Forced to choose: Lexington Sporting Club tells top youth players to give up high school season

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A decision by Lexington Sporting Club Academy, the developmental program tied to the city’s professional men’s soccer team, has potentially driven a wedge between the organization and the high school soccer community as high school tryouts begin this week.

A number of Central Kentucky’s best boys players who were invited to become part of LSC’s top-flight Under-20 USL Academy training program were told upon their invitation this summer that they would have to forego playing for their high school teams this season and train solely with LSC. That stipulation is a first for a Central Kentucky-based club and drew immediate criticism from high school soccer stakeholders.

“I have no problems with the club offering a 10-month academy season. I’m sure there are players around the area … who would choose to do the full-time academy,” said Lafayette head coach Chris Grimm, who led the Generals to the 11th Region championship and state finals last season. “But I think my biggest problem is when they’re asking kids who don’t want to have to make that decision to choose one or the other.”

Grimm was among more than 70 high school coaches, athletic directors and principals who signed a June 26 letter to LSC Academy leaders asking the club to reconsider its new training model. Signers included a number of people who also coach youth teams for LSC.

“The decision of Lexington Sporting Club to force players into making a decision to either join their Academy and follow their ‘pathway to pro’ or to choose to play high school and suffer punitive damages of not getting the chance to break into the Academy team for another 10 months will slow the development of these players, put coaches at odds with the LSC organization and further fracture the soccer community at large,” the letter stated.

The club-only requirement applies to about 20 players of various ages from schools including Lafayette, Henry Clay, Lexington Catholic and Tates Creek among others. Players choosing to opt out of the Under-20 Academy to play high school instead would still be able to play for another LSC team and could be considered for inclusion in the Under-20 Academy after the high school season, the club said. But choosing high school play could mean missing out on the enhanced Under-20 Academy team opportunities altogether.

In communication with the Herald-Leader on Monday, a spokesman for LSC disagreed with the characterization of there being any “punitive” repercussions for invitees choosing to play for their high school teams, but the club’s statement spoke only of an opportunity to be reevaluated for the Under-20 Academy again in November. Spots would not be guaranteed.

“Lexington Sporting Club (LSC) is fully supportive of high school soccer and believes this is an excellent platform for the vast majority of players. LSC’s Academy program has responded to a global trend of offering an elite youth platform. As such, these opportunities can develop a more clearly defined path for top youth prospects to reach the next level in their playing careers,” a statement from the club to the Herald-Leader said Monday. “The Academy also offers part-time pathways for players who choose to play for their high school team, then try out for the Academy squad during their offseason window. ... Each player’s circumstances are unique, and we respect their individual choices. Our goal is, and remains, to foster a positive soccer environment in Lexington for all athletes.”

Decision to play high school vs. club is a difficult choice

Lafayette graduate and Bellarmine freshman Sawyer Trowel, a 2023 all-state selection and last season’s city player of the year, probably would have been one of the players invited to such an academy team had it been offered last year. He acknowledged he would have chosen LSC over high school if that choice had been put in front of him.

“It really depends on the situation the player is in, to be honest. For me, if it came down to it, I think I would have picked the USL (Academy) route just because I wasn’t committed (to a college) at the moment,” Trowel said. “If I was more comfortable in my situation commitment-wise, I think I would have chosen high school.”

Colleges typically recruit soccer players from their club teams rather than from high school. Grimm said he understands the pressure on players with long-term soccer aspirations, and he wasn’t surprised by Trowel’s feelings on the issue.

“We have two seniors who desperately want to play high school but they also believe there will be a big benefit in doing the academy, and I have a hard time saying no to that,” Grimm said. “But it’s a huge bummer because you look at the run we went on last year and the kids that were part of that team with Sawyer — they’re going to remember that probably for the rest of their lives. They’re not going to remember one year of playing in the USL Academy League where, to be honest, most games don’t even really mean anything.”

In informational meetings between LSC and some of the letter signers earlier this year, high school coaches believed they were working out a compromise to allow those top players to split time between their high school teams and their academy training sessions, according to the letter.

LSC responded in writing to the high school critics on Friday in a letter delivered via email by Bryan Brooks, LSC youth club director.

“Our decision to ask players to commit fully to the Academy during the season is based on ensuring they receive consistent high-quality training and competition while managing the players through periodization with the focus on the player health and safety,” the LSC response said. “We fully agree that high school sports offer unique benefits, including a sense of community, academic support, and personal development. We believe that players who choose the Academy will still gain valuable experiences and life skills, albeit in a different setting.”

In an LSC Academy informational web page that doesn’t appear to have been updated since 2022, it states its Under 16-Under 19 “players will still be able to play for their respective high school teams.” The Under-20 USL Academy team is not mentioned on that informational page.

Lexington Sporting Club, a professional soccer organization founded in 2021, includes a professional men’s team that plays in USL League One (the third tier of American men’s pro soccer). LSC quickly became the area’s highest profile youth developmental soccer club by absorbing the Lexington Football Club and Commonwealth Soccer Club youth programs under its umbrella in 2022.

LSC is building a $30 million stadium for its professional men’s team and its new professional women’s team, which will begin play later this year in the newly created USL Super League. That stadium will be located on a site south of Lexington along Athens-Boonesboro Road, where LSC already has training grounds for its academy.

Choosing to play academy or high school soccer is major nationwide issue

The high school vs. club soccer debate is fairly new to Lexington, but it has been a point of contention in larger cities nationwide, especially with clubs affiliated with professional teams in Major League Soccer, the country’s top-tier league.

The now-defunct U.S. Soccer Development Academy, established in 2007 and shuttered in 2020, prohibited its boys and girls players from playing high school soccer, but that pertained to youth players at the highest level.

Notably in 2019, three standout high school players from Lexington opted to forego the rest of their high school careers to join F.C. Cincinnati’s academy program. One of those players, Max Miller of Bryan Station, has gone on to start for the University of Kentucky’s nationally ranked men’s team.

But there’s a distinct difference between the opportunity afforded to Miller and the one the LSC is offering its academy signees, opponents said.

As a top-tier MLS organization, F.C. Cincinnati offers its highly competitive academy spots for free . That’s not the case for most LSC players whose families pay more than $2,000 to play for teams affiliated with a parent club that is part of USL League One — the third tier of American men’s professional soccer. Those fees exclude additional travel and tournament costs.

LSC does offer fee assistance to players based on need.

Prohibiting high school play is also out of step with the precedent set by Louisville City F.C., a professional soccer organization with a men’s pro team in the USL Championship, the league above USL League One.

LouCity has had its own youth program since its founding in 2014.

Louisville City’s academy website FAQ explicitly states its players can play high school soccer: “We value the significance that competing in high school sports brings through the physical and social development of a young person.”

In fact, heralded goalkeeper Alex Kron, who played for St. Xavier and is now at UK, had the opportunity to be part of Louisville City’s men’s professional team as a 16-year-old during his high school career.

On Monday, a Louisville City spokesperson confirmed to the Herald-Leader that this continues to be the club’s policy.

“USL Academy soccer is not MLS Academy soccer. It’s a different level,” Grimm said. “You question why does Lexington feel they need to do this when other markets that are bigger and around the area are not doing it. And the big thing is, what is the big payoff and the big benefits? And I have big questions about what they’re actually going to get out of this long term.”

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