BEHIND THE PLAY #48

A short one to start the year as I’m a bit under the weather. Predictions, the death of a Cruyff t-shirt and how to build a club.

Predictions for 2025

• For the second year running, an NHL first round draft pick will be the son of local (Vancouver) parents who both were prominent soccer players around these parents.

• 18 year old Jeneva Hernandez-Gray, perhaps the top young female player in BC and maybe Canada, will not play for Vancouver Rise FC, or any other club in the Northern Super League, when the inaugural season this spring.

• Grass will be laid in BC Place for the six Gold Cup games to be played there this summer and there will be a strong push to make it permanent.

• The EPL champion will be determined on the last day of the season.

• Canada will make the final of the Gold Cup.

• The Whitecaps will hire either a former national team player or Canadian coach to be their next head coach (this admittedly may just be wishful thinking).

• There will be a concerted effort at the club and governing body level to fix the issues around declining participation in girls soccer which plan to be a part of.

Cruyff

It’s gone beyond a small rip at the neckline and clearly needs to be binned now. My Cruyff t-shirt has seen better days. I’ve had and have many player t-shirts. Iniesta, Messi, Maradona…but this one easily got the most comments when I wore it.

From the young Irish guy on a Vancouver street to an 80 year old Qatari man when I was at the World Cup and several others, seeing Cruyff on a stranger’s t-shirt put a smile on people’s faces. He remains one of the most recognized and appreciated players in the game.

How to build a great youth soccer club

This will be a very regular feature on the newsletter going forward. I’ll be writing a blueprint on what a hypothetical new club should look like. I’ve worked as a Technical Director for 15 years and an Executive Director for six years so I have some strong, and perhaps surprising, ideas on what a new club in this day and age needs to consider and do in this current (and still evolving) landscape to be successful.

First topic will be in next week’s issue.