What is SK United?

• SK United is the select/premier division of the South Kitsap Soccer Club.  While both divisions play competitive soccer, United is a year-round program and targets those players who love the game of soccer and want to experience higher levels of competition.  

• United’s season begins in late May, following tryouts, and involves a summer training/tournament season, a fall season, and a spring season.  Training occurs year-round, with May’s tryouts marking the start and end of the year’s programming.

• The number of teams formed and the composition of those teams varies each year based upon the pool of players at tryouts.  While we attempt to form true-age teams whenever possible, we sometimes combine two birth years to form a team. 

• Practices will look different than what you have experienced with recreational programs.  Our program staff and your coaches develop specific training plans to target specific developmental goals based upon the age and competition level of the players.  Expectations for attendance, focus, effort and progress are higher than what you may have experienced before.

• The time-commitment is greater in select/premier programs than in recreational programs.  Your commitment to the team is not to be taken lightly and you are expected to attend trainings and games to support the team.  However, we recognize that family, school, and church commitments are more important than your athletic interests and we will respect your need to schedule accordingly.

• While SKSC recreational and SK United are both competitive soccer programs, the goals are different.  In recreational programs, the primary goal is “fun” and all players should be receiving equal play-time.  With United, the primary goal is “development” of the individual and the team and as a result, playing time will not be equal.  Players earn roles as “starters” through technical and tactical ability, effort, athletic aptitude, positional support, and through their ability to “make the team better”. 

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What league does SK United play in?

• SKSC is one of the few clubs in the area that is dual-affiliated with both Washington Youth Soccer and the U.S. Club System. 

• Most of our SK United teams play under the U.S. Club system through the Washington Premier League (WPL).  US Club represents the highest levels of competition available within the state through the ECNL.

• Washington Premier League is the fastest growing league in the state with over 2,000 teams.  

• WPL is organized into three main levels of competition, with multiple divisions possible within each level:

  • Copa

  • Classic

  • Super-League

• Most of our opponents during the season are located within the greater Puget Sound area, usually within 90 minutes of travel from South Kitsap.

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What is the difference between Washington Premier League and the RCL?  How do they compare with each other?

• Clubs in Washington belong to either Washington Your Soccer (the “RCL system”) or the US Club system.

• WYS and RCL clubs (Gig Harbor Premier, Kitsap Alliance, etc.) are able to field teams at competitive divisions 1 through 4, with 1 being the highest. 

• WPL uses Copa, Classic and Super League divisions.

• Most local RCL teams are Division 3, with a few age groups fielding Division 2 teams.

• Most of our SK United teams start at Copa 1.  Our Copa 1 teams have competed regularly against RCL 3 and 2 teams in local tournaments and scrimmages and have shown great success.

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What does the schedule look like?

• Registration for tryouts opens in January of each year. 

• Tryouts are held in May with several sessions broken down by age group.

• Offers for team acceptance go out immediately after the final tryout session for the age group.  Practices usually begin the following week.

• During the summer months, most teams will participate in three tournaments.  Tournaments are held over a single weekend (Fri-Sun) at various locations in Washington.  Some teams may choose to participate in “travel” tournaments but that is left to the discretion of the coaches and players/parents. 

• In recent years, we have participated in several tournaments at the Starfire Sports Complex in Renton.  This has allowed parents with players on more than one team to be able to consolidate attendance and allows our players a chance to support other United teams.

• Fall league play is a 10-game season that starts in early September for all teams under U14.  Most games are played on Saturday, with the potential for an occasional Sunday game.

• Following conclusion of the Fall season, we continue to train with a short break for the holidays in late December.

• Spring league is an 8-game season which starts in early February and ends in late March. 

• High school girls play a single 10-game Winter season which begins in November and ends in April.

• High school boys have a fall and spring season with an earlier start date for the fall season.

• After the conclusion of spring league, teams may continue to train but the focus shifts towards preparing for tryouts.

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What is the difference between select/premier?

• In theory, select teams should represent lower levels of competition, cost, time commitments and training expectations than premier teams. 

• For the RCL system, select teams are supposed to compete at a lower division than their respective RCL club (Gig Harbor or Kitsap Alliance) and opportunities for higher levels of competition occur when the select team sends their players “up to” the RCL.

