San Diego Surf Academy Web Site

TEAM SCHEDULES

(ages listed for  2019-20 season)

San Diego Surf U-12

Players born in 2008

San Diego Surf U-13

Players born in 2007

San Diego Surf U-14

Players born in 2006

San Diego Surf U-15

Players born in 2005

San Diego Surf U-16/17

Players born on or after January 1, 2003 through December 31, 2004

San Diego Surf U-18/19

Players born on or after January 1, 2001 through December 31, 2002

US Soccer Development Academy Overview

What is the Development Academy?

The Development Academy is a partnership between U.S. Soccer and the top youth clubs around the country to provide the best youth players in the U.S. with an every day environment designed to produce the next generation of National Team players. The Academy’s programming philosophy is based on increased training, less total games and more competitive games.

Development Academy Teams are only permitted to participate in Academy Competitions (League games, Showcases, Playoffs and Finals Week) and non-academy events approved by the Academy Technical Committee. (Dallas Cup and Surf Cup showcase events).  Full-Time Development Academy players do NOT participate in any high school soccer programs.

Each Academy club plays approximately 30 league games, including 6 games played at Showcases. The league season begins in September and commences with Finals Week in July. Clubs will break from league play for periods of inactivity due to weather or the end of the season.  Development Academy teams can only play 1 game per day and are not allowed to play 3 consecutive days of games.  One mandatory rest day will be implemented in a 3 game event (Winter & Summer Showcases).  Additionally, Surf Soccer Development Academy teams play scrimmages vs. Men’s teams and other Youth teams for a total of 40-45 games in a season. **

Surf Soccer US Soccer Development Academy teams is in the Southwestern Division Conference.  Teams in this conference include Real Salt Lake, AZ; LA Galaxy; Chivas; Real So Cal; Arsenal; Pateodores; Strikers & Nomads.  Each team plays each other twice, once home and once away.  The Southwestern conference has the least amount of travel of all theUS Soccer Development Academy conferences due to the close proximity of the teams within the conference.  The Surf Academy teams will cross over into the Northwestern Division for a total of 4 (or 5) away games divided into 2 weekends of 2 games each.  Teams may travel to Northern California and/or Oregon/Washington during the season.  Lastly, all Academy teams will participate in a Winter USSF Development showcase event (early December) and a Summer US Soccer Development Academy Showcase/Play Off event (end of June).  Teams that advance out of Play-offs in June will play in Finals Week in July.  US Soccer pays 100% for Finals Week (July) travel expenses. Surf Soccer club pays for all coaches’ travel expenses throughout the season.  A standard Academy season (excluding Finals Week in July) often results in less travel costs than other club’s Far West Regional league, National league, State Cup/National Cup & other tournaments travel expenses.  **

Surf Soccer US Soccer Development Academy teams will train a total of 4 days per week starting in July.  Players are expected to attend all practices to be considered for competition in games.

Coaching staff will select a roster of Full-Time players for each of the Development Academy teams.  In addition, certain players may be selected as Developmental Players (DPs) throughout the season.  DPs will play Full Time on one of the other Surf teams in their age group and will be able to play with the DA team for a total of 6 matches in a season.  DPs will be able to train with the DA team on days he does not train with his primary team.  The coaching staff closely watches the development of the DP and may move certain players to Full-Time status later in the season.  DPs are allowed to participate in high school soccer programs.

National team players will receive full scholarships from the club.  Other scholarships are available based upon merit & need.  The club is always creating ways to make soccer more affordable and has lots of fundraising opportunities available throughout the season in which families can participate to help off-set travel expenses.  In addition, the club is always actively seeking for sponsors who can financially help the teams’ travel expenses.

Surf Soccer Development Academy players undoubtedly receive the best college exposure of any club in the country with 2 Surf Cup events (Surf Cup in July & Surf College Cup in November), 2 US Soccer Development Academy Showcase events and attendance of many Southern California college coaches at divisional conference games.  The club has a college liaison in place to assist all Academy players with the college process.  Surf Soccer has a great reputation all over the nation for producing high-level players.  This coupled with being part of the USSF Development Academy program will certainly help players to pursue their college dreams and make them a reality.

