Mission
Glenview Soccer Club is a community-based soccer program that emphasizes excellence through the development of individual skills, teamwork, and sportsmanship.  Our philosophy is to offer a competitive soccer environment focused on the development of technical proficiency, tactical understanding, and the physical well being of our players in a constructive atmosphere.  Glenview Soccer club expects to have the commitment of the youth soccer players as well as their families.  Players should come with an open mind, a willingness to learn, and a solid work ethic.  We expect parents to provide support for our initiatives through positive involvement with the players, coaches, and Board.

Competition
Glenview Soccer Club is a member of the Illinois Youth Soccer Association (IYSA).  Boys compete in the Young Sportsman's Soccer League (YSSL) and girls compete in the Illinois Women's Soccer League (IWSL).  Teams are assigned to divisions based on rankings determined by the league.  Teams compete against other community based teams with similar rankings.  Each team (except the high school age teams) play a Fall and Spring season of ten games.  In addition, teams participate in Fall and Spring tournaments.  Most teams also play indoor during the winter, although indoor leagues are not included in the club fee.

Training
Each Glenview Soccer Club team has a professional coach who conducts twice weekly training sessions and coaches at the games.  Parent volunteers serve as assistant coaches and team managers.  Assistant coaches must obtain a coaching license by attending classes sponsored by the IYSA and passing an exam.  In addition coaches attend clinics sponsored by Glenview Soccer Club and other organizations.  Glenview Soccer Club teams typically practice twice a week during the season, and have multiple practices prior to the beginning of a season.  The club also offers weekly indoor training sessions during the winter and preseason camps in late summer prior to the start of regular team practices, although indoor training sessions are not included in the club fee. 

Frequently Asked Questions:

What age groups play? The club typically field two to three boys and girls teams at the U8 (under the age of eight as of August 1), U9, U10, U11, U12, U13 and U14 levels.  There are also usually high school age teams in the fall for girls and spring for boys.  Typically the club will have 2 or 3 girls high school teams and 2 boys teams. 

How many players are on one team? Starting in the fall of 2009, U8 boys will play 7v7 while U8 girls play 6v6.  The ideal team size is 9 or 10 players, up to a maximum of 12.  U9 and U10 teams play 7v7,  team size is ideally 10 to 12, with a maximum of 14.  U11 and U12 play 9v9, team size is ideally 13 or 15.  The maximum allowable is 18 for all U13 and older teams.

How is a player selected for a GSC team? Each June the club holds tryouts.  All current Glenview Soccer Club players must tryout each year.  Players are evaluated by Glenview Soccer Club coaches and independent evaluators on a variety of soccer and physical skills.

Do current Glenview Players get preference for next year's teams? No, the teams are selected based on the evaluators best estimates of fielding the most competitive teams.  This usually means the best players make the top teams, but not always, as effort, attendence, and attitude are also considered.  Glenview Soccer Club tries to find a team for all players who try out, depending on the number of players at a given age. 

How much time does the Glenview Soccer Club program take? Each team plays a ten game season in the fall and a eight game season in the spring.   Most Glenview Soccer Club teams practice two times each week for 1 1/2 hours per practice.  Most teams also participate in one tournament in the fall and one tournament in the spring.  Indoor soccer is not formally part of the Glenview Soccer Club program but players who are not doing other sports in the winter have the opportunity to participate in indoor training sessions offered at the Lattof YMCA. 

Who are the coaches and how are they selected? All GSC teams will have professional paid coaches.  The coaches are experienced in soccer fundamentals, and many played at professional, semi-pro or collegiate levels.  You can see bios of some of the club's current coaches on the Coaches page. Coaches are hired by the club following submission of a job application and completion of an interview process.  The Director of Coaching, makes the final hiring decisions, with oversight from the the Board of Directors. 

How competitive is the Glenview Soccer Club? Glenview Soccer Club competes against the top youth soccer teams in Chicagoland and Northern Illinois.   All the top youth boys teams in Northeastern Illinois compete in the YSSL or NISL, and all the top youth girls teams in Northern Illinois compete in the IWSL. 

When are games played? Most games are scheduled for weekend afternoons.  The boys usually play on Saturdays and the girls usually play on Sundays.  Typically, half of the games are played in Glenview and the remaining half are played on the road against other teams in the area.  High School age teams usually play on Sunday mornings.