Vestavia Hills Soccer Club Overview- 2016

Thank you for requesting an overview of our club, and the great partnership we have with the city. Here is a brief synopsis of our programs, community givebacks, fiscal history, as well as resident/ non- resident breakdown.

What We Do:

Mini Kickers- soccer for 3 and 4 year olds.... we had over 150 participate in 2014-15.

Recreational Soccer- U6 all the way up to U18 age groups

Competitive Soccer- starts with our U11’s; oldest group is our U18 teams.

Pele Program- professional coaching for our U9’s & U10’s

Recreational Skills Sessions- provided free of charge to all U8-U12 recreational players by nationally acclaimed Corver Coaching. These sessions are held weekly at both Central and Liberty Park, fall and Spring.

Goalkeeper Training- specialized instruction for our ‘Keepers, recreational and competitive…..with weekly clinics and sessions both fall and spring- provided free of charge to all club keepers.

Liberty Cup and VIT Tournament- over 100 teams from across the southeast participate each August, and another 75-85 each February.

Mayor’s Cup- this 3 v 3 tournaments is a great annual event; last year we had over 120 teams compete- an estimated 800 people who came through the park to participate in not only soccer but also the added attractions that included inflatables, a jumpy house, face painting, and an obstacle course.

Got Skills? Soccer Camp- recreational camp in July drew 75 participants.

The University of Soccer- high-level camp with college coaches from around the country working with our competitive players; we had 142 attendees last summer.

Soccer Festivus- this fun filled day a 2 Mile Fun Run, Exhibition Match, and all day scrimmages to get ready for the season.

Soccer Ball – this evening out for the parents is designed to raise money for the VHSC Financial Assistance program.

Master’s Soccer- every Wednesday night during the season(s) we have between 12-30 dads come out and play.

Free Programs/ Community Givebacks:

TopSoccer- we are getting ready to start our fourth season, over 150 special needs players have participated at the SHAC 5 field.

Jersey Sponsorship- for the 2014-2015 and the 2015-2016 seasons, the club donated its jersey sponsorship to The Bell Center, a local program for at risk infants.

Free ACT Classes- offered in the fall for all juniors and seniors free of charge, this program is in its 6th year, with over 60 players taking advantage of this opportunity each season. Thanks to the City of Vestavia for letting us use the SHAC meeting room all those Sunday nights!

Super Soccer Shows- we have been to every Vestavia City Elementary School multiple times, and have performed over 140 shows in the last five years. These shows stress life lessons like teamwork, effort, and making the right decisions.

Partnership with Cornerstone Ministries- We support this youth outreach program, as we help with equipment, training, scholarshipping players, and inter scheduling with their recreational program.

Team Adidas- this summer training program is free to all players who make one of the four training pools. In its sixth year, over 1140 players have benefited from the free summer program.

Reading Buddies- now in its 4th year, our senior staff goes into Vestavia Hills kindergartens and reads to the students on a weekly basis.

College Night- college coaches participate in a professional recruiting seminar for our high school aged competitive players.

Soccer by the Numbers

• $28,825 paid to Park and Recreation Department by VHSC for Spring 2016 player participation fees

• over 1100 registered players for Spring 2016, with 1286 already signed up for this fall…..and we should get in another 100 by close of registration.

• $11,000 paid Summer 2015 for field work at Liberty Park and Central, over $8000 for 2016. On average, we allocated $10,000 yearly for field upgrades that the city contract does not cover.

• $10,000 yearly for naming rights to field #3 at the SHAC (which we named in honor of long time Vestavia youth sports supporter Mike Freeman), for a total pledge of $100,000.

• $44,000 spent on soccer goals and nets in the last three years

• Significant lodging and sales tax revenues generated through Liberty Cup Tournament and VIT.

• $150,000 paid to the Sports Foundation from VHSC since 2003 to help pay for drainage repairs at Liberty Park (commitmentfulfilledFall2013)

• $100,000 contributed to the Sports Foundation in 2008, to help pay for full-sized athletic fields to be built at Patchwork Farms Sports Complex, this was when the city contemplated using Patchwork Farms for Athletic Fields. LI

In total, when you take into account the creation to build and light Central Field, almost $1,000,000 in capital improvements and pledges to the city have been allocated as a partner. This includes the full funding, building and lighting of Central Field; as well as

the drainage at Liberty Park, Patchwork Farms/ SHAC donations, field and equipment purchases, field maintenance, and the current pledge for SHAC field naming rights.

Where We Come From:

Our club is made up of mostly Vestavia residents, but due to the 6- man rule (actually called the 50% rule, enforced by the AHSAA), we are forced to market our top Division I program to players outside of the Vestavia Hills school district. We also continue to attract serious soccer players from outside of Alabama, and locally, to move to Vestavia Hills to be able to be closer to the top ranked program in the state. In the summer of 2016, seven of the 12 Alabama representatives at the Regional event were Vestavia Hills Soccer Club Soccer teams.