In U11-U18 ages there will be Academy teams as numbers and skills allow.

Placement on an Academy team will be based on the following:

1. Soccer skill set: players will be at the top of their age group as assessed by coaches, the Technical Director and on field assessments.
2. Coachability: players take direction well, are focused during training and do their best during practices and games.
3. Commitment: players will make all training and games unless sick or injured or for the occasional family commitment. Players will not miss soccer for another sport, if players are found to be missing training or games to attend another sport they may be removed from the team, no refunds. **
4. Positional needs of the team. Each team needs a certain number of offensive and defensive players to compete. Players that are strong at offensive play may be passed over for a stronger defensive player and vice versa to provide the team with the most balanced composition of players for their level of competition.

Academy Team 2023 Season (Nov. 2022 – July 2023):

1. Indoor soccer training November to March, at the West Kelowna dome – evenings and/or early morning (week days and/or weekends).
2. Fitness training January to March, once a week – gym TBA.
3. League games are played April – June, mostly on Sundays. This league is regional and will be played in Kamloops, Kelowna, Vernon, Salmon Arm, West Kelowna and Penticton. For U11/12 the leagues are geared towards developing soccer skills under higher level competition than recreational leagues.  For U13+ games are played to develop skills and to qualify for the Provincial Cup.
4. 2 practices per week (day/times will vary from winter indoor) April – June.
5. Attendance required at a minimum of 2 tournaments. Entrance fees to be paid directly to your team.
6. Registration fees are $525 per player. There will be an additional “kit fee” for all new players to the Academy program (jackets & bags) $110.

**WYSA supports the CSA Long-Term Player Development Model, which states: “Soccer is the primary sport, but complimentary sports are encouraged which support movement and athleticism suitable to soccer…”

Note from the WYSA Board: We encourage all players to enjoy and compete in any sport they choose, but as for all high-performance programs, irrespective of the sport, there is an expectation that the priority be given to that team.  It would be irresponsible for our Academy program to accept players whose primary focus and priority would be for a team in another league/sport.  We want our Academy program to have players who are committed to working together and developing with a focus on improving as a unit.  If players are regularly absent for other sporting commitments, it does not allow our Academy teams to thrive and is detrimental to our program goals of becoming a high-performance club in addition to growing our grassroots base.  If players want to play multiple sports, we do require that the priority be given to soccer if they want to be members of the Academy program.  If it is discovered that the players are not meeting that commitment level, they may be removed from that team and replaced with players who are willing and able to meet that commitment.