Boys Clubs National League (ECNL) - Rapids Elite

The Boys ECNL is made up of 90 member clubs. The purpose of this league is to support, and give clubs, full freedom in the development of some of their elite level players. It is a collaborative club-based development program that features competition, player identification, and coaching and club development platforms. The Rapids Youth Soccer Club is a part of the Mountain Conference, which is comprised of five other clubs.

The CRYSC Boys ECNL offers placement for 13U, 14U, 15U, 16U, 17U, and 18U/19U. ECNL placement involves both regular season conference games and cross-conference events, with qualifying teams advancing to post-season playoffs. Rapids Boys elite programming offers player identification, training and development opportunities for top players within each conference and coaching development programs.

Boys are welcome to participate in fall high school soccer, as ECNL conference competition typically takes place outside the high school season. Boys are welcome to participate in fall high school sports, as scheduling is done to avoid conflicts with high school soccer

Training will occur a minimum of 3 times per week. Travel is required for one trip to New Mexico and one trip to Utah. Travel is required for National Event competition. Qualifying teams will also attend the National Playoff Event in June and National Playoff League Finals in July.

The selection process for the CRYSC Boys ECNL teams is an ongoing process, but invite only. The coaching staff will select a full-time roster at the end of May for the 13U-15U age groups and at the beginning of August for the 16U-19U age groups. Certain players may be added as part-time players throughout the course of the season. Part-time players are allowed to play a certain number of games with the assigned ECNL team, and are allowed to train with them when their CRYSC team does not have training. We are constantly evaluating current CRYSC players in order to fulfill our promise in the player pathway.

For regular season and playoffs, players and families should expect:

• 13U-14U: About 12 travel games per year (6 Away Conference games, 3 Showcase, and 3 Playoff games)
• 15U-19U: About 15 travel games per year (6 Away Conference games, 6 Showcase, and 3 National Playoff games)

For travel events such as tournaments, players and families should expect:

• 13U-14U: 2 Travel Events Per Year (1 Showcase / 1 National Playoff Final)
• 15U-19U – 3-4 Travel Events Per Year (2-3 Showcase + 1 National Playoff)

Travel expenses for events can range from $800-$2,300 depending on the event location and the length of the event. Estimate costs are:

• League Travel: $800 – $1,000 per trip
• National Event Travel: $1,000 to $1,300 per trip
• Playoff Travel: $1,600 to $1,700
• National Event Registration Fee: $1,600 per event (National Event registration fee is split evenly among all full-time players)
• Home Referee Fees: $140 to $175 per game (Referee fees are split evenly among players who play in the game)

We follow traditional team travel for our ECNL teams. This means teams will travel, stay and participate together for the entire event.  The entire event is classified as when the player arrives at the home airport to when the player returns to the baggage claim at the home airport. We feel group travel is important for many reasons.  Some of these benefits are (but not limited to):

• Reduces costs for the majority of families not having to travel with their child
• Deepens player relationships both on and off the field.
• Efficiency of traveling with everyone together and being on the same schedule/itinerary.
• Our teams represent the Club and State of Colorado on a national level and it teaches them the responsibility of representing more than just themselves.

It is not always easy to get flights and hotel arrangements for large groups and of course, it is always our goal to make these trips as cost-efficient as possible for all our families. When airfare is purchased, the cost of the tickets is averaged among all traveling teams so that teams are not penalized for having specific flight requirements. When purchasing a group ticket, we are ensuring that each player pays the same price, not that the first players to book pay the cheapest and the last players to book pay the most. Many times we have to purchase flights at different times because of the number of available seats. 

Families may find a less expensive ticket when they are buying one or two tickets at a time or when choosing a different airline. We choose to fly on airlines that allow for the teams and coaches to check additional luggage/balls/cameras, etc. without incurring additional fees, airlines who don’t charge an additional fee for seat selection and airlines that allow for name changes close to departure dates at no extra charge. Our tickets also come with special assistance should a team get stranded and need assistance with flight cancellation, rebooking, hotel, etc.   

Below is a list of the team fees players are responsible for:

• Airfare, hotel, rental car(s), gas, meals/snacks, coach and chaperone(s) airfare, coach and chaperone(s) hotel, chaperone meals w/team, coach per diem and National Event registration fee (when applicable).  
• Airfare, hotel and per diem for the Boys Elite Program Director and the Elite Director of Goalkeeping when they travel.  This expense is equally shared by all teams who are traveling with them.  

Colorado Rapids Youth Soccer Club Elite programming follows a strict no-refund policy. Once you and your player accept an invitation for a Rapids Elite 11U/12U, ECNL, EDS, or Futsal team, and make a payment, all registrations are non-refundable. The refund policy is in place for a reason. It allows us to budget appropriately and provides coaches, facilities, administration, and additional resources that are necessary to run a non-profit youth sports organization.

If your player tries out and is invited to join a United Futsal team, and is later placed on a training team only, you may opt not to participate in the program and receive a refund of your initial registration fee. 

The club may, however, in its sole discretion, consider refund requests under the following: (1) a player moves more than 50 miles from a Colorado Rapids Youth Soccer Club region prior to the start of the season, (2) a player becomes injured or ill and can no longer participate in the season, or (3) any other exigent circumstances the club deems necessary or appropriate. Please note that in order for refund requests to be considered due to injury, such requests must be made within two weeks of the player’s injury/illness and must include a physician’s note for verification. No refunds will be provided for any reason after the third scheduled game of the season. All refunds, if granted, are subject to a processing fee.

Any travel expenses, including plane tickets, transportation, accommodations, coaches’ travel expenses, and coaches’ per diems purchased for team travel are non-refundable.

Thank you for your interest in the Rapids Boys ECNL program! If you would like to be contacted by the club with more information about the program please submit your information in the interest form below. We look forward to communicating with you.