Why should I or my child be interested in Competitive soccer?
The CISC Competitive soccer program provides training and development to qualified players to assist them in advancing to play at the highest levels available. Many of the local high school teams are predominantly comprised of players who have demonstrated their ability through competitive programs. If your child has progressed through recreational soccer and wants to take their game and skills to the next level, our competitive program can take them as far as they want to go. In the last eight years CISC has crowned more state champions than any other program in the state.
What does the U in "U11" mean?
In the United States, teams are formed based on the player’s age and not school grade. The U means ’under’ and the players age must be under the number on August 1st. If the player was born on November 25, 1995, they would be U13 for the 2008 season. See Chart below.
How long is the season?
Competitive soccer can be a ‘year round’ activity. Teams generally start practicing outdoors in April and generally attend three to four tournaments during the summer months which may be local or out-of-state (tournaments are typically three to four days long and over a weekend.)
Competitive teams participate in a year end state tournament that occurs during the first or second week of August. The fall indoor league season begins in early October and runs through the middle of December and the winter indoor league runs January to March.
May my child play other sports?
Yes, particularly at the younger age groups it is easier and not as stressful to participate in multiply sports. As players get older different sport seasons tend to overlap, with the expectations and level of competition increasing, which makes it very difficult for the players to by highly competitive in multiply sports. In the fall and winter months especially, we understand that players may have other activities scheduled, however during the regular summer season, coaches will expect players to be committed to their soccer team practices and games.
What teams do your competitive teams play against?
Beginning with the U-11 season, our teams participate in a city wide league against other club competitive teams. This league is administered by the United Anchorage Youth Soccer League (UAYSL). Every year our most competitive teams travel to elite invitational tournaments in San Diego, Denver, Las Vegas, Dallas, Orlando, and many cities. These trips can last anywhere from a weekend to two weeks long.
How expensive is Competitive soccer?
Competitive soccer is more expensive than recreational programs. The average annual fee for competitive soccer is approximately $900.00. However this covers the costs of the longer season, turf field expenses, full referee crews and practice fields. In addition to the above fees, competitive players pay a monthly coaching fee. The total annual costs of the program can be divided into monthly payments, January through August. Fees vary depending upon the individual Coaches’ USSF License rating, his or her years of experience, etc. A typical monthly payment is between $125.00 to $225.00 a month, depending on age and a team’s annual tournament/ travel agenda.
Are there hidden costs?
There are additional costs associated with the sport. Each player is responsible for the travel costs to tournaments and games. Our most competitive teams travel throughout the state every two to three weekends. Every other year, each player is required to purchase a new uniform kit that includes home and away jersey, backpack, warm ups, etc. The kit is estimated at $225. Players are also required to have soccer shoes that range from $50 and up. It is not uncommon that a player will have firm ground (for hard grass fields in the summer), soft ground (for the grass fields in the rain), and field turf shoes for the all purpose turf fields (The Sports Dome or Anchorage Football Stadium). In addition, teams have team "dues". This money is calculated by the team manager and treasurer and covers the cost of entering tournaments, coach travel, renting additional field time when necessary, etc. This amount depends on the level of the team ("Blue" teams do more travel and enter more expensive tournaments so their team dues are higher). Team dues are paid first at the beginning of the season, but typically can occur year round in a team payment plan.
What is the time commitment?
Competitive soccer is a large time commitment, but it is fun and most players join because they love to play! Expect two to three practices a week that are from 1 1/2 to 2 hours long with the time of the day dictated by the coach and field availability. This means practice times and days can both change so some flexibility is needed. Tournaments are on weekends and coaches often use some weekends for "friendly" scrimmages set up with other CISC competitive teams or those teams from neighboring clubs. These are all key factors in developing player skill, team unity, and game strategy so it’s important that every player is committed. During the fall season there is typically only one game per weekend, Friday or Saturday evening and Sundays for older players. Game times vary and are dependent on field availability. Managing a competitive team is a big job and it takes a lot of help to make things run smoothly for the best possible experience for the team, but most team Managers will tell you that they treasure the experiences and wouldn’t trade it for anything!
If you have a question that needs to be asked or answered, please forward it to us at please email. Our staff will try to respond within the week.
