Agenda for Parents Meeting 1 Introduction of the

Agenda for Parents Meeting 1 -Introduction of the mandate: -Who, What, When and Why 2 -Steps club has taken to prepare for change: -Taken current Rosters and forecasted potential teams for 2017 -Created committee to prepare and implement changes -Reached out to other clubs on best practices -Worked on creating new player numbers to allow for the potential team changes 3 -Criteria the club will use to guide decisions for teams & age groups: -Levels of teams above & below -Number above & below each team -Number of players above and below each age group -Age level of the teams -Team Play ups/Player play ups policy -Each team and age group could be a different case dependent on numbers 4 -Coach placements: -Will be addressed once teams are in place -Intent is to keep coaches in the same age groups when possible or adjust where needed 5 -Tryouts: -Format will be similar to last years -Team formation will be similar to last year. -Any other decisions on player placements will be made by Directors of Coaching and Boys & Girls Directors -Forecast team report for Boys & Girls Directors 1

U. S. Soccer Player Development Initiative Mandate • Information for Parents and Families 2

Who is making these decisions? • U. S. Soccer, the National Governing Body for soccer in the USA • Mandated = every youth soccer org. will comply • e. g. U. S. Youth Soccer (incl. MYSA), U. S. Club Soccer, AYSO, etc. • Not an MYSA or club decision IF it will happen, just HOW to manage changes Clubs 3

What is changing? • Switch from Aug-Jul to Jan-Dec (“Birth-year”) registration • New Small-Sided Game Standards • • 7 v 7 at U 9/10 and 9 v 9 at U 11/12 (currently 6 v 6 and 8 v 8) Offside added at U 9/10 Field size and Goal size changes Build-out line to encourage playing out of the back, i. e. “good” soccer 4

What isn’t changing • Soccer Seasonal Calendar: Fall-to-Summer • • Player tryouts/evaluations can begin in late July Fall MYSA league and State Tournament (Aug-Oct) Summer MYSA league and State Tournament (Apr-Jul) MN State Cup Region II Champ. US Youth National Champ. (Apr-Jul) • Age groups still termed “U#” nationally in the overall structure. May be simpler to refer to birth-year within a season, e. g. the “ 2003’s” • Small-sided soccer still the norm in MN for U 12 -and-younger • Olympic Development Program (ODP) stays birth-year as it has been • Soccer remains a great game for kids 5

When is this happening? • Fall 2016 – Birth-Year Registration • All 55 U. S. Youth Soccer state associations • MYSA Leagues, State Cup, MRL, Regionals, U. S. Youth Soccer National Championship • Fall 2017 - Small-Sided Game Standards • MYSA (other states may implement earlier) 6

Why the changes? • U. S. Soccer wants to improve the youth soccer environment • More individual development focus vs. a team result culture • Fully implement small-sided games across USA with consistent standards • Align player registration with international standards • Simplify identification of “relative age effect” bias • RAE = Selecting players born earlier within a group due to physical maturity 7

Context • MN was the 2 nd state in the nation to implement small-sided games about 15 years ago. • MYSA is one of a handful of state associations that manage state-wide leagues. In most states leagues are private for-profit enterprises influenced by market forces, not necessarily best practices. • Many areas of the USA have resisted SSGs, playing 11 v 11 at young ages, often within a hyper-competitive league structure • U. S. Soccer felt it needed to standardize the player development pathway to improve the player experience and get better results 8

What can parents/families do? • Be accurately informed - Chain of communication • Families Club leaders MYSA U. S. Youth Soccer and U. S. Soccer • Keep the big picture in mind • National standardization affects individuals, clubs, and states differently • Be supportive of club leadership – no easy solutions • Control what you can (and accept what you can’t) • Reassure your child that s/he can adapt to these changes 9

Current U 14 C 1 Team MYSA Birth-year Guidelines Fall 2015 – Summer 2016 8 -1 -01 to 7 -31 -02 7 Players 8 players Born Aug. – Dec. Born Jan. – July 2001 2002

Current Birth Year Guide Current U 14 C 1 Team Current U 15 C 1 Team Current U 13 C 1 Team 7 players 6 players Born Aug. – Dec. 2000 8 players 9 players Born Jan. – July 2001 7 players 9 players Born Aug. - Dec. Born Jan. – July Born Aug. – Dec. Born Jan. – July 2001 2002 2003

Current Birth Year Guide Current U 14 C 1 Team Current U 15 C 1 Team Current U 13 C 1 Team 7 players 6 players Born Aug. – Dec. 2000 8 players 9 players Born Jan. – July 2001 7 players 9 players Born Aug. - Dec. Born Jan. – July Born Aug. – Dec. Born Jan. – July 2001 2002 2003

New Birth-year Guidelines Beginning Fall 2016 2001 C 1 Team 2002 C 1 Team 8 players 7 players 8 players 7 Players Born Jan. – July Born Aug. – Dec 2001 2002

Challenges and Exceptions 1. There may be an uneven split on the current teams between birthyears so a newly formed team comes up short on players. 2. There may not be teams that play at the same levels (Gold, Maroon, C 1, C 2, or C 3) above or below a current team.

There may be an uneven split on the current teams between birth-years so a newly formed team comes up short on players. Current Birth Year Guide Current U 14 C 1 Team Current U 15 C 1 Current U 13 C 1 Team 6 players 9 players Born Aug. – Dec. 2000 9 players 6 players Born Jan. – July 2001 7 players 8 players Born Aug. - Dec. Born Jan. – July Born Aug. – Dec. Born Jan. – July 2001 2002 2003

New Birth-year Guidelines Beginning Fall 2016 2001 C 1 Team 2002 C 1 Team 6 players 9 players 7 Players Born Jan. – July Born Aug. – Dec 2001 2002

There may not be teams that play at the same levels (Gold, Maroon, C 1, C 2, or C 3) above or below a current team. Current Birth Year Guide Current U 14 C 1 Team Current U 15 C 3 Current U 13 C 3 Team 7 players 6 players Born Aug. – Dec. 2000 8 players 9 players Born Jan. – July 2001 7 players 9 players Born Aug. - Dec. Born Jan. – July Born Aug. – Dec. Born Jan. – July 2001 2002 2003