Great Read Koach Karl!

When I hear the same concerns repeated – Like in your great interview with Voice of America – I ask myself why?

 Not why to the questions, but to our lack of ability to find answers?

This seems complex, but I feel the answers can be simple. They come when we look at the ROOT causes behind our problems.

We cannot fix our problems with the same logic that keeps us here. When I read your words, Koach Karl, about “Falling In Love with the game,” it clicked!

While there are many contributing factors, perhaps the biggest is that children are not allowed or encouraged to take up the sport before we register them into leagues and competitions. From the word GO, they are playing for parents who are ever present and coaches telling them what to do and how.

They do not experience “ME” time to kick the ball around with friends. They have to play for themselves first before they can be coached. They have little to no time to try things, fail, and learn from their mistakes. This lack of “ME” time for children concerns our current youth soccer development.

We’ll know we’re on the right track when we see kids playing at parks, local schools, or in their neighborhoods simply because they love the game. It’s not about us pulling them in—it’s about creating an environment where they’re naturally drawn to soccer, much like casting a line when fishing. They need to take the bait on their own terms.

We don’t have to tear down the current system to make this happen, but we do need to shift how we think about youth soccer development. Something as simple as the 4-goal game can be a great way to spark that change. If we work together and back this approach, we can make a real, lasting difference.