the working words in this interview and the DA is or isn't providing it? According to 'noah', the answer is 'no'
          But, the answer is to connect with the latinos and Messi is an example. this is confusing. It seems as though he wants to blame US soccer for something.

          IMHO....for US soccer to provide stars they have to do the following:
          1. Start academies/school combinations like the IMG was trying to do. AJAX and the major clubs throughout the world do this. Gans spoke of how Messi was such a success. So, is GANS saying that the kids should be removed from the home and placed in these soccer/school institutions? Wouldn't one burn out faster away from home?
          2. Club sports have to provide more than 3 days per week of training. Each session doesn't have to be the same or even the same intensity. There are plenty of things to work on....and 1 or 2 sessions can be fitness. The current model of practice 2-3 times per week is.....wel.....weak...

          The Joy and Passion comes from the coaches, the teammates, and the fun and experiences.....the league might make little difference.

          Comment


            #6
            Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
            And in the 5 plus years as a board member for the very same club he wasn't there for his own self interest x2? The endless NTC's etc... Joker. Is this resentment?

            https://www.socceramerica.com/public...flaws-the.html

            Of all three mentioned, did any of their offspring have a meaningful D1 Career?
            I think he only has 2 sons. Both are/will go to D3 colleges (Brandeis and Emory). Steve is a Brandeis alum so you figure that one out.

            All that advice on DA in the article is not reflected at Bolts.

            This nonsense about “joy and passion” being key to the development pathway for top players is opined on by all sorts of “experts”, but to me it’s a cop out. Steve is just parroting what others have said, nothing original coming from him. It’s hard work and sacrifice that gets you to the top, not joy and passion.

            The problem with why the US can’t produce top soccer talent is because soccer here is tied in with the college game. You play here to get a formal education, not to be a pro soccer player. It’s a sport of privilege here and by that I mean it’s a pay to play system for the upper middle class. So when things get tough and little MIA can’t get in the college they want, then soccer isn’t working for them and they lose the “joy and passion”. It’s an elective means to an end (scholarship to choice college) and not their only way to get there. Compare it to football and basketball where a lot of the players are from tougher backgrounds. Those sports are their way up the ladder and out of poverty, etc. It’s often their only path so they don’t need “joy and passion” as a motivator. Perhaps if the monetary incentives were their to turn pro in soccer, you would start to see the lower half of the social/economic strata in the US persue it as a career. Getting away from college-only route for well-off kids is the only way I see us getting there.

            Comment


              #7
              Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
              I think he only has 2 sons. Both are/will go to D3 colleges (Brandeis and Emory). Steve is a Brandeis alum so you figure that one out.

              All that advice on DA in the article is not reflected at Bolts.

              This nonsense about “joy and passion” being key to the development pathway for top players is opined on by all sorts of “experts”, but to me it’s a cop out. Steve is just parroting what others have said, nothing original coming from him. It’s hard work and sacrifice that gets you to the top, not joy and passion.

              The problem with why the US can’t produce top soccer talent is because soccer here is tied in with the college game. You play here to get a formal education, not to be a pro soccer player. It’s a sport of privilege here and by that I mean it’s a pay to play system for the upper middle class. So when things get tough and little MIA can’t get in the college they want, then soccer isn’t working for them and they lose the “joy and passion”. It’s an elective means to an end (scholarship to choice college) and not their only way to get there. Compare it to football and basketball where a lot of the players are from tougher backgrounds. Those sports are their way up the ladder and out of poverty, etc. It’s often their only path so they don’t need “joy and passion” as a motivator. Perhaps if the monetary incentives were their to turn pro in soccer, you would start to see the lower half of the social/economic strata in the US persue it as a career. Getting away from college-only route for well-off kids is the only way I see us getting there.

              The article offers only generalities. I am yet to hear Mr Gans say anything specific. "Joy and Passion" is the central theme, which you dismiss and conclude is wrong and replace it with 'hard work and sacrifice'. Well, you are wrong to replace 'Joy and Passion' at all. While I don't know what you do as a living and certainly hope you are successful at it, but to be very very successful at anything you have to have the 'Joy and Passion' to be wiling to 'work hard and sacrifice'. Not only aren't the two mutually exclusive, but they go hand in hand. Mr Gans never mentions the latter and you dismiss the former.