US Soccer Training Centers are sessions that are hosted every few months in various locations in Southern California where National Team coaches train & identify players. US Soccer Training Centers will replace ODP (USYS) sessions and zero costs are associated for players who are invited to attend these sessions.  US Soccer scouts attend the majority of divisional games to identify players for National team camps & US Training centers. On average, about 10-12 Surf Soccer Development Academy players are invited to attend the US Training Centers.

Coaching education programs are provided by US Soccer to keep coaches up to date with the latest training techniques.  US Soccer is continuously evaluating US Soccer Development Academy clubs in regards to their training facilities, training methods & playing style enforcements, coaching curriculum & other US Soccer Development Academy club obligations.  For more information go to http://www.ussoccerda.com/home.php

About the Program

Created in 2007, the development academy was established to primarily focus on youth player development in the United States. The league consisted of 64 elite youth soccer clubs from around the country in its inaugural season. Each team is comprised by geographic proximity, with two age groups (U-15/16 & U-17/18). These 64 teams were divided into eight conferences with each team playing approximately 30 home and away matches during an eight-month season.

Currently in its fifth season, the program has expanded to 78 clubs competing in ten geographically-based divisions. Although some attributes have changed during the past four seasons, the basic mission and principles remain intact: increased focus on training, meaningful competition and a providing a direct connection to U.S. National Team programming.

Developing the Next Generation

U.S. Soccer’s Development Academy program is driven by the game and its players, coaches and referees. This game-centric approach allows for long-term development to occur through a deep understanding of what makes players successful around the world.

As the sport of soccer grows in the United States, young players in our country need the proper environment to compete against the world’s elite. The U.S. Soccer Development Academy program provides the optimum developmental environment for the nation’s top youth soccer players, coaches and referees by emphasizing development through quality training and limited, meaningful competition.

Meaningful Training

Academy teams spend a greater amount of time focused on training to improve as individuals and as a team. The teams and players receive direct feedback and evaluations from National Team Staff in both training and game environments. In 2012, Academy teams will be exposed to mental testing using the EXACT Sports MAP system. Using a multitude of feedback systems, each athlete gains a greater understanding of how he compares against his peers and what he needs to do to achieve their optimal performance levels.

Competitive Environment

The Academy program features teams from the top youth clubs from around the country. Each Academy team plays approximately 30 regular season games to ensure all games are meaningful. Games are also played according to FIFA’s Laws of the Game and officiated by a pool of the nation’s top young referees in order to prepare players for the next level of competition. Members of our Men’s National Team Scouting Network regularly attend Academy games, so players are evaluated over the course of the season and in their natural positions allowing for the best player assessment.

The Surf Boys IDP program

This USSDA supplemental training program is designed to further develop the player’s first touch, promote creativity, and enhance physical performance using long-term player development objectives. Player’s work on speed (with and without the ball), agility, ball mastery, and improving first touch using all parts of the body as well as ball striking.

Emphasis is placed on the club culture and daily training atmosphere. More training sessions take place than games allowing players to learn the details of tactics, team formations and game strategies. The development of soccer players is a continuum that overlaps age groups. The following are some of the objectives in the development of a soccer player:

1) Further develop the player’s appreciation of the game.

2) Everyone wants to win, every time. Winning and losing must be kept in proper perspective.

3) Aware of individual player’s development needs within team framework.

4) Educate the players on the technical, tactical, physical and psychological (four components of soccer) demands of the game for their level of play.

5) Educate players in the roles/responsibilities of all positions.

6) Create a training environment that is disciplined and structured but fun and consistently offer positive feedback.

7) Training conducted in the spirit of enjoyment and learning.

8) Proper ratio of training sessions to games according to the player’s stage of development.

9) Help players reach their full potential and be prepared to move to the next stage of development.