Q) Why is DC Soccer Club creating DC Soccer Club West and DC Soccer Club East teams and programming, and which programs/teams does this target?
A) In an urban landscape, we understand how location is an important component to many families’ commitment to their program in the club. Since we rent our fields from DPR, DCPS and some private schools, we have to work within their process and timeline for field allocation so we typically don’t have this information to coordinate our programming until right before the season begins. As mentioned above, creating a DC Soccer Club West and DC Soccer Club East will offer a bit more clarity of where the practices will be held to give families a choice of which to tryout or register for. 

For our competitive programming, we want to make it easier for families where we can and recognize that some competitive levels shouldn’t necessarily require a drive across town during weekday traffic. Offering our U8-U14 Select and Travel teams with the distinction of DSCS West or DCSC East gives slightly more clarity of where these teams will practice, and allow parents to choose which location to try out and register for. One exception is for our Academy top-level teams in the U11-U19 age groups that compete in the ECNL Regional League. This level of competitive development demands the commitment of the most talented players to form teams and compete, and we try to set up these teams in a central location for practices when possible. The other exception is in our travel program’s high school age groups where we typically have less teams in each age group competing at a high level, and these teams will be referred to as DC Soccer Club Blue and/or Red.

Our Pre-Travel Academy will have registration offered as PTA West and PTA East, and some of our supplemental programming such as clinics and camps will be identified as West and East as well. Our recreational league program  is neighborhood based with an emphasis on fun, not competitive development, and therefore doesn’t need to make the distinction of West or East. 

Q) Where do you draw the line for DC Soccer Club West and DC Soccer Club East?
A) When we hold tryouts for programming, we are designating the general marker as 16th street. The area west of 16th Street is considered DC Soccer Club West and east of 16th street is considered DC Soccer Club East. This designated 16th Street marker of DCSC West and DCSC East is not based on official NW and NE addresses. It is based on the data of a where a majority of our members live in relation to the fields we typically have access to and hold practices. While we can not guarantee which fields will be included for DC Soccer Club West and East, we can prioritize the scheduling of fields based on the marker to those respective West and East teams to offer more clarity when registering for programs or tryouts.

Q) Will there be DC Soccer Club West and DC Soccer Club East teams in every age group?
A) We will hold tryouts for DCSC West and DCSC East teams for ages U8-U14 for both our travel and select levels (birth years 2018-2012 for the 2025-2026 season). How many teams teams formed in each West and East will depend on the level and numbers of players trying out in those age groups. For high school age groups and our elite level U11-U19 ECNL teams, we will not designate teams as West or East and they will remain as DC Soccer Club.

Q) What league will DCSC West and DCSC East teams compete in?
A) This will ultimately depend on the age of the team, how many teams are formed in those age groups after tryouts and their competitive level. DCSC West and DCSC East teams U8 teams will compete in the MDSL and U9-U14 may play in the newly formed Chesapeake Premiere League in Maryland or NCSL Teams will be placed in the appropriate divisions of those leagues to be matched up against opponents of a similar competitive level to best aid in their development.