Our generational ambitions depend on what happens in local communities: more people playing, more affordable opportunities, better experiences, and stronger development of players, coaches, and referees. Achieving that at scale requires us to connect national resources with local expertise so every community has more support to grow soccer. We are building a network of local offices to make that possible and sustain it for generations.

The local strategy at a glance

Why this matters. Our ambitions depend on more people playing, more affordable opportunities, better experiences, and stronger development in local communities. Major tournaments (World Cups, Olympics) and thriving professional leagues create an opportunity to turn interest into lasting growth.

What we are building. A national network of U.S. Soccer local offices, with State Association integration as the preferred foundation. Integration connects staff, budgets, services, and accountability within one organization, serving soccer across affiliations.

Who will make it work. Experienced local office teams, supported by U.S. Soccer’s national and regional expertise, working with clubs, leagues, schools, parks, and community providers. State Soccer Councils will help shape priorities, build partnerships, and review progress; U.S. Soccer will hold operating responsibility.

The intended impact. Reduce duplicated administrative costs and unnecessary travel, expand affordable programs and field access, strengthen development, and attract public, philanthropic, and commercial investment. The goal is for families to carry less of the cost and for local soccer organizations to thrive.

Progress already underway. USYS integration is creating a stronger connection with State Associations. This step creates a foundation for better local support; results must be demonstrated through delivery.

What happens next. Joint operating design, diligence, member engagement, necessary agreements and approvals, and phased implementation based on each state’s circumstances and readiness. Success will be measured through participation, actual family costs, experiences, development, investment, and organizational health.

Our generational ambitions depend on stronger local soccer

The American soccer community helped establish three overarching ambitions for generations to come.

Achieving these ambitions means reaching beyond today’s affiliated soccer footprint. Families need accessible places to play. Clubs and leagues need support to deliver better experiences. Coaches and referees need development opportunities. Schools, parks, and community organizations need partners who can help them offer soccer. Local offices will bring these efforts together and help more people benefit from the game.

National capabilities need local delivery

National technical guidance, technology, partnerships, fundraising, and programs need people who can apply them locally. School soccer requires school district relationships; field access requires work with municipalities; player development requires sustained engagement with clubs, coaches, and competition operators. Local office teams will bring those partners together and be accountable for progress across the soccer community.

Why we are building now

World Cups, the Olympics, and thriving professional leagues create opportunities to attract participants, fans, volunteers, and investment. Lasting benefits depend on local programs, people, and places to play. Building that capacity now will help turn national attention into sustained participation and investment.

Building on progress already underway

USYS integration. The integration underway is strengthening the connection between U.S. Soccer and State Associations, creating the opportunity to develop cups, talent identification, and local support together.

This step reflects members working together toward a more connected system. The next measure of progress is what that cooperation delivers for local organizations and participants.

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The soccer outcomes we will drive locally

Local offices will focus on helping more people begin and keep playing, making participation more affordable, improving experiences, and strengthening development. They will work with clubs, leagues, schools, and other providers / programmers (e.g., AYSO, SAY) to deliver these outcomes. The model should be judged by the improvements participants and communities experience.

More opportunities to begin and keep playing

Schools, parks, and neighborhood organizations can make soccer easier to try. Local office teams will help connect those institutions with clubs and other providers, recruit coaches, and assemble resources for sustainable programs. The ambition includes elementary and middle school soccer, recreational opportunities for teenagers, and flexible adult formats. People should be able to continue playing as their interests and circumstances change.

More affordable participation

We aim to make soccer more affordable by changing how we fund and deliver the game:

Lower the cost of running soccer. Share technology, registration, insurance, and administrative support to reduce duplicated costs and put more resources toward playing.

Bring more money into the game. Combine U.S. Soccer’s reach with local relationships to attract philanthropic, commercial, and public investment, reducing reliance on participant fees.

Create more affordable places to play. Partner with schools, parks, and community organizations to expand low-cost programs and access to fields close to home.

Reduce travel costs. Coordinate competition across organizations and state borders to create more practical local and regional playing opportunities.

