- UnitedGoals USA Newsletter
- Posts
- Is Your Player Behind—or Just Born Later?
Is Your Player Behind—or Just Born Later?
Inside: the Relative Age Effect in youth soccer, a 3-player passing drill you can run anywhere, our 2026 tournaments, and spotlights on Goal Diggers, United FC & Rockwood SC.
Colin Gorini
December 30, 2025
Good morning,
My goal with every email is simple: to share my passion for youth soccer and the community that makes it thrive.
I hope you enjoy it, and I’d love to hear your feedback.
Coach’s Corner: 3-Player Passing & Footwork Drill
This 3-player drill is perfect for working quick, accurate one-touch passes and sharp footwork. You can run it almost anywhere and rack up a ton of touches and sneak in fitness for your players.
Points of Emphasis: Rotate the passer every two minutes, make players call for the ball before receiving, and change the footwork pattern with each rotation.
Parents’ Corner: Soccer and the Relative Age Effect
In the book Outliers, author Malcolm Gladwell shows how a disproportionate number of elite Canadian hockey players are born between January and March, simply because the cutoff date is January 1. Those kids start out as the oldest in their age group, a bit more physically and cognitively mature, so they’re more likely to be noticed, get selected for top teams, receive better coaching, and keep compounding ahead.
The same “Relative Age Effect” appears across many sports and levels, including soccer. Research consistently finds that players born earlier in the selection year are overrepresented on elite youth and pro rosters (Source: National Library of Medicine).
If your player has a “younger” birthday in their age group, remember—being smaller or slower right now often reflects the calendar more than their long-term potential.
Note: USYS is shifting to a school year cut-off (August 1 - July 31) starting with the 2026-27 season.
Build Your 2026 Tournament Schedule
We already have 11+ UnitedGoals USA youth soccer tournaments locked in across Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and North Carolina—with more on the way. Take a look at the 2026 lineup and start planning which events your team wants to circle now.
Team of the Week: Goal Diggers - U14 Girls
Goal Diggers entered the 2025 4v4 Lyco Legends Cup (now the 4v4 Clover Cup) and dominated a strong U14 girls bracket that featured several top NorCenPenn programs. They went 2–0 in group play, outscoring opponents 11–3, rolled through their semifinal, and edged Lyco Alliance in a tight final to claim the title. Congratulations, ladies! |
Team of the Week: United FC - U14 Boys
The U14 Boys division at the 2025 7v7 Colonial Classic was razor-close. United FC opened with a 2–2 draw against OHPA U14, followed it with a 1–1 draw versus Montour, and then exploded for a 7–1 win to reach the championship—a rematch with OHPA. This time, United FC finished the job with a 3–1 victory to take first. Well done, gentlemen! |
Nominate Your Team for a Spotlight
We feature two programs every week — reply with your team’s story.
Community Spotlight: Rockwood Soccer Club
Rockwood Soccer Club, based in Rockwood, PA (a town of about 800 people roughly 70 miles southeast of Pittsburgh), is dedicated to offering a high-quality, inclusive soccer experience that builds community and supports local youth athletes.
We were honored to host their U9, U12, and U13 boys at the 2025 7v7 Colonial Classic. The U13s finished as runners-up, and all three teams enjoyed taking in a Pittsburgh Riverhounds match the night before. Their players, parents, and coaches were fantastic to work with all weekend—we wish Rockwood SC all the best in 2026 and hope to see them back soon.
Join Us in Growing the Game
If you know a coach, parent, player, or fan who would enjoy this, please forward it along and invite them to subscribe.
And if you ever want to share feedback, reply to this email — I read every response.
Here’s to Building American Soccer Together.
Warmly,
Colin Gorini
Founder, UnitedGoals USA
[email protected]
unitedgoalsusa.com
