US youth soccer guides for parents
This section is for parents of young soccer players in the United States. Learn how to choose a club, check tryout dates and learn how MLS academies choose players. Every club fact comes from the club’s own website or an official league list.
In the UK? See the UK football guides. Looking for numbers? See Youth soccer in the US: the numbers.
Start here
How to choose a youth soccer club
Recreational, travel and elite soccer explained, with costs and the new age groups.
Tryouts: how they work and the calendar
How club tryouts work, what to expect, and the tryout dates clubs have published, with upcoming dates first.
MLS NEXT tryouts 2026
How MLS NEXT tryouts work: ages, cost, how players get seen, the 2026-27 calendar and MLS NEXT vs ECNL.
Soccer lineup generator
Free lineup and formation maker for 7v7, 9v9 and 11v11. Shares playing time fairly across halves or quarters.
MLS academies
How MLS (Major League Soccer) club academies recruit players, and whether they hold open tryouts.
Soccer IQ: free decision game
Your child sees a match moment and picks the pass, run or shot. Play it together on a phone.
How Was The Game?
A short note from our soccer AI coach after your child’s game. A paid service we are testing with US parents.
Find a club near you: New York, Long Island, Westchester, New Jersey and Fairfield County, Connecticut
Our club finder covers the New York City area so far. Choose an area to compare its clubs. We add more regions over time.
New York City
It covers the five boroughs: Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx and Staten Island.
59 clubs
Long Island
It covers Nassau and Suffolk counties.
91 clubs
Westchester
It covers Westchester County, north of New York City.
25 clubs
North Jersey
It covers Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Morris, Passaic and Union counties.
155 clubs
Central Jersey
It covers Middlesex, Monmouth and Somerset counties.
63 clubs
Fairfield County
It covers Fairfield County in Connecticut, from Greenwich to Danbury and Bridgeport.
22 clubs