Our goal – families carry less of the cost, and more people can play. We will measure whether these changes reduce families’ actual costs and expand affordable options.

Safer and more positive experiences

Local support can help organizations put national guidance into practice through coaching education, safeguarding resources, appropriate playing formats, and feedback from participants. We will support volunteers, protect referees from abuse, and help providers address the reasons people leave. Recruiting participants matters, and so does making them want to return.

Stronger development pathways

Local technical coverage will connect national expertise with coaching, competition, talent identification, and referee development. Working across clubs, schools, colleges, and professional organizations can help identify gaps and connect players to appropriate opportunities. Better competition should provide suitable challenges with less unnecessary travel.

We also intend to strengthen the economics of development so organizations benefit from helping players progress. The objective is a system that develops more world-class players while improving the experience for recreational and competitive participants alike.

A stronger connection to the sport

Local office teams can connect youth and adult soccer with professional clubs, national teams, and community events. A national team match or major tournament can become an opportunity for ongoing play, volunteering, and fandom. Stronger engagement can create commercial and philanthropic resources for reinvestment, where deliberate partnerships and funding arrangements connect that value back to soccer.

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Why state integration is the preferred approach

State Associations have spent decades building soccer through experienced staff, volunteers, programs, and relationships. Integration builds on those strengths while creating the ability to coordinate people, resources, and delivery within one accountable organization.

Combine existing local strengths with national support

Building new local operations would require U.S. Soccer to recruit people, establish trust, and recreate relationships. Integrating states brings established teams into the network with access to technical expertise, technology, fundraising, professional partnerships, and specialized support.

Shared services and partnerships remain important. Integration also enables common priorities, funded responsibilities, and coordinated staffing. Expanding school soccer, for example, requires education partners, coaches, clubs, funding, safeguarding, and facilities to work together.

Fund the broader mission

Today, State Associations generally depend on revenue from designated affiliated activities. A child playing through an unaffiliated school program can advance our participation goal without generating revenue for the association. That can make it difficult to fund work that benefits soccer beyond the existing registration base.

Under the integrated model, local responsibilities and funding arrangements will support broader outcomes: participation, experience, development, and investment throughout the geography. Local office teams should be able to support school soccer, adult programs, and community recreation because they grow the game. We must also work with independent clubs and leagues to make those opportunities financially sustainable for them.

Expand the opportunity for every type of state

For states with limited resources, integration can provide specialist support and reduce the administrative demands on small teams. Local staff can spend more time supporting clubs, developing partnerships, and growing soccer.

For successful, financially healthy states, the opportunity is to accomplish more. National fundraising, public investment expertise, facilities financing, and professional relationships can extend their reach. Their strongest programs and practices can also help improve soccer elsewhere. Integration should amplify those strengths and give their people broader opportunities to contribute.

Continue building a network that serves everyone

U.S. Soccer is moving forward with local operating capacity across the country. We will develop it with states that integrate and establish direct local resources where needed. We will continue working with independent organizations throughout the ecosystem. Local office teams will serve the broader soccer community across affiliations.

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More resources and stronger local leadership

The economic opportunity extends beyond U.S. Soccer’s budget. Local offices can help attract outside investment, use existing spending more effectively, and strengthen the organizations that deliver the game.

Connect national resources to local opportunities

Local office teams can identify a school district ready to expand soccer, underused municipal fields, or a club facilities project. National specialists can help develop those opportunities through program design, fundraising, financing, and implementation.

Potential sources include public funding and facility access, philanthropy, commercial partnerships, professional club investment, and appropriate private financing. Facilities projects need sustainable operating models and financing suited to their economics. Affordability and financial risk must inform those decisions.

The value should reach local organizations: stronger participation and retention can improve club finances, better field access can lower costs, and professional partnerships can support coaching and community programs. Delivery arrangements must work for the organizations involved.

Give local people greater capacity and opportunity

Existing state staff bring knowledge and relationships essential to the network. We intend to give them stronger professional support, access to specialists, and broader career opportunities. Some may lead expanded local work; others may specialize or contribute regionally or nationally. People should also have opportunities to build long-term careers in their own communities.

