Space City Futbol Club-International Soccer Development Center (ISDC) Relationship. Frequently Asked Questions

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1 Space City Futbol Club-International Soccer Development Center (ISDC) Relationship Frequently Asked Questions General Questions Player Registration Questions Questions Regarding Training Team Formation Questions Questions Regarding the SCFC-ISDC Relationship Other Questions General Questions 1) What is the International Soccer Development Center? The International Soccer Development Center (ISDC) is a for-profit Texas limited liability company headed by John Davies, ISDC president, with an address of 1156 Fox Meadow Drive, Alvin, TX This is the address of the new soccer complex also named the International Soccer Development Center. You will see ISDC used to refer to both the company and the soccer complex. You can find can find complete, up-to-date information at their website: 2) What is the International Soccer Academy? The International Soccer Academy (ISA) is an elite training program for youth players in the U11-U24 age groups offered by ISDC. ISA will provide a level of service for the soccer player that intends to compete at a level higher than college (professional, semi-professional, etc.) and will complement SCFC programming. With the completion of an agreement, SCFC will be the youth soccer club that benefits from ISDC. See more about the SCFC-ISA relationship in the FAQs below. 3) What are the benefits to SCFC of entering into any agreements with ISDC? What are the risks? In regards to a field use agreement with ISDC, SCFC receives a benefit in being the primary user of the fields, which we will use as our Competitive Program training center. SCFC professional staff will be in one location, which allows them to better support our players and each other and allows our executive director to perform oversight duties much more effectively. SCFC players will also be exposed to international caliber players that will also train at the complex. Another key benefit for SCFC is that the club did not incur the risk of putting up the capital or taking out a loan to build our own soccer complex. Instead, SCFC is finalizing a field use agreement with ISDC, whom incurred the risk and was able to build the fields. In regards to any agreement with ISDC concerning training programs for our competitive players, SCFC will benefit by allowing our players to be trained not only by John Davies and our current staff, but also ISA staff such as John Spencer, a former English Premier League (Chelsea and Everton) and Major League Soccer (Colorado) player, Houston Dynamo assistant coach and Portland Timbers head coach. Keep in mind that not only will SCFC U11-U18 Competitive players benefit, our U4, U5-U6, U7-U10 SHAL, U9 & U10 SHALPlus, and U11-U16 Recreational players benefit because this will free up field space at our Clear Lake, Friendswood, and League City regional complexes. In short, the new 1

2 complex benefits our whole club. 4) Is John Davies also affiliated with Space City Futbol Club? Doesn t that present a conflict of interest? John Davies is employed by Space City Futbol Club (SCFC) as the Director of the Competitive Boys. He serves under the direction of Randy Evans, SCFC s Executive Director and head of our programming. SCFC and ISDC will enter into a services agreement that will provide SCFC with primary field use status. All agreements must be approved by the SCFC Board of Directors, as will any agreement concerning SCFC and ISDC. The board will only agree if it deems an agreement beneficial to the club, its players and its members. Any agreement will include language that protects SCFC interests. 5) Why does SCFC need ISDC? Why does ISDC need SCFC? Neither entity needs the other. However, both entities feel a relationship is mutually beneficial. A relationship with ISDC affords SCFC primary user of the new soccer complex, the advantages of which are mentioned above. A relationship with ISDC and ISA allows for our players to be able to attend ISA programming as described in Question 2. ISDC will mature faster with a stable soccer club becoming the primary user of the new soccer complex. John Davies has a relationship with SCFC and wanted to work with SCFC in providing the opportunity on a field use agreement and to work out an agreement for training of competitive level players. Ultimately, this allows SCFC and ISDC to provide two complementary levels of soccer to the community. SCFC is the provider in the nonprofit market area, ISDC is the provider in the for profit area. 6) Is my player s team going to disband due to teammates playing for ISA instead? No, the majority of teams are unaffected by the addition of an ISA option. ISA players need to have a gaming league in which the players can show their success, but as a for profit entity, they cannot compete in the South Texas Youth Soccer Association. Therefore ISA players, at the U11-U14 age groups, will play for SCFC on the weekends (technically they can play for any EDDOA club, but there is no additional cost if they are an SCFC player). There may be some players who decide to train 5 nights a week and play only tournaments, at the U15 and above ages but that is not anticipated to be a large number. 7) Will ISA have teams? Will they wear SCFC uniforms? Yes, the International Soccer Academy (ISA) will have teams. The present plan for uniforms is that SCFC teams will play in our normal SCFC uniform kit when competing in STYSA sanctioned events. ISA teams will wear ISA uniforms when competing in ISA events. 8) Is it true that SCFC will become a base feeder rec program for ISA and that there will be no competitive boys program at SCFC? No. That is not true at all. SCFC will maintain our programming for competitive players from U11- U19 and will maintain the professional staff to train players. International Soccer Academy (ISA) will be for players that are interested in the ISA level of play. Keep in mind that ISA cannot have teams in STYSA, SCFC can. 2

