Breaking the Line: The ECNL Podcast

Let us know the topics of interest to you!The ECNL's leadership team emerges from the incredibly hectic spring for the latest episode of Breaking the Line, where ECNL Regional League Commissioner Chris Leahey joins ECNL President Christian Lavers and ECNL Vice President Doug Bracken to discuss all of the major changes within the ECNL platform and what it means for players, parents, coaches and clubs. Building off of Breaking the Line Episode 114, the ECNL has let the dust settle from the club chaos, promoting 24 teams into ECNL and welcoming more than 190 teams into the ECNL Regional League across both boys and girls. The team discusses how clubs may move from the ECNL Regional League into ECNL, and also the mindset of what clubs can join the ECNL Regional League from other platforms. They also converse about the overall youth soccer structure, about what clubs need from their leagues, how club-based league structures have evolved since the beginning of the Development Academy days, and more. As always, if you have any questions or podcast topic suggestions for the Breaking the Line podcast, send them to us at https://ecnl.info/BTL-Questions. And please, follow the ECNL on all social channels, subscribe to Breaking the Line, and don't miss all the exciting content being published on the ECNL's YouTube page!

Let us know the topics of interest to you!The Breaking the Line team returns with Dr. Drew Watson, a friend of the podcast and the ECNL's Chief Medical Officer.  In March, the ECNL launched the Center for Athlete Health a Performance, a research and education hub designed to identify, develop and share best practices in long-term youth athlete health, development and performance, and spearheaded by Dr. Watson. Dr. Watson joined Breaking the Line this week to discuss the founding of this Center along with the first two published pieces of research: the ECNL Injury Risk Reduction Program and the relationship between sleep and injuries in elite athletes. The Breaking the Line crew dives into these topics, discussing the vision for the Center and why it was founded in the first place, the relationship between the ECNL and Dr. Watson's Human Performance Lab, tips for athletes to be at the top of their game and more. If you have any questions for the Breaking the Line crew, make sure to submit them at https://ecnl.info/BTL-Questions. And as always, make sure to follow the ECNL on all social channels, and don't forget to watch this podcast in video on YouTube! And if you want to learn more about the ECNL's Center for Athlete Health and Performance, visit theecnl.com/CAHP. 

Let us know the topics of interest to you!The Breaking the Line team is back from Las Vegas and a lot has changed since early February.  In Episode 114, Christian Lavers and Doug Bracken sit down to discuss the changing youth soccer landscape. Clubs are in peak tryout season, and with that comes plenty of questions about club visions and player pathways. As a player and parent, how do you know which club is right for you? What about a club is important, and what is just white noise?That conversations leads to a much bigger discussion; club movement across leagues. More than 20 clubs will join either ECNL Boys or ECNL Girls for the 2025-26 season through new entry or promotion, and an additional 15 clubs will join the ECNL Regional League ranks in either Boys or Girls. With this movement, ECNL Boys will introduce the Far West Conference, and the ECNL Regional League will launch the Regional League - Gulf Coast, Regional League - Greater Michigan Alliance and a revamped Regional League - NorCal and Regional League - Golden State in ECNL Regional League Boys, and Regional League - Greater Michigan Alliance in ECNL Regional League Girls. That's an incredible amount of movement from year to year, and the Breaking the Line team discusses what has caused this movement, why it's important, and what does it mean for the ECNL as a whole. It's a great discussion into where we have been, where we currently are, and where we want to go. If you have any questions about player or club movement, make sure to submit them at https://ecnl.info/BTL-Questions. And as always, make sure to follow the ECNL on all social channels, and don't forget to watch this podcast in video on YouTube! 

