Academy

The Arsenal Youth Academy

Introduction

The Arsenal Youth Academy provides youth soccer players the opportunity to participate in advanced training, & play competitive & friendly matches in a squad consisting of top players of similar ability from the surrounding region.

The Academy was created to cater for the more advanced & competitive focused players who currently play on local club teams, & who are seeking further training & competition at a higher level. 

Our Academy is designed to compliment & work along side each player’s club commitment, ensuring that they can continue to participate in, benefit from, & enjoy both soccer environments, with their club & our Academy.

With the number of talented players emerging from various regions around Colorado increasing every year, the necessity for our Academy is becoming more apparent. Many of these talented young players are demanding further training to help them fulfill their aspirations in developing & enhancing their skills to achieve their goals. These goals may be: to represent their club & / or High School at the highest level, represent their State, compete in the best tournaments in the USA & Europe, play in College, or even play at the professional level.      

Players

Boys & Girls aged from Under 10 to Under 18 may play in our Academy within their respective region. Following a series of talent identification steps, by means of observing players during training or matches with their club or school, & evaluation during our trials, invitations to join our Academy will be issued to those players who we believe are currently ready to join our development program.    

Regions where Academy Squads are formed

• South West - Cortez, Durango, Telluride, Ridgway, Montrose, Delta & surrounding areas.
• Roaring Fork Valley - Aspen, basalt, Carbondale, Glenwood Springs, Newcastle & surrounding areas.
• Rocky Mountain Central - Edwards, Avon, Vail, Breckenridge, Silverthorne & surrounding areas.

Training

Training sessions & camps will take place at suitable facilities located throughout each region, using club, school & county fields. A schedule will be created encompassing a variety of locations in an attempt to make the travel requirements of each player as equal as possible. 

Each squad will be required to train a certain number of times during the playing season (summer), & occasionally out of season should the team be participating in an event outside of the summer months.  Squads may consist of 16-22 players, the reason our Academy squads are larger than club tem squads is due to the other commitments of families during the summer, & the high number of matches played by each Academy squad each season.

A typical training session will last anywhere between 1.5 - 2 hours, each session will be carefully planned to cater for the specific needs of the squad & to utilize the time efficiently. Some training sessions may be replaced by friendly matches, during which the players will be analyzed & evaluated under certain conditions applied to the game. Friendly matches will play an important part in our player development program, as it is the most effective way to observe a players strengths & weaknesses.     

Training Camps will be scheduled periodically, during which time players will be able to benefit from advanced training from our professional staff.  Camps are usually run over a course of 1-3 days, in an intensive & challenging environment.  Throuout the season, every player will be under constant evaluation by the coaching staff, who will be monitoring & recording their development, to update the player on their progression & on the areas in which they require improvement.

Coaching Staff

Academy squads are assigned a Head Coach, Assistant Coach, a Manager / Youth Director, & a Technical Director who are all, except for the Technical Director, likely to be from the players region. Our Coaches have the relevant experience, knowledge & skills to develop & lead our squads, with continual guidance & support from their Youth Directors.        

Our Youth Directors are actively involved in training the players through a series of regular scheduled sessions during the Fall & Spring season’s & intensive camps in the Summer & Winter Season’s.  Our staff will liaise & communicate with each players club or school coach to ensure that both programs are providing the best possible development structure for the player.

New Coaches & Staff

If you are interested in joining our Academy Staff in some capacity, as a Head Coach, Assistant Coach, Youth Director, or a Manager, we would like to hear from you.  Please contact us so we may discuss some options for you to help within our program either in the coaching department or in an administrative role.

Competition

Each squad will play as many friendly games as possible, against appropriately matched club & tournament teams from different regions. These friendly games may consist of 1 or perhaps even 3 matches in a day or over a couple of days, depending upon availability of other teams in the area. Where possible, a regular friendly league schedule will be designed, including competitive club teams from within & outside the region.

Our squads will also be required to participate in specific tournaments that are approved by our Academy. The number of tournaments attended will be determined by the Coaching Staff, most of which will be in Colorado. The option to travel to out of State tournaments & over seas to Major European Tournaments will also be available.

Registration Fee’s

Our registration fee’s are crafted to incorporate the majority of the associated costs related to the training requirements of each squad over a season.  We monitor & evaluate our fee’s periodically to ensure that we are able to provide the quality service at a cost that is realistic & manageable for most households.

Academy Fee’s include the following:

• Players training/match kit
• US Club Player Card/Pass
• US Club Affiliation
• Field costs for training & matches
• Training Sessions with your Coaching Director
• Training sessions with your Team Coaching Staff 
• Friendly matches
• Exhibition matches
• Tournaments
• Coaching Staff fee & equipment
• Administration & support

For further information & details on our Academy Program, please contact our Coaching Department - email operations@arsenalyouthsoccer.com