              One does wonder if Mr Gans has generalized US soccer based on his own kids who either lost the passion, weren't able to work hard, or simply are not great soccer players. Instead of the latter two, he uses the 'lost passion' as an excuse to explain why they aren't at Wake Forest, or playing professional ball. I think it is simpler than that. They might not be great soccer players and, like many, had parents that saw the 'American Soccer Dream' leaving the port. As for 'joy and passion' I wonder if parents are the ones who suck it out of the game by un-met expectations from kids who might have otherwise enjoyed a fun game at whatever level they are at or able to get to.

              As for the clubs, there are certainly ways to improve that realm as well, none of which are mentioned in the article or any other article that I have read. It has become a massive business. Although my kids have enjoyed GPS quite a bit during the years they were there, one has to look at it as a massive industry and one that hasn't really produced todays or tomorrow professional or national team players. On the other hand, maybe they understand it better than others. Perhaps they do provide the opportunity for kids to excel at multiple different levels......as long as their parents accept it i.e. no 'little mias or messi'. The one good thing I see from regulation is to improve the ability and maturity of coaches so that each and every player can find some success. However, the larger clubs (especially Bolts, NEFC, Stars, ? GPS) seriously emphasize the top level teams while the others seem to exist to help fund the top talent.

              Personally, I see US soccer as a failed entity with a misplaced goal. Actually what is the goal? If the goal is to produce a great national team then the path is not less club soccer and more high school ball. The path might be more. All across the world the prominent clubs have residencies. Training occurs twice a day (5-7 days per week) including skills, small games, strategy sessions, and fitness. These clubs have selected out the top talent and they make no apologies for weeding out from the start, during, and toward the end of the process. An education is provided at the same time. It is 'hard work and sacrifice', but without the 'joy and passion'.....and, dare i say, ability....your child will be weeded out. As across the country, the sacrifice is not money, but instead, it is the separation of child from primary family and child-hood friends to go school/camp year after year to try to achieve something that they may or may not get. In the big picture, top players come out, while many others have to accept some 'lesser' sport reality. The latter, with the right support i.e. parents...can be turned into another path of success in something else.

              I can't see American families willing to give up their kids at the age of 10, 11, or 12 to attend a soccer residency. It is the joy of every parent, and the benefit of every kid to maintain the nuclear family and be together every day to be supportive in success and failure. Especially in the current 'pansy' like environment that is perpetuated more by the left, 'each and every kid wins a trophy' and 'no one can experience failure and/or feel bad about it'. We, as a society have this fear that our children will grow up as mass-murderers if they experience any failure. What we have is a generation that now might not be able to cope with failure. Well, this is the failure of parents. If you want to build the best then the family has to be willing to sacrifice and be supportive at the same time. The child needs to have 'joy and passion' to work hard even if not a huge success in the end, which might only reflect abilty. The success is, instead, the process of working hard and sacrificing for something you love. That is the ability that will allow that child to be successful in another path. But, it is the parents that have to be supportive.

              Parents, and, perhaps US soccer.....and Mr Gans, have not accepted this reality or are unable to be supportive and adjust and adapt to success and non-success of their kids. It is this that spoils the 'joy and passion'.

              Comment


                #8
                Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                The article offers only generalities. I am yet to hear Mr Gans say anything specific. "Joy and Passion" is the central theme, which you dismiss and conclude is wrong and replace it with 'hard work and sacrifice'. Well, you are wrong to replace 'Joy and Passion' at all. While I don't know what you do as a living and certainly hope you are successful at it, but to be very very successful at anything you have to have the 'Joy and Passion' to be wiling to 'work hard and sacrifice'. Not only aren't the two mutually exclusive, but they go hand in hand. Mr Gans never mentions the latter and you dismiss the former.

                One does wonder if Mr Gans has generalized US soccer based on his own kids who either lost the passion, weren't able to work hard, or simply are not great soccer players. Instead of the latter two, he uses the 'lost passion' as an excuse to explain why they aren't at Wake Forest, or playing professional ball. I think it is simpler than that. They might not be great soccer players and, like many, had parents that saw the 'American Soccer Dream' leaving the port. As for 'joy and passion' I wonder if parents are the ones who suck it out of the game by un-met expectations from kids who might have otherwise enjoyed a fun game at whatever level they are at or able to get to.