Let us know the topics of interest to you!Breaking The Line, the ECNL Podcast, went live and in-person at the ECNL Coaching Symposium at the Circa Resort in Las Vegas, NV for a historic podcast featuring executives from US Soccer. ECNL President Christian Lavers and ECNL Vice President Doug Bracken sat down with Emily Cosler, US Soccer Senior Director of Strategy, and Matt Crocker, US Soccer Sporting Director. Together, the four conducted an incredible discussion surrounding US Soccer: what does the future hold for the sport within the United States, US Soccer's approach to the 2026 FIFA World Cup beyond, how the organization fits into the overall soccer structure within the country, and more. Ultimately, there was one theme throughout the entire podcast: collaboration. Tune in for a riveting roundtable about soccer in the United States, and read more about the panel guests below. Emily Cosler: Senior Director of Strategy, US SoccerEmily joined U.S. Soccer’s strategy department in October of 2022. As the Senior Director of Strategy, Emily’s work has primarily focused on strategic projects including the U.S. Way Sporting Strategy, the Safe Soccer Clearance program, 2027 and 2031 FIFA Women’s World Cup bids, and partnerships with key landscape stakeholders such as National Member Organizations and Professional Leagues. She has also helped to support the implementation of U.S. Soccer’s new strategic vision, including matured business planning processes. Prior to joining the team at U.S. Soccer, Emily worked in management consulting at Bain & Company.Matt Crocker: Sporting Director, US SoccerMatt became U.S. Soccer’s Sporting Director in August of 2023, overseeing the entire Sporting Department and focusing on the Men’s and Women’s National Team programs, Youth National Teams, and the Extended National Teams. Crocker is responsible for setting U.S. Soccer’s sporting vision, overseeing the performance of all national teams, implementing the technical development plan, developing sporting culture, philosophy, ensuring greater communication, and sharing of best practices. Matt is formerly the English Football Association Head of Development Teams and Southampton Director of Football Operations - he brings more than 25 years of experience in player development and coaching with proven success at the club, youth, and senior international levels. A native of Wales, he holds a UEFA Pro License, the FA Technical Directors License, the FA Academy Manager’s license and has an Honors Bachelor of Science in Sport Pedagogy.

Anson Dorrance, the legendary former UNC Head Women's Soccer Coach, shares the secrets of building winning teams alongside Peter Kenyon, ex-CEO of Manchester United and Chelsea FC. High-performance psychologist Eric Potterat offers insights into resilience and leadership. Performance coach Jeremy Boone discusses the balance of talent and character in athletics. The group dives into whether leadership can be taught and the cultural changes needed in sports, all while weaving in personal anecdotes that highlight the unpredictability of life.

Let us know the topics of interest to you!The Breaking the Line crew is back with their newest episode, this time with a topic that came straight from a listener question. A parent from Richmond, Va., asked Breaking the Line: "Is there an ideal blueprint for an ECNL club?" The question specifically cited the success of local club Richmond United, and to tackle this discussion, we went straight to the source. In Episode 111, Jay Howell, Executive Director of Richmond United, joined Breaking the Line to discuss his origins in the youth soccer space and spearheading Richmond United since 2014 and how throughout the years, Richmond United has become a leader within the youth soccer space, culminating with a complete club rebrand launching at this podcast's release. Howell and Breaking the Line discuss how clubs can build a structure that puts the players first, and how navigating a club structure can be difficult with multiple coaching philosophies and personalities, especially with multiple youth clubs joining forces. They also discuss how to build and maintain relationships with professional organizations, and how youth clubs and pro clubs can work together to ensure all parties can see success on and off the field. Finally, the crew works through what is a player pathway, how respective age groups and leagues fit into that pathway, and how putting the players first can lead to great moments across the club. While there is no one right way to build a successful youth club, there are many factors that clubs can emulate and glean from this incredibly insightful discussion with one of the ECNL's top clubs. Thank you to our fan who submitted Episode 111's topic, and as always, please submit questions to Breaking the Line here: https://ecnl.info/BTL-Questions. 

Let us know the topics of interest to you!The first Breaking the Line episode of 2025 features special guest Mike Cullina, CEO of US Club Soccer. Cullina and the Breaking the Line crew open the episode with a topic on the forefront of everyone's minds: birth year regulations. The three provide an update to the discussion about what comes next for clubs and leagues regarding roster cutoff dates for birth year, why that decision was made, what does it mean for players and clubs and when will those changes be made. That discussion evolves into a discussion into where US Club Soccer fits as a whole within the US soccer ecosystem, and why the American soccer ecosystem differs from other countries. The Breaking the Line team goes into how the US Soccer Federation was founded more than 100 years ago and how the organization operated in the past has led us to the decisions and conversations we're having today. Finally, the group closes out the podcast recognizing the 20 ECNL alumni from 18 different clubs who were selected in the 2025 MLS SuperDraft on their incredible achievements. Congrats! As always, if there you have any questions or topics of discussion for Breaking the Line, submit your questions here: ecnl.info/BTL-Questions. 

