News

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The Florida Olympic Development Program (FL ODP) and the Georgia Olympic Development Program (GA ODP) hosted a highly successful soccer event, showcasing exceptional talent and fostering a spirit of competition and camaraderie with player development at the center of it all.

The event, held at ChampionsGate Sports Complex, from Saturday, February 17 to Sunday, February 18, brought together soccer players from across Georgia and Florida, creating an electrifying atmosphere filled with skillful displays, strategic gameplay, and remarkable sportsmanship. These players have been selected for the invite-only event to continue to display their talents before the ODP State Team Selections that will take place at the end of April 2024.

The primary goal of the event was to provide a platform for player evaluation and development. Coaches from Florida ODP and Georgia ODP conducted thorough assessments, offering valuable feedback to participants to aid in their growth at the time of the event.

“It is always great that we can host an event with our friends at Georgia ODP!” 

– Mike Strickler, Director of Coaching & Player Development (Florida Youth Soccer Association)

**23/24 ODP Information can be found here!**

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Congratulations to the following clubs for receiving TOPsoccer grants from USYS!
GSA
Florida Celtic
United Soccer Alliance
Cape Coral Soccer Academy
FC Sarasota

About the TOPsoccer Program;
US Youth Soccer TOPSoccer (The Outreach Program for Soccer) is a community-based training and team placement program for young athletes with disabilities, organized by youth soccer association volunteers. The program is designed to bring the opportunity of learning and playing soccer to any boy or girl, who has a mental or physical disability. The goal of the program is to enable the thousands of young athletes with disabilities to become valued and successful members of the US Youth Soccer family.

For more information, CLICK HER.

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The Florida Youth Soccer Association (FYSA) is excited to announce a new partnership with Who We Play For. 

Who We Play For (WWPF) is a FL based 501(c)3 nonprofit organization founded by former FYSA players in memory of their teammate, Rafe Maccarone, who collapsed at soccer practice and died of Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA). Over a decade later, by bringing together the national/ international medical experts, WWPF has become the largest heart screening nonprofit in the United States, educating millions on SCA. WWPF has also donated millions of dollars to 500+ schools and athletic programs across Florida and the country. To date, WWPF has currently helped the first 9 school districts in Florida to require ECGs for high school athletes (representing 30% of high school sports in FL).  

SCA Facts: 

• Sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) is the leading cause of death for student-athletes. 
• The first symptom for ~ 80% of student-athletes is SCA.  
• 1 in 300 youth have a potentially life-threatening, detectible heart condition.  
• Electrocardiogram (ECG) heart screening is the standard of care for all professional, Olympic, and collegiate athletes because it’s significantly more effective at catching underlying heart conditions.  

Thanks to funding and partnership from the Florida Legislature and NASCAR, Who We Play For (WWPF) wants to bring free ECG heart screenings to ALL soccer players in the FYSA who are 10 years old and up.   

We are prepared to donate up to $1,000,000 in ECG heart screenings to screen 50,000 kids over the next year on a first come first serve basis.  

The purpose of the funds from the Florida Legislature and NASCAR is to help start heart screening programs across our state. The program will be funded for your club this season. The typical cost is $20 per participant. In the future, if we are not awarded funding from the state in subsequent years, we hope this will be something your club will consider continuing. WWPF does NOT go through insurance, as going through insurance for this kind of testing is illegal. 

How does it work? 

• We work with the club to schedule days to come out to your club and provide non-invasive 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) heart screening to your teams, taking approximately 5 minutes per player. (Here is a quick video demonstrating our seamless screening process) 
• Each ECG is interpreted by a pediatric cardiologist volunteering with our nonprofit, and the results are delivered via email and text message back to the families within 3-7 business days. 
• Example scenario: We come to your club during a few days of practice. We provide supporting material for the club to help promote. Families can reserve a 10-minute window to be screened and consent online. We can set up anywhere the club has space, like a concession stand/ conference room/ etc.  

It’s been an epic year for the mission of Who We Play For, from being featured on Good Morning America to partnering with the MLS, NFL, Damar Hamlin, and all major sports leagues for WWPF’s national bill called the Access to AEDs Act.  Here’s a story on Mr. Maccarone, our teammate Rafe’s dad, winning the NASCAR Humanitarian of the Year and a video NASCAR created about our story. We are honored to be working with WWPF this historic year for saving lives and for every kid who never had the opportunity.  

