@ccprofandmomof2 I think there are pro’s and con’s to the high school varsity vs club/Academy Again, my son sport is not soccer, but more of a niche sport. But reading through the various thread, when it comes to recruitment, the principle is similar. Not being part of the varsity and representing your school with your classmates is something that my son will miss out, as @gointhruaphase mentioned. As well as being given the Varsity letter, etc…which he will not experience. However, being very active in his club, training with others who are also at an elite level, and competing at much higher level tournaments, attracting the attention of college coaches will be the significant benefit. Besides, the camaraderie will still be there among his club teammates, just not with his schoolmates. There is another thread which addressed how much help the high school coach or the athletic director of the school had in getting the athlete recruited in various sports. The overall consensus was there was no help at all from the school. It was the club coach who had the greater influence. Same goes with my son, and also the other athletes in his school who couldn’t participate in the school varsity due to the school’s practice rules, but got recruited to top Div 1 schools, mostly Ivy’s.