The Academy starts at the U8 age group, and goes all the way to the high school age. We have all boys and all girls divisions. The Junior Academy and Senior Academy, for middle school and high school players, is coed. One of the things that sets this league apart is that at the U8, U10 and U12 age groups teams are formed by distributing the talent evenly. The idea is to make the teams as balanced as possible. Most other leagues have teams of very different levels of ability. It is never quite possible to guarantee parity, but we try to make them as even as possible. We make adjustments when appropriate in order to remedy any imbalance that remains.

As players get older they have competing pressures and interests, and participation in all sports drop. Most recreation leagues go to U10 or U12 at most, and numbers dwindle fast. We have found that for a large number of players the reason they drop is not that they don’t want to play, but that they want more instruction and more structure. They want to play in an environment that is fun and teaches skills, and for a team that they can take pride in. The recreation league that served their needs so well and fostered their love for the game when they were younger does not provide as much structure and development. The Academy provides a fun learning environment where players can bond with their peers and take pride in belonging. But the pressures and competing interests that pull players in other directions are still felt.

The Academy provides players more structure and learning opportunities than an equivalent recreation program would. And even with the extra travel time, it involves a lot less travel than a premier team. We do all we can to minimize travel for all our members. It is also a lot less expensive than a premier team. It tries to meet the needs of players who want more than a recreation program, but not as much time or expense as a premier program. The Academy program balances the time and financial commitments against the player numbers required for a viable league, so we can provide our members a league where players can have fun, learn skills, and take pride in belonging to.  

We have a comprehensive development program for all our coaches. We provide them training through the Academy Coaching Diploma, we provide them with several coaching education opportunities through our affiliation with Sporting Kansas City, and we provide them with a fantastic curriculum and training session plans. Many of our current and former Premier coaches have come through the Academy. Our curriculum is very effective at player development, but also at coaching development.

The Academy also prepares players to play and succeed in the Premier program if they wish to move to that level. Most other youth Clubs do not provide this development step, and as a consequence their players are not as prepared when they do make that move.