If you are interested in working with WWPF please email heartscreening@whoweplayfor.org to be contacted by a WWPF team member to take the next steps and choose dates for your club to have your players screened.  

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The special meeting scheduled for Sunday 25th, has been canceled.

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The FYSA Board of Directors established the Florida Youth Soccer Foundation to give back to the affiliates and to assist them in furthering the game of soccer in Florida. FYSA is excited to collaborate with Tampa Bay Rowdies for this year’s grant to increase funding and offer additional assistance and opportunities for our membership.

FYSA Foundation Grant: The Grant category allows affiliates to apply for some portion of registration fees on behalf of disadvantaged players. FYSA will send grant funds will be sent directly to the affiliate. There will be no direct payments to a player or a player’s family. 

On October 28, 2023, the FYSA Board of Directors voted to continue the Foundation Grant for scholarships for the 2023-2024 seasonal year. The scholarship criteria and application’s important dates are listed below.

FYSA Foundation Grant Requirements:

1. The affiliate must provide documentation of their financial aid assistance program or player’s family income verification (Tax Filings or Paystubs). 

2. The affiliate must be a tax-exempt organization. 

3. Only full affiliates can apply. Associate affiliates and individual teams cannot apply. 

4. The affiliate must not have been placed in any status less than “good standing” with FYSA in the past three seasonal years. 

5. The affiliate must be an active entity registered with the State of Florida. 

6. The affiliate must not be involved in any active litigation or criminal investigation. 

7. The affiliate must disclose any debts over $2,500 that have existed or will exist for over thirty (30) days. 

8. For Scholarships, all players must be registered with FYSA for the current seasonal year. 

Applications and all supporting documents must be submitted by Friday, February 2, 2024, at 5:00 PM EST. Applications must be submitted before this deadline to be accepted. Awardees will be notified by February 29, 2024. Only one application will be accepted per club.

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Auburndale, FL ( September 27, 2023)– ​Florida Youth Soccer Association is thrilled to announce a two year partnership with Webber International University’s athletic program in conjunction with our Florida state ODP program. 

The partnership will allow FYSA’s ODP program to once again provide a unique and elite experience to those participating in the ODP programs summer residential camps. After taking a hiatus from residential camps due to Covid restrictions, the FYSA ODP staff is looking forward to picking up right where they left off in providing these immersive player experiences again. The residential camps will include housing, food, and high level training provided by both WIU facilities and FYSA ODP coaching staff.

Mark your calendars for June in both 2024 and 2025, and be on the look out for more ODP information including exact residential camp dates as well as registration links.

For any additional FYSA ODP information and questions please reach out to Ethan Figgener, at efiggener@fysa.com 

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Host Locations for 2024 Eastern and Southern Regional Events Announced FRISCO, Texas (October 3, 2023) – US Youth Soccer (USYS) today announced its host locations for next year’s Eastern and Southern Regional events.

• 2024 Eastern Presidents Cup: Shawnee Sports Complex in Charleston, West Virginia, and the Barboursville Soccer Complex in Barboursville, West Virginia, from June 14 – 18

• 2024 Eastern Regional Championships: Shawnee Sports Complex in Charleston, West Virginia, and the Barboursville Soccer Complex in Barboursville, West Virginia, from June 27 – July 3

• 2024 Southern Presidents Cup: Russell Creek Park in Plano, Texas, from June 14 – 18
• 2024 Southern Regional Championships: Tournament Sportsplex of Tampa Bay in Tampa,

Florida, and the Lake Myrtle Soccer Complex in Auburndale, Florida, from June 21 – 27

As US Youth Soccer embarks on a year-long celebration of it’s 50th anniversary in 2024, bringing its premier competitions to tremendous host locations such as these will amplify an already terrific experience for those attending.

The East Region will return to West Virginia once more after most recently holding its events in the Mountain State in 2022. Charleston’s state of the art facility is home to six collegiate-sized artificial turf fields, while multi-million dollar renovations to Barboursville’s complex will add three multi-purpose turf fields to a facility that already included 12 full-size regulation grass fields.