                As for the clubs, there are certainly ways to improve that realm as well, none of which are mentioned in the article or any other article that I have read. It has become a massive business. Although my kids have enjoyed GPS quite a bit during the years they were there, one has to look at it as a massive industry and one that hasn't really produced todays or tomorrow professional or national team players. On the other hand, maybe they understand it better than others. Perhaps they do provide the opportunity for kids to excel at multiple different levels......as long as their parents accept it i.e. no 'little mias or messi'. The one good thing I see from regulation is to improve the ability and maturity of coaches so that each and every player can find some success. However, the larger clubs (especially Bolts, NEFC, Stars, ? GPS) seriously emphasize the top level teams while the others seem to exist to help fund the top talent.

                Personally, I see US soccer as a failed entity with a misplaced goal. Actually what is the goal? If the goal is to produce a great national team then the path is not less club soccer and more high school ball. The path might be more. All across the world the prominent clubs have residencies. Training occurs twice a day (5-7 days per week) including skills, small games, strategy sessions, and fitness. These clubs have selected out the top talent and they make no apologies for weeding out from the start, during, and toward the end of the process. An education is provided at the same time. It is 'hard work and sacrifice', but without the 'joy and passion'.....and, dare i say, ability....your child will be weeded out. As across the country, the sacrifice is not money, but instead, it is the separation of child from primary family and child-hood friends to go school/camp year after year to try to achieve something that they may or may not get. In the big picture, top players come out, while many others have to accept some 'lesser' sport reality. The latter, with the right support i.e. parents...can be turned into another path of success in something else.

                I can't see American families willing to give up their kids at the age of 10, 11, or 12 to attend a soccer residency. It is the joy of every parent, and the benefit of every kid to maintain the nuclear family and be together every day to be supportive in success and failure. Especially in the current 'pansy' like environment that is perpetuated more by the left, 'each and every kid wins a trophy' and 'no one can experience failure and/or feel bad about it'. We, as a society have this fear that our children will grow up as mass-murderers if they experience any failure. What we have is a generation that now might not be able to cope with failure. Well, this is the failure of parents. If you want to build the best then the family has to be willing to sacrifice and be supportive at the same time. The child needs to have 'joy and passion' to work hard even if not a huge success in the end, which might only reflect abilty. The success is, instead, the process of working hard and sacrificing for something you love. That is the ability that will allow that child to be successful in another path. But, it is the parents that have to be supportive.

                Parents, and, perhaps US soccer.....and Mr Gans, have not accepted this reality or are unable to be supportive and adjust and adapt to success and non-success of their kids. It is this that spoils the 'joy and passion'.
                Wow these posts are long and unreadable. I suggest a 2 paragraph max each with no more than 3-4 simple sentences.

                Comment


                  #9
                  Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                  The article offers only generalities. I am yet to hear Mr Gans say anything specific. "Joy and Passion" is the central theme, which you dismiss and conclude is wrong and replace it with 'hard work and sacrifice'. Well, you are wrong to replace 'Joy and Passion' at all. While I don't know what you do as a living and certainly hope you are successful at it, but to be very very successful at anything you have to have the 'Joy and Passion' to be wiling to 'work hard and sacrifice'. Not only aren't the two mutually exclusive, but they go hand in hand. Mr Gans never mentions the latter and you dismiss the former.

                  One does wonder if Mr Gans has generalized US soccer based on his own kids who either lost the passion, weren't able to work hard, or simply are not great soccer players. Instead of the latter two, he uses the 'lost passion' as an excuse to explain why they aren't at Wake Forest, or playing professional ball. I think it is simpler than that. They might not be great soccer players and, like many, had parents that saw the 'American Soccer Dream' leaving the port. As for 'joy and passion' I wonder if parents are the ones who suck it out of the game by un-met expectations from kids who might have otherwise enjoyed a fun game at whatever level they are at or able to get to.

                  As for the clubs, there are certainly ways to improve that realm as well, none of which are mentioned in the article or any other article that I have read. It has become a massive business. Although my kids have enjoyed GPS quite a bit during the years they were there, one has to look at it as a massive industry and one that hasn't really produced todays or tomorrow professional or national team players. On the other hand, maybe they understand it better than others. Perhaps they do provide the opportunity for kids to excel at multiple different levels......as long as their parents accept it i.e. no 'little mias or messi'. The one good thing I see from regulation is to improve the ability and maturity of coaches so that each and every player can find some success. However, the larger clubs (especially Bolts, NEFC, Stars, ? GPS) seriously emphasize the top level teams while the others seem to exist to help fund the top talent.

