Team Formation/Tryouts

July tryout dates will be posted approximately six months in advance; registration for tryouts will open in June.

Per US Soccer, the governing body of US Club Soccer as well as our Minnesota-based league (TCSL), players are placed onto teams based on their BIRTH YEAR (not grade).

During the tryout process - which for our returning players is an ongoing endeavor year-round - we are assessing players for the appropriate levels of skill for the teams we are able to form, as well as that team’s placement within the TCSL League’s different levels of play.

Forming teams of an appropriate number of individual players is very consequential to this process as well. Our U9/U10 teams play 7v7 and would have 12-14 players. Our U11/U12 teams play 9v9 and would have 13-16 players. Our U13-U19 teams play 11v11 and would have 15-22 players. Unfortunately the number of players interested in playing competitive soccer does not always conform to multiples of these team sizes.

Positional needs for each team (attacking, midfielders, defenders, goalkeepers) become more important in older age groups. Previous season’s attendance, commitment, communication and maturity, based on Coach and Director assessments conducted throughout all seasons, are all taken into consideration in the placement process.

Goalkeeping: tryout registration includes a question about whether a player is trying out as a goalkeeper. If “Full-Time Goalkeeper” is checked, and your player is placed on a team, that player is expected to potentially serve a minimum of 50% and up to 100% of game time as a goalkeeper. If “Part-Time Goalkeeper” is checked, and your player is placed on a team, that player is expected to potentially serve a minimum of 50% of game time as a goalkeeper. Players who select “Part-Time Goalkeeper” are placed on teams based on their abilities as field players.

In addition, goalkeepers are encouraged to attend the GK training sessions offered in various formats in the different outdoor and indoor seasons.

If your player cannot attend tryouts: While we appreciate that these tryouts are during the busy summer vacation, the assessments we do at the tryouts are critical to player selection and team formation. These dates are posted months in advance - please plan to have your player attend.  

• For returning ESC players: We can use your player’s previous rankings by coaches and Directors, attendance, and attitude/commitment to place your player on next year’s team - however, some decisions must be made by what is seen on the field during the process, absences may impact player placement.
• For players new to ESC: if we have seen your player in another context (indoor training or a recent previous season), we might be able to appropriately place your player on next year’s team - however, some decisions must be made by what is seen on the field during the process, and in these cases absences do remove a player from full consideration. Depending on timing and other considerations, we may be able to see your player on the field once training begins, for a late team placement.

 

Tryout Procedure:

Please arrive at least 15 minutes early to allow for check-in.
Players attend both sessions.
All players NEW to ESC must bring a completed copy of THIS US Club Soccer Medical Form.

• Players should wear a t-shirt/jersey and shorts and be comfortable; they MUST be wearing shinguards with socks that cover them.

• Any kind of general athletic shoe is fine, although soccer cleats are recommended.

• Please have your player bring a soccer ball clearly labeled with their name and a phone number (size 4 for U8-U12 tryouts, size 5 for U13-U19 tryouts)

• Bring adequate water.

At check-in, players will receive a numbered pinnie; they'll then move to the field and can warm up until our Directors of Player Development gather the pool of players to the center of the field. The players will be told there what happens next.

Parents are asked to leave the Braemar Dome/Lewis Park during the tryout: soccer players, especially our youngest, are more comfortable and relaxed without additional adults watching, even from afar. January: the walking track is closed to the public during tryouts. You can return to the dome a few minutes before the end of the session to help your player exit through the dome's airlock door.

Our Directors and Coach Evaluators will be assessing players as they move through game play. At this age, they are looking for holistic readiness to participate in competitive soccer. This includes soccer skills, but importantly an appropriate level of psychosocial maturity to be ready to focus at this enhanced level as compared to recreational soccer.

Teams will be posted within days of tryouts (an email will go out when posted), we will indicate the names of the players for each team, and the name of the ESC team, along with which league that team will be playing in (more on that below).

We may not place all interested players: this can be due to players not being ready for competitive soccer, players unable to be assessed in some format, and other constraints. We encourage those players who are still interested in competitive soccer to continue to play recreational soccer, enroll in our summer camps, and/or participate in our winter indoor training. Players who are not placed are automatically put on our waiting list, as there could be some roster movement.

Each player placed on one of our competitive training pools will have approximately 48 hours to accept their roster spot: they'll do this by completing a Commitment Form and paying the fee for the spring/summer season as well as ordering an ESC uniform.