The Southern Presidents Cup will make its way back to Texas next year, this time with a new host city in Plano. Russel Creek Park’s 20 full-size fields, half of which are lighted, serve as a main reason for the facility being one of the premier venues in the area, which is just nine miles from US Youth Soccer’s National Office in Frisco.

The South Region is also excited to bring its Regional Championships to the Sunshine State for the first time next year. The Tournament Sportsplex of Tampa Bay and the Lake Myrtle Soccer Complex will provide 26 full-size grass fields and are familiar to US Youth Soccer, having previously hosted National League and Florida Youth Soccer events.

“One of the great strengths of our regional competitions is to bring together incredible facilities, tremendous amenities and localized support, helping our qualifying teams raise the bar on competitive excellence,” said US Youth Soccer CEO Skip Gilbert. “As USYS moves through its 50th year, we thank all the great hosts of the past and ask them to celebrate with this dynamic slate of regional sites that will help secure Presidents Cup and our National Championships as the best our country has to offer.”

US Youth Soccer’s National Championship Series and Presidents Cup continue to serve as significant sources of revenue for local economies. Each event will field more than 100 teams, bringing more than 5,000 people and generating an estimated economic impact of $4,200,000 across each city.

About the United States Youth Soccer Association (US Youth Soccer)

US Youth Soccer, the largest youth sport organization in the country, is on a mission to provide world-class support, resources, and leadership, helping every member fulfill their goals on and off the field of play. US Youth Soccer registers nearly 2.5 million players annually. Through its programming, resources and leadership, US Youth Soccer is advancing the game for its 54 Member State Associations, 10,000 clubs and leagues and one million administrators, coaches, and volunteers. US Youth Soccer connects families and communities to the power of sports and its shared love of soccer. US Youth Soccer provides a path for every player, coach and referee offering programs that provide a fun, safe and healthy environment at every level of the game.

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Auburndale, FL ( October 4, 2022)– U.S. Soccer and Florida Youth Soccer Association hosted a Director of Coaching course this week. The Director of Coaching License Course (DOC) focuses on developing club leaders (DOC, age group DOC, Girls DOC, Boys DOC, etc.) working in youth soccer clubs with players ages U6-U19.

The B licensed and above coaches go through a blended learning environment of online learning with one week of in-person meetings with on field instruction and assessment from U.S. Soccer coaching education leaders. The 18 week course dives further into developing the competencies of the DOC in order to improve the quality of the player development experience and the overall club experience. 

For more information on all available FYSA hosted coaching education courses please visit our course schedule here. Or contact FYSA Director of Coaching Michael Strickler at mstrickler@fysa.com or FYSA Associate Director of Coaching Mark Godwin at mgodwin@fysa.com

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The Orlando Pride in partnership with the Florida Youth Soccer Association conducted 2 All Female U.S. Soccer Grassroots License Courses at the Orlando Pride’s training facility this past weekend. The 2 courses were taught by U.S. Soccer National Coaching Educator, Lisa Cole. Lisa has coached several National programs around the world that include Fiji, Antigua and Barbuda as well as our own U.S Youth National Teams.

Better Coaches = Better Environments = Better Players

For more information on available coaching licences click here or contact Mark Godwin at mgodwin@fysa.com.

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During December FYSA partnered up with Tampa Bay Rowdies to host another amazing TOPSoccer end-of-season jamboree! This event saw record numbers for both players and buddies. FYSA would like to thank all the player who took part in this fantastic showcase and all the buddies for their continued support in the community.

US Youth Soccer TOPSoccer (The Outreach Program for Soccer) is a community-based training and team placement program for young athletes with disabilities, organized by youth soccer association volunteers. The program is designed to bring the opportunity of learning and playing soccer to any boy or girl, who has a mental or physical disability. The goal of the program is to enable the thousands of young athletes with disabilities to become valued and successful members of the US Youth Soccer family.

TOPSoccer creates a fun, adaptive environment for players 4 to 21 years old. Programs are geared toward player development rather than competition. Athletes learn skills and have fun!

How do I participate? Contact your local FYSA member club to learn more about getting involved with a local TOPSoccer program. All of our clubs participating in TOPSoccer are in the list below. Or, contact your a TOPSoccer committee member.

If your club is interested in starting their own program, click here.