                  Personally, I see US soccer as a failed entity with a misplaced goal. Actually what is the goal? If the goal is to produce a great national team then the path is not less club soccer and more high school ball. The path might be more. All across the world the prominent clubs have residencies. Training occurs twice a day (5-7 days per week) including skills, small games, strategy sessions, and fitness. These clubs have selected out the top talent and they make no apologies for weeding out from the start, during, and toward the end of the process. An education is provided at the same time. It is 'hard work and sacrifice', but without the 'joy and passion'.....and, dare i say, ability....your child will be weeded out. As across the country, the sacrifice is not money, but instead, it is the separation of child from primary family and child-hood friends to go school/camp year after year to try to achieve something that they may or may not get. In the big picture, top players come out, while many others have to accept some 'lesser' sport reality. The latter, with the right support i.e. parents...can be turned into another path of success in something else.

                  I can't see American families willing to give up their kids at the age of 10, 11, or 12 to attend a soccer residency. It is the joy of every parent, and the benefit of every kid to maintain the nuclear family and be together every day to be supportive in success and failure. Especially in the current 'pansy' like environment that is perpetuated more by the left, 'each and every kid wins a trophy' and 'no one can experience failure and/or feel bad about it'. We, as a society have this fear that our children will grow up as mass-murderers if they experience any failure. What we have is a generation that now might not be able to cope with failure. Well, this is the failure of parents. If you want to build the best then the family has to be willing to sacrifice and be supportive at the same time. The child needs to have 'joy and passion' to work hard even if not a huge success in the end, which might only reflect abilty. The success is, instead, the process of working hard and sacrificing for something you love. That is the ability that will allow that child to be successful in another path. But, it is the parents that have to be supportive.

                  Parents, and, perhaps US soccer.....and Mr Gans, have not accepted this reality or are unable to be supportive and adjust and adapt to success and non-success of their kids. It is this that spoils the 'joy and passion'.
                  Spot on. This kind of commentary should be on Soccer America. Previous poster clearly alludes to the type of parent your refer to.

                  Unfortunately as long as we are pay to play, there is no real pressure or desire to produce a true baller.

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                    Spot on. This kind of commentary should be on Soccer America. Previous poster clearly alludes to the type of parent your refer to.

                    Unfortunately as long as we are pay to play, there is no real pressure or desire to produce a true baller.
                    Can you put out the CliffsNotes for that piece so the rest of us can know what was said?

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                      Spot on. This kind of commentary should be on Soccer America. Previous poster clearly alludes to the type of parent your refer to.

                      Unfortunately as long as we are pay to play, there is no real pressure or desire to produce a true baller.

                      well....the residency academies would be free as they would be bolstered by the same contract, sponsors, and deals that other international clubs have.

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                        well....the residency academies would be free as they would be bolstered by the same contract, sponsors, and deals that other international clubs have.
                        I don’t see the residency concept where young kids live apart from their families working here in the US. I think there is a misconception that most international players came up in that sort of system when they really didn’t.

                        The other poster’s comments on the college game are correct. To play a 3 month season once a year while you are primarily a college student is nothing like being pro player who is conditioning and playing constantly. It’s apples and oranges.

                        The issue is there just is no money to build a truly pro league with development academies and offer serious contracts to entice people to do a pro career in place of college.

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Most sports in America are for kids to have fun. When they stop being kids, I.e. college, they get a real job. For the few sports we watch here,there is a more defined pro career path. Soccer isn’t one of those. About a few dozen kids/year actually manage to get a pro soccer career nationally. That translates to less than one kid a year here in MA. You don’t need a process for that. The three feeders for that are Revs home grown, Berkshire, and the resident IMG academy. That is sufficient. So keep your head on straight. Club soccer here is to have fun then maybe play at college. Nothing more.

                          Comment


                            #14
                            Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                            well....the residency academies would be free as they would be bolstered by the same contract, sponsors, and deals that other international clubs have.
                            Child labor laws could be an issue in folllowing the euro model....

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                              Child labor laws could be an issue in folllowing the euro model....
                              No. It is a school where academics are taught. Soccer/Fitness is twice per day that do not interfere with the academics.

                              Kids aren't signed off into slavery. They have a choice to go pro or not. However, if they decide to go pro, the sign a contract in which the pro team pays for the player and pays the club.

                              The soccer contract is little different than what the Revs do. If they decide to sign their own 'home grown' there is a contract.

                              Comment

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