Rod Giove

[Sam Mahmood @TheSammahmood_]

The U.S. soccer federation is a poor return on invested capital.

I played soccer for 20+ years.

Grassroots.
Academy.
D1 college.
Pursued professionally after.

And I’ll say the quiet part out loud:

The US soccer infrastructure is broken.

In America, we treat playing D1 soccer like it is the peak achievement.

For most families, clubs, coaches, and players, the entire youth soccer machine is built around one goal:

Get recruited.
Get a scholarship.
Play college soccer.

But if the objective is to produce world-class players, D1 soccer is a terrible development path.

From 18-22, some of the most important technical development years of your career, you are preparing for a 3-4 month season built largely around athleticism, direct play, set pieces, fitness, and survival.

Now compare that to an 18-year-old in Spain, Argentina, Morocco, Italy, England, or France.

That player has likely been in a professional environment for years.

Training daily.
Playing meaningful matches year-round.
Competing against grown professionals.
Getting thousands more touches.
Learning how to solve the game under pressure.

The gap is massive.

And it shows.

American players are usually athletic.
They are usually fit.
They usually compete hard.

But at the highest levels, that is not enough.

The biggest difference is technical comfort.

We do not move the ball like Spain.
We do not combine like Argentina.
We do not play with the same fluidity, rhythm, and confidence you see from countries where the game is embedded into the culture from childhood.

That comes down to volume.

Volume of touches.
Volume of street soccer.
Volume of futsal.
Volume of unstructured play.
Volume of high-level training environments.
Volume of meaningful games.

In the US, youth soccer is expensive, overly organized, overly coached, tournament-driven, and too often built around winning games at 13 instead of developing players for 23.

Parents spend thousands.
Clubs charge thousands.
Travel teams fly all over the country.
Showcases become the product.
Recruiting becomes the scoreboard.

But the return on invested capital is poor.

We probably spend more money on youth soccer than almost any country in the world, yet the technical output does not match the investment.

That is a broken operating model.

And like any business, if the output is weak, you do not blame the customer.

You inspect the system.

The US has talent.
The US has athletes.
The US has money.
The US has facilities.

But the foundation is wrong.

We built a pay-to-play, college-recruiting machine and confused it for a world-class player development system.

Those are not the same thing.

Until we fix the grassroots layer, increase meaningful touches, make development less dependent on family income, and stop treating college soccer as the top of the mountain, the US will keep underperforming relative to its resources.

I’m not saying this to trash US Soccer.

I’m saying it because I lived it.

And if we actually want to become a powerhouse, we have to be honest about the infrastructure first.

[Paul Spacey ⚽️ @PaulSpacey]

https://t.co/jy4jLp2wol

[Rod Giove @TheRealRodG]

@BigtoeSgtHulka @BUFProSoccer And don’t forget the youth academy, where parents pay for the “pathway to pro” while the promised professional team remains perpetually just around the corner. Almost like the pay-to-play academy was the plan all along. 🙄

[James Jackson | LaceUp Soccer @LaceUpSoccer]

MLS NEXT: 135 clubs, 14,000 players. About 30 are actual MLS academies. The other 105 are private clubs charging $3,000-plus a season for a roster spot inside an MLS-branded league. A few dozen Homegrown contracts get signed each year. The other 13,000 kids get a logo on the jersey and an invoice in the inbox. The league is the marketing layer. Development is still parent-paid.

[Greg Olsen @gregolsen88]

1st Rd pick of @NHLBlackhawks

Wanted to finish his senior football season with his boys

State champ

Being a HS athlete is the best time of your life. Kids are missing out

[Time Capsule Tales @timecaptales]

Rick James on 'Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous' (1984). This is a chaotic look into his Buffalo residence which looks like it was decorated while doing cocaine.

[ProjectPlayWNY @ProjectPlayWNY]

Coach Spotlight: Coach Rodney Giove goes above and beyond to ensure all players can participate, no matter their socioeconomic background. He also encourages team support of important causes around childhood cancer awareness and ending racism in youth sports. Thank you, Coach!

[Men in Blazers @MenInBlazers]

Espanyol took to the field accompanied by dogs up for adoption Saturday in an effort to find their four-legged friends new homes. 🐕‍🦺

What a scene, what an initiative 💙

[SFGiants @SFGiants]

He leaves us with a lasting reminder: to work hard and find joy in this great game, and this extraordinary life. Say Hey, Willie Mays. The best there ever was. 💐

[Aaron Kraft @aaronk7]

Guys, you’re not going to believe this…

[Robert Mays @robertmays]

Josh Allen is like a human monster truck with the soul of a labradoodle that's fueled by Four Loko.

A singular, unhinged experience.

[Warren Sharp @SharpFootball]

let’s talk about NFL refs, part 362

the Eagles are 4-0 with Shawn Hochuli as the ref since Nick Siranni was hired

(4-0 ATS as well)

so let’s see how it’s playing out so far….

First half penalty distribution:

10 penalties for 75 yds on Bills

1 penalty for 5 yards on Eagles

[Troll Football @TrollFootball]

Happy Birthday Marouane Fellaini

Throwback to him knocking a steward off his stool with his shot

[Buffalo Spurs @buffalospurs]

https://t.co/P3Let2exCJ

[Rob Gucci @heatdaddy69420]

It’s such a this guy kinda day

[KNBR @KNBR]

Josh Allen tells story of how Buster Posey inspired him to always sign autographs

https://t.co/eSXvOPtZrQ

[SFGiants @SFGiants]

Tonight, we take a step back in time.

And we relive the pandemonium that was "ThrillMania."

@WillClark22

[Rod Giove @TheRealRodG]

@YEMarrone13 I would buy it if we can have a wiffle ball game at @JoeSarks parents house so I can wear it and tug on the shirt sleeve when I step into the batters box.

[Sahlen’s Sports Park @SahlensSP]

Congratulations to the NPALSC Niagara Pal Panthers for winning our Boys U10 Sahlen's Cup Summer Tournament!!! 🏆🎉

Great job to all the teams that participated & thank you for joining us this weekend at Flash Fields!

[Basketball HOF @Hoophall]

Congratulations to 4x @NBA Champion, 2x @NBAAllStar and Olympic Gold Medalist #22HoopClass honoree @manuginobili.