Everything You Need to Know About GA and ECNL Girls
It’s no secret that colleges are extremely selective when it comes to women’s soccer. If you want a real shot at getting recruited, your athletic resumé must be nothing short of impeccable.
So, how does a young player build such a resumé? By playing for the most elite youth soccer league in the nation, of course.
The only problem is…there are currently two leagues that are contesting for that title. The Girls Academy (GA) and the Elite Clubs National League (ECNL) have been dueling to be the No. 1 league for young women looking to play college soccer.
Here’s everything you need to know about each league so you can figure out how to choose the best option for your athletic journey:
What is the Girls Academy?
Girls Academy was founded in 2020 following the discontinuation of the U.S. Soccer Development Academy (DA). A renowned and highly competitive youth soccer program, the DA was shut down during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Once the DA was shut down, many of the program’s top youth soccer clubs joined the ECNL. Other clubs, however, decided to form their own league, and that’s what became Girls Academy.
Today, GA consists of over 90 clubs spread across ten conferences all over the United States.
What is the Elite Clubs National League?
The Elite Clubs National League was founded in 2009 as an alternative to the U.S. Youth Soccer Association’s Olympic Development Program (ODP).
Up until fairly recently, ECNL was one of the most well-respected leagues for young women and men, with more than 10,000 players nationwide. Like the GA, the ECNL is made up of ten regional conferences, each of which consists of 12-18 clubs.
In addition to regular-season games and playoffs, the ECNL offers an annual National Training Camp, in which the league’s top players come together for a week of training and competition.
Which is More Competitive?
Here’s where it gets complicated. Both leagues offer high quality coaching and do a great job developing their players so they can reach their full potential. Both leagues also provide ample opportunities to attract interest from college scouts and coaches.
So, if you’re trying to figure out which league has better players, coaches, and facilities, there’s no clear-cut answer. You can find equally impressive players and coaches in both leagues.
This decision of which league is preferrable often comes down to a single factor: where you live. The most elite soccer clubs in your region will either be in the GA or ECNL. In one part of the U.S., GA could have better players and coaches, whereas in another region, ECNL could have the top talent by a long shot.
Other Factors to Consider
Compared to GA, ECNL is larger and more established. There’s more teams spread across more regions, which means there’s a higher likelihood that your region’s top clubs will be in the ECNL.
And if you look at what leagues most of the players entering the college ranks are playing, ECNL has a correspondingly higher percentage than GA.
Weighing Your Options
Speaking as former pros, we wish we could give you a better answer than “It depends on your region.” But this is really how it works. In order to figure out which league to pursue, you have to research the players and coaches in your local clubs.
Let’s say you have two clubs in your region, one in the GA, and the other in the ECNL. You might find out one club has had massive coach turnover over the past three years. And while it might be playing in what seems as the more ‘elite’ league, a good coach well connected to college coaches in what is seen as the ‘lower’ league may realistically have better prospects for you. These are the kind of factors that should influence players to choose one league over another rather than the perception of which one is better.
In the end, we always encourage that finding the ‘right’ team is more important than finding the ‘best’ team. This often leads to more fun, more confidence, and higher internal motivation…which leads to bigger and better opportunities for the next level.
If you’re having trouble deciding which league is the right fit for you, we are here to help. We’re happy to share our up-to-date knowledge of both leagues and our own experience as young athletes to guide you to the best option for you as a player. Let’s set up a mentoring session so you don’t have to make this life-changing decision on your own.
