The purpose of this format is to increase player enjoyment, development, and retention.

The Youth Academy Format provides opportunity for participating clubs to play developmentally appropriate games–games that provide a relatively equal amount of challenge for both teams. All games are played within the city of Birmingham and the surrounding area.

In place of Tryouts, clubs hold Assessments/Evaluations before a season. After Assessments/Evaluations, an Academy Director places all players (U9-U12) within their age group into a Player Pool. Within the Pool, players train together in a child-centered environment following a developmentally appropriate curriculum. Coaches then place each player onto a developmentally appropriate team for each Playdate. Not having set “teams” gives coaches the opportunity to place each player based on their developmental needs for both training and games.