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Time Commitment
The average number of training days during the summer is 2 - 3 days per week beginning early June. Summer tournament play typically begins in mid-July through the end of August.
During the regular season (September through early November) the number of training days will be 2 - 3 days per week with 2 competitive league games on many weekends. During the regular season there will also be designated tournament weekends that will require some travel, possibly an overnight stay, and 3 - 4 scheduled tournament games.
Post-season training for State Cup (U11 and older) continues on this schedule, possibly through late-February, with the exception of the winter break for high school soccer (age groups U14 and older).
Division 1 Competitive players are expected to begin attending practice 100% the Monday after the 4th of July. There is a Vacation Moratorium during which players can miss practice without penalty to playing time. This moratorium begins the day that players get out of school and finishes on the Tuesday after the 4th of July. The 4th of July is on Friday this year (2014). Players who miss practice after the 7th of July will have their playing time penalized during summer tournaments based on their practice attendance.
Financial Commitment
The estimated average annual cost per player, excluding uniforms and travel costs, is shown below. For details, see the Division 1 Cost Summary by age group below.
U9-U11 $1,620
U12-U14 $1,620
U15-U19 $1,770
It is important to note that events such as in-state and out-of-state tournaments and summer team training camps are considered an integral part of the Division 1 program and are not optional. A commitment by parents to the Division 1 program is a commitment that their son or daughter will attend all of the team’s events.
Travel Commitment
In addition to local Division 1 tournaments such as the Mustang Stampede (Girls & Boys) tournaments, each age group at U9 and older is expected to commit to traveling to other tournaments. This may include at least one tournament in Southern California. In some instances, our Gold teams will travel to at least 2 out-of-area tournaments that will require an over-night stay with travel by air likely.
Since the costs for transportation, meals, and hotels for these tournaments vary according to the situation, no specific costs have been added to the financial summary. There may be opportunities to underwrite some or all of these expenses through team coordinated fundraising activities. However, parents should make their commitment to the Division 1 program based on the assumption they will have to pay for their child’s full expenses for transportation, meals, and hotels for these tournaments. This has been included in the detailed estimated cost summary.
Volunteer Commitment
The Division 1 program requires a number of volunteers to operate effectively and efficiently. These positions typically require a commitment for the entire seasonal year.
Volunteers from each Division 1 team will be needed for the following positions:
- Team Manager – Coordinates phone trees, player passes, team parties, parent meetings, travel, tournament applications, training schedules, etc.
- Team Treasurer – Handles the money for the individual team and works with the League’s Treasurer to provide standardized reports for accountability.
- Individual Team volunteers – Including snack coordinator, tournament volunteer, flag bearer, first aid, statistician, team publicity, communication coordinator (website, newspapers), uniforms, golf tournament, etc. All parents are required to support the Mustang Tournaments and are required to volunteer 4-6 hours at each of the Mustang Stampedes and Winter Turf.
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