Largest team roster

Charge less? I think I fell off my chair laughing so hard. I have never heard of a club charging less for any reason. It was even like pulling teeth to get some money back during COVID when most of the Spring season was cancelled.

Typically 18 is the largest I have seen, with the exception of U19 teams which are typically a little larger. This is because of combined age groups, and a lot of seniors aren't available for 100% of team events.

Interestingly enough, our roster this year is larger than 18 if you look at the ECRL app. A few of those players are dual-rostered between us and the E64 team. On game days, we can only have 18 dressed & on the roster though, per ECNL/RL rules.

A friend’s other kid’s team had a full roster of 18 after the tryouts process.

Then one more kid was added the day after their school broke out for summer & they wouldn’t have to explain to classmates how they were magically placed on a better team. They were pegged for a lower level team based on ability.

Do clubs not know that parents all talk together? Shady moves like this breed ill-feeling & mistrust.

At the u15, u16, u17 age, winning is the goal along with development. Those highly ranked teams improve by improving the bench. Those 15 minutes are when teams can pick up cheap goals because of a breakdown on defense. I will say 9 of the 11 are playing in college, 1 turned down multiple offers including from D1. One of the subs in the back starts on a D1 team.

Those subs should be rotating with the team below them to get adequate playing time. It is possible for subs to play in college even at D1 teams but if they had more playing time they might have played at a BETTER D1 team or a better college experience and playing time. Getting a D1 playing opportunity does not mean that the coach necessarily did that kid a favor nor does it mean it was a good policy. Maybe that one kid plays but a half dozen or more quit playing entirely because it no longer gave them joy.
Who knows?!?
No doubt that you want to win. The kids, parents and the coach all do. I totally agree cheap goals are given away with the subs in the match lots of times. I still think the majority of the kids would rather play. My kid might tolerate one season rotating as you have stated as the sub, especially their first season. But a few years in a row? No way.

To answer the question on roster size we have had teams increase after tryouts before and sometimes to sizes that were not pleasing. I like a 16 player max roster unless there are extenuating circumstances.

The better D1 program was meant as a better for the player long term and is a personal decision and awesome to the kid turning down a great program for a top academic university. We don’t know what could have happened if things had been different is all that I am saying.

Training against the best is awesome. I have been there with my kids moving up teams and playing against better players helps them. But game time is equally important in this society because there are so few opportunities and so little time for them to play pick up. That is why I said they at least need to pick up additional game time on the team below theirs. Personally I think the rosters need to be smaller everywhere and every kid needs to be challenged by training and playing with better competition.

I am not saying that your coach’s way does not work for some kids. I am not saying it doesn’t help most of the team. I just know from seeing massive numbers of kids drop out that many of those that did drop out either were stuck on the bench of top teams and coaches gave them little playing time and/or their coaches were verbally harassing or abusing them or others on the team.

My heart breaks for all of those kids who lost the joy of the game and stopped playing. I am also SADDENED by the loss of quality players gone from the game for good. I know DOZENS of 2023 and 2024 grads that were on ECNL and GA teams that stopped during or after their junior or senior years. Think of how much more quality would still be in the game if these kids that I know and all of the THOUSANDS possibly TENS OF THOUSANDS of kids across the US still played in college.

I am not saying that all kids need equal playing time at the HS ages on elite teams. I do think below HS even on the best ECNL/GA/MLSNext team they should get at least half a game. Keep rosters at 16 or less and this is doable. I think at HS ages they should get 30 minutes out of 90. It will keep more kids in the game which will ultimately improve quality.

College-no. Youth soccer, you betcha! That should be two Separate teams unless you are playing games on the weekend and during the week.

You are probably right but for comparison, GA Southern Men (D1)have a 36 man squad.

You are right-they are selling the dream to players they have no intention of playing.

Edit-I have seen some NAIA rosters with 80+

Agreed on the academics-would you go to the school if you weren’t playing soccer? If the answer is no; perhaps reconsider.

This post primarily focuses on the intriguing dynamics of college roster composition. I'm well aware that college soccer can strain athletic department budgets, prompting coaches to adopt a "win now" approach. However, I find it somewhat concerning when over 50% of a team's roster consists of international players. It almost feels unjust to have such a scenario. Among the top 25 rankings in men's college soccer, only Georgetown fields zero international players. On the other hand, Marshall and FIU have remarkably high proportions—over 80%—of their rosters made up of international players.

International players on a roster don't particularly concern me on their own. However, when a roster becomes predominantly composed of international players, it does raise concerns. In a sport already grappling with limited funding, this can directly impact the availability of scholarships and roster spots for local or American players. Age also becomes a factor in regards to development and getting playing time; it's inherently unfair to pit an 18-year-old against a twenty-something who has already gone through a professional academy in Europe. What's more, many of these academy "washouts" are enticed with promises of raising their profile by showcasing their talents in the US, only to return to their home countries and ride the momentum of their popularity to make another attempt in their professional or semi-professional leagues. This situation places colleges at a disadvantage in terms of maintaining NCAA eligibility and graduation rates, as these players often leave before completing their education, putting scarce scholarships at risk.

Ultimately, having international players can bring diversity, fresh perspectives, and unique skills to a team. The key is to strike a balance that enhances the team's overall performance while addressing the challenges that might arise. Relying heavily on international talent might limit the opportunities for local players to develop and contribute to the team, which could affect the growth of domestic soccer talent...

Completely different experience than I've had with two kids playing in college (one major D1 - NC level). We've found that the international players on their teams, on average, have been the brightest and hardest working players and the best teammates. Not everyone (actually none) were mercenaries coming in for a year or two to bolster their pro opportunities. Most are just kids looking for better educational opportunities and using their soccer skills to achieve this in the US. On my older kid's team, we served as a host family during breaks for a lot of the international players since we lived in the same city as the university. We got to know these players really well. I'd say the same percentage of international and domestic players attempted to play post-college with most playing no more than a few years. We still stay in touch with a lot of these players and a lot are still living in the US. I'm glad my kids have had the opportunity to play with and develop friendships with their international teammates. It's been a great experience for them.

And I guess we differ in that I don't see an issue with international players competing for rosters spots on these teams. No one is entitled to a roster spot or scholarship just because they graduated from a US high school. These players deserve opportunities as well, regardless of their background.

It sounds like we've had vastly different experiences regarding international players on our kid's college teams.

Does that mean that there are 2 kids each week not being on the roster? And does the coach rotate or using weekly practice performance to determine the roster?

And the best part for international players- especially those from England- is you're basically guaranteed a coaching job with any of the local clubs if you've got even a modicum of soccer knowledge and a British accent!