{"podcast":{"title":"Chasing the Game - Youth Soccer in America","slug":"chasing-the-game-youth-soccer-in-america-7528250","podcast_index_feed_id":7528250,"rss_url":"https://feeds.transistor.fm/chasing-the-game","website_url":"https://www.chasingthegame.us","image_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/4Xne-FSh01iD2s8m_-NH8nbG0PHW7JxI0AKsxID8Mvc/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:1400/h:1400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS9kZWVh/ODMyNzJlMTg1NDQ3/NWZmZjlhOTAwOWEy/ZGJmYy5wbmc.jpg","author":"Liron Unreich","episode_count":30,"summary":"Chasing the Game: Youth Soccer in America is a weekly podcast for soccer parents, coaches, and players who want to understand how youth soccer development really works in the United States. Hosted by two dads, filmmaker Liron Unreich and investor Matt Tartaglia, the show covers everything from grassroots soccer to elite pathways like MLS NEXT and ECNL. Combining data, real experience, and expert insights from academy directors, college coaches, and former pros, each episode explains what families truly need to know. Weekly episodes focus on the core aspects of youth soccer: player development, coaching culture, college recruiting, tryouts, travel costs, and the challenges of youth sports parenting in today’s competitive environment. For families navigating youth soccer’s complex system, Chasing the Game offers practical advice, credible voices, and relatable stories from two dads working to make sense of American player development, one episode at a time.","last_synced_at":null,"page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/chasing-the-game-youth-soccer-in-america-7528250"},"episode":{"title":"MLS NEXT Academy: How Far Should Parents Go? | Justin Phelps","slug":"mls-next-academy-how-far-should-parents-go-justin-phelps","published_at":"2026-03-04T11:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/chasing-the-game-youth-soccer-in-america-7528250/mls-next-academy-how-far-should-parents-go-justin-phelps","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/chasing-the-game-youth-soccer-in-america-7528250","url":"https://share.transistor.fm/s/ac7f29c1","audio_url":"https://media.transistor.fm/ac7f29c1/b5e49c9e.mp3","summary":"How far should a family go for elite youth soccer? In this episode of Chasing the Game: Youth Soccer in America, Liron Unreich and Matt Tartaglia talk with Justin Phelps about the real cost of pursuing an MLS NEXT academy opportunity and how that decision can affect family life. They discuss relocation, long commutes, emotional strain, routines, pressure, academy environment, and the difference between a strong badge and a truly developmental setting. This episode is for soccer parents navigating MLS NEXT, ECNL, academy decisions, relocation questions, and the difficult line between supporting a child’s ambition and protecting the family around it. https://chasingthegame.us (00:00) - Cold open. The 13 year old roommate (00:45) - MLS NEXT and environment. Why families relocate (01:38) - Who is Justin. Soccer HQ, outsider dad learning the game (03:03) - The Orlando City Academy call (05:00) - The U13 jump. physicality, speed, confidence (10:00) - The family math. travel, money, emotional cost (15:00) - Apartment life. routines, pressure, staying positive (24:08) - My roommate is my 13 year old son (24:42) - The omelet moment (33:20) - How to evaluate an academy. signals that matter (44:37) - Advice to the Zillow parent. before you move (48:40) - What we learned. next steps Click here to view the episode transcript.","meta_description":"How far should a family go for elite youth soccer? In this episode of Chasing the Game: Youth Soccer in America, Liron Unreich and Matt Tartaglia talk wit…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":3001,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/chasing-the-game-youth-soccer-in-america-7528250/episodes/mls-next-academy-how-far-should-parents-go-justin-phelps/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/chasing-the-game-youth-soccer-in-america-7528250/mls-next-academy-how-far-should-parents-go-justin-phelps.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}