3 Player Registration Questions 9) Do I have a choice to register with SCFC or ISA? Registering with SCFC registers you for tryouts for our competitive program. If selected, you will compete in the STYSA/EDDOA gaming league and practice with Space City per our normal policies. ISA U11-U14s will play in EDDOA. If you want to play in ISA and are U11-U14 you will have to register with an EDDOA club. You will have to be evaluated by whichever club. Attending SCFC tryouts is the most convenient and affordable way to accomplish that. SCFC will work with ISA to recommend players (age U11-U19) that meet the ISA criteria. Registering for ISA registers you for tryouts for ISA only. If selected, you will practice 5 days a week with ISA and play tournaments per ISA policies in addition to your SCFC play. SCFC players will already be evaluated for ISA and do not need to register separately. 10) Will participation in SCFC and ISA result in my having to pay double the fees I currently pay? No. The fees you will pay for your player to participate in both SCFC and ISA will be similar to what you currently pay for playing in the SCFC competitive program. 11) What if I don't want to play for SCFC and receive five days a week training only? All ISA U11-U14s will play in EDDOA whether they are in SCFC or not. Technically, a player could play for another EDDOA club and with the ISA, although we (SCFC) have arranged it so it doesn't cost an ISA player any extra to play EDDOA for us. If a U15 and up player wants to train with ISA five days per week and participate in ISA tournaments only, the player would register with ISA separately (at the same cost as registering for SCFC). 12) If players of ISA want to play in a league, with whom do they register? Couldn t they just register with South Belt or Alvin, for example, thus avoiding the SCFC cost? ISA players that want to play with the STYSA leagues can register with any STYSA club they want. However, in addition to the ISA fees, those players will have to pay whatever the club fees are for that other club. SCFC and ISA have arranged it so that SCFC players playing for ISA are not paying any additional registration costs. 13) Who covers additional travel costs? If a player is playing with ISA, those costs are paid per the ISA agreements. Questions Regarding Training 14) Will there continue to be pooled practices or will each team practice together? SCFC does not propose a change to its training format. Will each team have a designated coach at training? SCFC pro staff training will remain as it currently exists, but the new complex will enable SCFC to provide cross training with teams and pro staff. 15) ISA says training is 5 days a week.what if I can t make it 5 days a week on a regular basis? That will be between the player and ISA; however, if you can t make it 5 days a week, perhaps this programming is not right for you. See the ISA site regarding player and parent 3

4 commitment. 16) If I m assigned to a SCFC team will training schedules interfere? If you are assigned to an SCFC team and are an ISA player, then SCFC and ISA will work out an appropriate training schedule that will minimize interference. 17) ISA asks for a commitment from players; if those players are assigned to SCFC teams are they equally committed to those teams or will ISA functions take precedence? It is obviously our intent to avoid conflicts, but the priority of these events will be worked out by the SCFC/ISA staff. 18) Will competitive training still take place where they have been this year and years past, e.g. at DFF or will players have to go to the ISDC in Alvin for their regular practices? John Davies anticipates having the fields match ready by this summer but if it takes more time we can always operate out of the other facilities until ISDC fields are ready. Team Formation Questions 19) SCFC tryouts are May for the U11-U13 age groups and June 3-4 for the U14-U18 age groups with acceptance required soon after. ISA tryouts are in June. How will this be handled? The general process will be for SCFC teams to be formed. Some of these players may be invited to train with ISA. If they are invited to play with ISA and accept, SCFC and ISA will work out the appropriate mechanism for rostering the players to ISA while maintaining their ability to play for SCFC. 20) Who decides team formation, SCFC or ISA? SCFC decides SCFC team formation; ISA decides ISA team formation. 21) If I join ISA, will I be assigned to a SCFC team? If ISA accepts a player and those players can participate on an SCFC team and get game experience, then yes, those players would be assigned to SCFC teams. However, any evaluations of players and assignments to an SCFC team will be managed with SCFC professional staff members. 22) If I don t join ISA will I be bumped off a team by ISA players? Even if I m a better player? In other words will ISA players be given preference on the presumption that they ll get better due to increased training? SCFC staff will address these situations as they arise. Questions Regarding the SCFC-ISDC Relationship 23) If John Davies chooses trainers, then what role does Randy Evans have with the boys? SCFC maintains responsibility for SCFC training. John Davies is currently the Director of the SCFC Competitive Boys. The future will operate very similarly with John making day to day training decisions with Randy Evans providing oversight for the overall SCFC Competitive Program 24) Are the good teams going to be branded as SCFC teams or ISA teams? Why do we need two brands at all why aren t all teams SCFC? All teams that play in our competitive program are 4

5 SCFC teams. See the answer to Question 5 as well. 25) How do ISDC sponsorships with Nike, Ron Carter, Gatorade, etc. help SCFC? Sponsorships allow ISDC to keep its costs down, and pass that benefit along to SCFC in the form of lower costs for field use. 26) If ISA did operate the boys program would SCFC still be able to roster all the boys teams for EDDOA play? ISA will not operate the boys program. SCFC will use ISDC trainers, but SCFC will maintain control of the program. 27) If I play for the ISA would I still need to try out for a SCFC team? Yes, ISA players can register with SCFC and play with an SCFC team subject to an evaluation by SCFC professional staff member. Other Questions 28) Are ISA staff registered and cleared by background checks to serve as drivers, coaching staff, etc? That is an ISA decision. Staff and volunteers working with SCFC players are registered via KidSafe and receive background checks. 5