We expect the workforce focused on local soccer outcomes to grow over time, including additional expertise in community development, public partnerships, technology, fundraising, and facilities.

Coaches, referees, and volunteers across the sport will also need recruitment, education, mentorship, and support.

Organize around how soccer works locally

The structure should reflect geography and need. Large states may require multiple teams; smaller states may share expertise. Metropolitan areas crossing state lines need coordination. Every state should have accountable contacts across core responsibilities, while national and regional specialists support local execution.

Give State Soccer Councils a substantive role

Councils will help shape state priorities, review progress, mobilize relationships, and inform investment. They can connect local office teams with soccer leaders, schools, businesses, public institutions, and other community partners. U.S. Soccer management will remain responsible for operations and execution. Formal council authorities and decision rights will be established through the framework and relevant agreements. Local leadership remains essential to understanding needs and advancing soccer throughout the state.

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Accountability and the path forward

Success will be judged by improvements for participants, communities, and the organizations delivering soccer. Implementation must include clear measures, regular review, and continued learning.

Measure outcomes and learn from results

Connected scorecards at national, state, community, and organizational levels will link our shared ambitions to local priorities. State measures should reflect soccer across affiliations and playing environments. Club, league, school, and program measures should help organizations improve.

The measures should cover:

Measurement should guide action. Councils can review progress and help identify where affordable programs, coaching support, or field access need additional attention.

Establish baselines and compare results across states with different operating arrangements, accounting for geography, resources, and investment. Distinguish the contribution of local offices from outcomes produced jointly with clubs, schools, municipalities, and other partners.

Economic measures should capture public investment, field access, and savings for families alongside Federation revenue. Track resources actually deployed, avoid double counting, and examine how efficiencies benefit participants or support reinvestment.

Build the foundation and implement over time

States have different circumstances and approval processes. Foundational operating design and diligence will establish the basis for agreements, followed by phased implementation with attention to readiness, continuity, and transition risks. Building alongside USYS integration allows national and local capabilities to develop together.

The strategic case explains why we are pursuing integration and what we intend the network to achieve. The terms for each transition must be established in the relevant documents. Governance and voting rights, assets and restricted funds, employment arrangements, liabilities, member approvals, local budget authority, and other contractual questions require specific answers. An MOU’s obligations must be understood from its actual language.

ILLUSTRATIVE EXAMPLE

What a local office could make possible

Imagine a metropolitan area with strong interest in soccer, but too few affordable programs and fields. Clubs face high rental costs. Schools want to offer soccer but lack coaches and program support. A nearby professional club wants stronger community connections. A U.S. Soccer local office brings these opportunities together.

1. Start with a shared community plan
   The local team brings clubs, schools, and public institutions together around participation, costs, and field needs. State Soccer Council members connect the team with community leaders and potential supporters.
2. Turn existing resources into more places to play
   The school district provides field access. The municipality considers improvements and new infrastructure. Local staff coordinate relationships; national specialists support planning and financial analysis. Suitable projects can draw on public contributions, philanthropy, sponsorship, and appropriate financing.
3. Build programs that strengthen local organizations
   Clubs become delivery partners for school and community soccer, gaining program opportunities and relationships with new families. The local team recruits and connects coaches and referees to the programs, supported by national education and technology. The professional club contributes expertise, community engagement, and potential commercial support. Some children continue through school programs; others join clubs. Both advance the mission. The local office has a funded responsibility to grow soccer across the community, and the partnerships should make delivery sustainable for the organizations involved.
4. Connect national investment to local delivery
   U.S. Soccer’s philanthropic and commercial teams help identify funding partners. Existing local staff develop the opportunity, coordinate implementation, and demonstrate impact, supported by specialists.
5. Show the value and build on it
   The team tracks participation, affordability, retention, field access, coach and referee capacity, investment, and satisfaction. It also monitors club financial health and engagement with professional soccer. The Council reviews progress and helps identify the next opportunities.