Pay-to-Play: How Cost Barriers Shape US Soccer's Next Generation
The Athletic’s deep dive explains that the United States’ pay-to-play youth-soccer model creates access barriers, concentrates talent among families who can afford high travel and club fees, and leaves a fragmented system even as MLS academies offer free routes; despite some progress toward a more unified development pathway, costs remain a major hurdle that could affect the U.S. national team’s competitiveness ahead of the 2030 World Cup.