• Within the US Club/WPL system, there is no such limitation.  A team can enter in at Copa, progress through Classic, and end up at Super League play at a national level, all without having to change clubs.

• SK United has historically been characterized as a “select” program, but we have grown into a premier-level offering that is comparable to Gig Harbor Premier or Kitsap Alliance.

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How does SK United compare to other local programs in value and performance?

• SK United offers the same number of games, the same tournament experiences, the same level of training, and staff members who have similar levels of experience and training when compared to other clubs like Kitsap Alliance and Gig Harbor Premier.

• Over the last few years, our teams have consistently won WPL Copa 1 divisions and several major tournament finishes.

• Our players are routinely selected for JV and Varsity teams at South Kitsap High School, Peninsula, Gig Harbor, North Mason and Central Kitsap High School.

• We believe that too many families are “priced out” of competitive sports so we prioritize low cost programming with “all-inclusive” registration fees.

  • Our fee for the 2022/23 season will be $800.  Other than a uniform kit (about $150 for the full kit), there are no extra fees like tournament costs, travel costs, coach fees, coach travel expenses, etc.  $800 covers ALL expenses for the entire year.

  • Local RCLs and select/premier programs start at over $2,000, not including team dues and other expenses.

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What is the plan for the 2009 and 2010 boys?

• SK United fielded a combined age group 2009-2010 boys team in the fall and has a number of openings on the roster for the spring season.  Our ultimate goal for this team has been to split it into two true-age teams.

• On paper, the raw numbers are there to support the formation of two teams.  However, I have decided that we will remain with a single combined team for the remainder of the 2021/22 season.  Why?

  • While the raw numbers are there, we have a number of players that are still determining whether they are fully committed to league play, or are just wanting to train and possibly guest play in order to see what United entails.

  • While the talent pool is solid, we have a gap in technical and tactical skills to overcome.  Splitting into two teams for February league play doesn’t allow us time to build team strength and cohesiveness across both teams.

  • Spring always presents attendance challenges due to other sports, school, and family.  And of course, Covid related quarantines.  Historically, we often have several players who are missing on a given week, necessitating larger roster sizes and guest players.

  • Registration for spring league is due on December 20, which simply doesn’t allow the time necessary to evaluate other options.

• Currently, we have 11 returning players and approximately another 20 players who have been attending practices and have indicated an interest in joining the program.

  • ALL interested players will be eligible to participate with the team and train through the end of the season and tryouts in May. 

  • The 11 players returning from the fall season will have “first-rights” to game attendance.

  • We will identify another 10 to 15 players who we will register and card for spring league play.  These players will fill the remaining game-day roster openings throughout the season.

  • While not everyone will have the opportunity to participate in spring league play, everyone will be treated as part of the team and be eligible for all team activities and training. 

  • Players who are selected for game-day roster openings will be identified before January 9.

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Will there be any costs associated with training this spring or spring-league play?

• Any player who plans to pursue either spring or 2022/23 play with SK United will have all registration fees covered in full for the remainder of the program year (through May’s tryouts). 

• Players who are selected to fill spring-league roster openings on a regular basis will need to purchase a SK United home and away jersey.

  • The jerseys are customized with the player’s name and number and are ordered through a third-party vendor.

  • Jersey tops are approximately $38 each.  Shorts are also available but not necessary (black shorts are fine).

  • I have a few spare sets of jerseys that I will loan to guest players who are filling in openings on a less frequent basis.

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What action do I need to take?

• Please complete the brief questionnaire at the link below which will allow me to get a better idea as to everyone’s interest level and get everyone registered through GotSport (the system that is used for player registration and carding)

  • If you do not have a GotSport account currently, you will receive an email to activate your account.  Please activate the account quickly and complete the following items:

    • Ensure name, date of birth, address and phone # are entered and correct.

    • Upload an identification photo to the profile (head shot only).

    • Upload a copy of your birth certificate.

    • Complete the medical waiver.

  • If you already have an account but did NOT play with SK United last year, please check your profile to make sure that the above information is all correct and complete.

  • If you played with SK United last year, no further action is necessary.