Let us know the topics of interest to you!The Breaking the Line team is back with their newest episode as we head into the holiday season and features a special guest, ECNL Boys Commissioner Jason Kutney. Kutney and the crew open the episode with the inaugural ECNL Boys East Coast Super Cup, where eight teams from four East Coast conferences battled it out in Cary, NC to lift the Super Cup trophy. The team chats about how the Super Cup was formed, what the competition was like and the importance of winning, and also give a special shoutout to the champs, Florida Premier. The ECNL Boys East Coast Super Cup ran along side the Men's College Cup, and the Breaking the Line team continue their discussion from last week regarding the pros and cons of the amount of international players within college soccer, and college soccer's place within the US' youth soccer developmental platforms. Does NCAA Soccer see itself as part of the developmental path for players? How do you balance winning vs. developing at the collegiate level? And how does NIL deals and the transfer portal affect how programs recruit and construct rosters? The BTL team tries to tackle these questions and more. Also looking ahead, the lads look forward to the ECNL Coaching Symposium in Las Vegas in early February, discussing which speakers will be presenting at the symposium and who they are looking forward to the most. Finally, with the new year on the horizon, this week's Bracken Buster features New Years Resolutions and what the whole team is looking forward to in 2025. All that and more in the newest episode of Breaking the Line! 

Let us know the topics of interest to you!It’s post-Thanksgiving and the Breaking the Line team are back for a brand-new episode on all things college soccer. The NCAA Men’s and Women’s College Cups are in full swing and we dive into examining which teams are still alive chasing a trophy. On the women’s side, more than 80 ECNL alumni are competing across four teams, while eight teams made up of more than 35 alumni are alive on the men’s side. The College Cup sparked an interesting discussion on Breaking the Line about how many international players compete for teams in men’s soccer compared to the women’s side. It’s a back and forth about how to balance providing opportunities to different athletes, development vs. winning and the role of collegiate soccer in the career paths of both coaches and players. This discussion led to a listener-submitted question regarding how centerbacks can stand out to D1 recruits during games. The team provides their own insights on what good centerbacks do during games and how recruiting for a defender is different than an attacker. The BTL team also discusses how scouts look for different things even between centerbacks and outside backs. Finally, a tease for the next episode of Breaking the Line. US Club Soccer announced changes to birth year restrictions in 2026, and the crew gives their initial thoughts while looking forward to Episode 109, which will feature a much more in-depth discussion with US Club Soccer and more. But it's not all serious soccer talk! We lighten the mood with personal stories about Thanksgiving traditions, from unique turkey alternatives to beloved side dishes like mashed potatoes and sweet potato casserole. With gratitude to our listeners and the ECNL community, we invite you to share your thoughts and questions for future episodes. Tune in for a blend of sports insights, heartfelt holiday moments, and an engaging discussion that promises to keep you entertained and informed.

Let us know the topics of interest to you!Unlock the secrets of the ECNL showcase season alongside Christian Lavers, Doug Bracken, and Ashley Willis as they dissect the perfect blend of timing and location that makes these events a recruiting hotspot. Discover why warm climates open doors for teams from colder areas, and learn how 80% of Division I recruits trace their roots back to this league. The hosts discuss the strategic planning behind competitive schedules and how aligning teams based on last season's standings elevates the level of play and scouting opportunities, all while tackling the real-world challenges of NIL and college athlete payment issues.Navigate the nuanced world of youth soccer substitution rules, where the balance between player exposure and maintaining game fluidity is key. This episode unpacks how the ECNL adapts its substitution policies for showcases versus regular league play, offering insights into how these decisions impact player development and safety, particularly under extreme weather conditions. We also shine a light on the "Red Isn't Your Color" campaign, encouraging a culture of respect and sportsmanship to address the referee shortage caused by poor conduct in youth sports.