Project 2016 Program
The Chicago Fire Juniors unveil their latest evolution in youth soccer. Putting the development of its youngest players first, the CFJ will select U8 Boys and U8 Girls to be a part of Project 2016 which is named after the year these young players could potentially graduate into the Chicago Fire Academy.
Director of Coaching, Trey Bradberry the co-founder and developer of the program, will be the head coaches of the 2016 program. "Placing a club's top coaching resources with the youngest players is something that just isn’t done in the US. Economics, coaching agenda and a "win at all cost" mentality – even at these ages – are just some of the reasons our players are not getting the soccer foundation they need. This is certainly a step in the right direction and an investment in player development the Chicago Fire Juniors are taking very seriously", said Sunderland. The P-2016 players will train year-round, twice per week in season plus regular league matches. They will train once per week during the indoor season as well as taking part in a developmental indoor league. The group will participate in a minimum of one tournament as well as various developmentally appropriate playing opportunities.
Players are selected for the Project 2016 (maximum 20 U8 Boys and 20 U8 Girls) program at our regular U8 tryout. These tryouts are an evaluation of current ability and every effort is made to find a roster spot for all U8 players. However, the Project 2016 is a selection of the current top Boys and Girls from all players U8 present at tryouts (evaluations).
Project 2017 and the future...
Each year a new project group will be selected at tryouts. The 2010-11 group will called project 2018 coached by Stewart Betitnson. Each year a project 2019, 2020, 2021 will be created depending on talent and numbers.
Please visit our tryout section for more information on date, time and location of U8 tryouts (evaluations) and for pre-registration information.
