The Olympic Development Program in Virginia

The US Youth Soccer ODP Philosophy
To identify players of the highest caliber on a continuing and consistent basis, which will lead to increased success for the U.S. National Teams in the international arena.

Purpose
The US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program was formed in 1977 to identify a pool of players in each age group from which a National Team will be selected for international competition; to provide high-level training to benefit and enhance the development of players at all levels; and, through the use of carefully selected and licensed coaches, develop a mechanism for the exchange of ideas and curriculum to improve all levels of coaching.

Read more about ODP on US Youth Soccer click here >>

Virginia Western District ODP
Player pools for the 97, 96, 95, 94, and 93 birth years will be selected to participate in 8 District Training sessions conducted during the fall. These sessions will be conducted by the ODP District staff from that particular district. The ODP State age group head coach for each age group and gender along with the State Technical Director and State Assistant Technical Director will also conduct sessions in each district. Please check below for the schedule for the upcoming district tryouts.

In addition to the district tryouts, we also identify players through the VYSA Scouting Program. Throughout the fall and spring club seasons, scouts will attend league games and tournaments as well as network with club coaches searching for players who may have been missed or were unable to tryout. Players identified through the scouting process may be invited to district training for further evaluation [and then a determination will be made as to whether or not to add the players to the pool].

In mid to late November, the four districts meet for two sessions of inter-district play bringing district training pools to a total of 10 sessions for the fall. During the inter-district play, the ODP State Staff is in attendance to evaluate, identify and select the State ODP Training pools. These State ODP pools will train throughout the winter and spring. Each age group will take a team (two teams in the youngest age groups) to North Carolina in January to play against other state ODP teams. The next major events are the Region I Tournament in early June and the Region I Identification Camps in mid July. The State ODP coaches will select teams to participate in these two events. Scouting will continue to identify any players who may have been missed through the tryout process.

It is the goal of the State ODP to get as many players as possible selected to the Region I Pools and Teams. The players selected to the Region I teams will participate in events with the other three regions. National Team coaches and staff will use the inter-regional events to select pools for the US National Youth Teams.

• The entry level age group, U-13 (this 2009-2010 seasonal year - 97’s) is geared to the players becoming accustomed to the program. A large pool is selected for State Pool Training with two teams attending the Region I tournament and a pool of players attending Camp.
• The second year in the program, U-14 (this 2009-2010 seasonal year - 96’s) has more events added to the calendar. This age group will travel internationally, which is important for the development of the elite player. Two teams will again be selected for the Region I tournament and a pool of players attend Camp.
• The third year in the program, U-15 (this 2009-2010 seasonal year - 95’s) competes for a National ODP Championship, so one team competes in the Region I tournament, and a pool of players will travel to Camp.
• The fourth year in the program, U-16 (this 2009-2010 seasonal year - 94’s) will again travel internationally. This is important for the elite player’s preparation for participation on Regional and National Teams. One team is selected for the Region I tournament and a pool of players for Camp.
• The fifth year in the program, U-17 (this 2009-2010 seasonal year - 93’s) again competes for a National ODP Championship. This group also participates in a College Showcase tournament. One team is selected for the tournament and a pool of players for camp.
• The last year in the program, U-19 (this 2009-2010 seasonal year - 92’s) will only attend the ODP Regional Camp with the players selected by invitation only.