We just moved back to Houston after two years away. My son is 9, and we want to get him signed up for a soccer club/league. He played at Westbury Soccer Club for age 6-7 which we liked. While we were away, he played with a small travel club (small town and probably nothing like a big Houston club).

He's pretty serious about it now, so we want him to get good coaching and really learn the game. I think he's at a developmental program level right now rather than "competitive" teams. Maybe I'm selling him short, not sure.

We are considering Westbury, Rise, and Albion. Westbury and Rise locations are much more convenient for us for during the week, but we know some people that are happy with Albion.

I would love to hear opinions/experiences on these three clubs, especially for kids that might have been at a similar stage to us. Thanks.

Have had a kid in Albion (Central) for about 3 years. We will be back for a 4th. Soccer is a sport I'm not super educated on but have been very impressed with the coaching, communication and organization.

We have had a new coach every season and they are tough on the kids and expect them to work hard and show up to practice and compete.

We were at Albion for 2 yrs and just recently moved on.

Year 1 - Had a great experience. Had great coaches and teammates. Even though we moved up during the season, it wasn't hard to get acclimated to the new team and coaches.

Year 2 - complete opposite. New coach was too young and didn't know how to manage tween girls. Girls walked all over him. My daughter would get bullied by teammates for being a "try hard" and many of the girls did not have much work ethic or care whether they won or lost.

We contacted the director about what to do and the only solution was to move her down 3 levels to another team with the same coach. So it wasn't a tough decision to move on.

Where did y'all move on to?

jakelew04 said:

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Where did y'all move on to?

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No where right now. Just gonna play SBMSA this fall.

She played basketball and soccer in middle school and seems more interested in basketball now.

Its a team by team/coach by coach deal... not club by club. We've been very fortunate to have my daughter stay at HTX… entering her 7th season. This last season was best yet.

As for clubs listed… albion is solid, rise is eh and never heard of nor seen a westbury team… maybe they are male only?! But keep in mind my very first sentence… that's all that matters.

Your comment on Rise being eh, is that based on just what you see when your daughter has played against them? Or things you've heard from people that were in the program?

Rise is the one that is most convenient for us, so hopefully someone has some firsthand knowledge.

Rise is so convenient to Westbury so I would join there. My kid just joined Imperial SC this season so that would be another option on the SW side of town. Have you reached out to the clubs about joining since tryouts were back in May?

Mustang1 said:

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Rise is so convenient to Westbury so I would join there. My kid just joined Imperial SC this season so that would be another option on the SW side of town. Have you reached out to the clubs about joining since tryouts were back in May?

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I always liked the coaches when we played Imperial. Very vocal and invested.

Our last Albion coach would literally sit in his chair the entire half and say very little.

Mustang1 said:

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Have you reached out to the clubs about joining since tryouts were back in May?

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For Albion and Rise, yes.

To be fair, I'm more familiar with their upper level girls program which struggles at best and easily the worst of the major 4 (Albion, Challenge, HTX and Rise) in Houston area. I know someone that has very good player in Rise upper level boys program that is quite happy.

At your sons age, club name doesn't matter… choose first by coach and then go with location convenience. You have plenty of time for driving in your future should it be required. We live Fulshear area and my daughter practices on the Woodlands… not fun!

jakelew04 said:

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Your comment on Rise being eh, is that based on just what you see when your daughter has played against them? Or things you've heard from people that were in the program?

Rise is the one that is most convenient for us, so hopefully someone has some firsthand knowledge.

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My familiarity is with girls soccer but if I was ranking programs in Houston:
1) Albion
2) Challenge
3) HTX
4) SG1
5) Rise

I've never heard of Westbury. Houstonians are usually pretty strong.

I think you get better coaching at SG1 but Rise does have GA/ECNL. SG1 just has ECNL-RL for now but they are also a younger club.

Our oldest daughter is just starting competitive this year with HTX. We've been really happy with the coaches at HTX in the development program.

Can't stress enough how much the coach should drive your decision. They can make the year awesome even if the team is not great, or make the year suck even if the team is awesome.

We've been very fortunate at HTX to have great coaches so far but I'd leave in a heartbeat if we got a coach that i didn't feel like managed my daughter and her emotions well.

Keep in mind my experience has only been girls but I've talked with a few of the boys coaches and know a few of the boys players parents. The boys coaches are typically much tougher on the boys which is probably a good thing.

Hope you find a coach to develop your son as both a player and a young man! Good luck!

If your son is really serious about soccer and you want to see him grow I would highly suggest joining either Albion or HTX as early as possible. These are the top clubs in Houston and south Texas for boys and girls and if your son can get a shot at one of the higher teams this is where you will see the best coaching and most growth. While it's unfortunate that it happens so young, the next 2 years will be extremely important for his development as a player….Ultimately it really depends on how serious your son thinks he is about it, because the boys at the top level are so dammed good and athletic.

I am partial to Albion because that's where my daughter has played the last 2 years, but she's been on the NL team since she joined so she's had the best coaches and we have had a great experience. If he loves soccer and wants to work hard starting at a young age I don't think you can go wrong at either HTX or Albion.

My son played SG1 last year and will be on HTX Catalyst this year. He went to tryouts at Albion and a few others.

In general, ALL of these "clubs" are filled with overpaid self proclaimed experts and self aggrandizing coaches, and parents who all think their 8-12 year old is "going pro". It is a shame that soccer is the way it is, but….

Ask pointed questions, get answers. Don't let the "tryout" format manipulate you into thinking your kid is interviewing with the club. It's the other way around.

HTX catalyst is the best I've seen so far, which isn't saying much. It's probably all overpriced crap.

FWIW SG1 dev plan was trash.

If your kid is really good, tryout for an MLS next club

I agree with the advice that it really depends on the situation and what coach you end up with. It would be great to just get in on the ground level of HTX and/or Albion, but they have their share of bad coaches or coaches that just don't seem to care. If

The above poster had a bad experience with SG1. I have seen some kids sky rocket in development with SG1 and praise that program. It really just depends.

My advice would be to join the club you are most comfortable with now after discussions with the directors/coaches. If the season gets underway and you don't like it don't be shy about reaching out to other clubs and seeing if you can train with them. Don't mess with the tryout process. It is a crock.

Also, if he is serious about developing look into futsal. Upper 90 should be not far from you and is very good. Just note that Upper 90 practices aren't necessarily fun unless the kid is in love with the development process. There isn't very much scrimmaging that goes on underneath that roof. It is footwork and 1v1s primarily.

Brace yourself for meeting some truly insane people.