Northern Kentucky Soccer Academy

May 19-Ky Gov Beshear-Return to Play Update

Gov Beshear announces that Low-Contact Youth Sports may return to play with restrictions on June 15th.

Kentucky Youth Soccer has laid out guidelines for how youth soccer clubs and teams can safely return to fields.

NKSA will work to explore when and how our players and teams can take the fields.
See the links below for more information.

Updates will follow.

US Soccer Play On Guidelines

CDC-Considerations for Youth Sports

KY Soccer-Return to Play Guidelines

May 4 Update-Refund Options Form & 2020 Player Registration

As described in our email last week, the decisions made by government officials, state soccer associations, leagues and tournament directors forced the club to cancel in-person soccer activities for the remainder of the spring season. Virtual training activities and team video meetings will continue in May, including the introduction of a new Friday Night Webinar series.

Operating as a non-profit, the club will return all unused player fees for the 2019-2020 spring season. Unfortunately, the restrictions caused by COVID-19 came at the worst possible time for the club--at the start of the spring season. At that point, the club had already incurred costs for player registration fees, league fees, tournament fees, facility maintenance, insurance and other administrative expenses. Some of these expenses are not refundable. Other costs like canceled league and tournament fees were refunded to the club at less than 100% as those organizations kept part of the fees to cover their administrative expenses. As a result, the club is unable to provide full refunds for the spring season.

Refund amounts have been determined on a team by team basis, looking at the costs incurred by the club and team specific costs. Teams that started training, played some early league games, or participated in tournaments will receive a smaller refund. In addition, teams that were registered for leagues or tournaments which did not provide a full refund to NKSA for those fees will see a smaller refund.

*Please note individual refund amounts may be reduced by any outstanding balance a family member may have for this or any other team.

In order to process refunds, NKSA is requiring each family to complete a Refund Options Form (see the link below) indicating your preferred option for the amount listed above. A separate entry will be needed for each child, regardless of team or age group. If a Refund Option Form is not received prior to Monday, May 11th the designated refund for that account will be moved to a non-refundable credit towards 2020-2021 player fees.

Refund Options Form:
https://forms.gle/w1PnLbdoHFudxj6d9

Even with the partial refunds offered, the club will deplete some of its reserve fund built over the past several years. Included in the Refund Options Form is the option to donate all or a portion of your refund to the club to help us maintain a reserve for unexpected expenses. We encourage you to consider the donation options if you are able to do so. A Charitable Donation Letter will be provided to anyone who wishes to utilize this for tax purposes. If you are not in a financial position to donate your refund at this time, we understand and appreciate your support.

You may also apply your refund as a credit for 2020-2021 player fees. Families choosing to apply their refund as a credit to next season’s player fees will be credited an additional 10% of the refund amount because this will help the club spread out the impact of the lost season and avoid future credit card processing fees that would be incurred if these funds were refunded now and then sent back to the club for the next soccer year. Team formation for the 2020-21 soccer year will occur at the end of May (details coming soon) and deposits to hold roster spots will be due in June.

One more way that you can help your soccer club that does not cost you anything: Registration for the 2020-2021 soccer year is currently open in our new Demosphere registration system. Families can register players by clicking on the link below. Please take the time to register now if your child intends to continue playing so the club can get an estimate on the number of returning players. This allows us to determine the resources we need for the year ahead like training fields, game fields and coaches. There is no cost to register.

Player Registration Link:
https://nksasoccer.demosphere-secure.com/_registration

On behalf of the entire board and our staff, we thank you again for your continued support of your player, their team and your soccer club. Stay healthy and safe and we hope to see you on the field again soon!

May 1 Update-NKSA Formally Announces Closing of 2020 Spring season

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the entire soccer community, with leagues, tournaments, and facilities suspending, cancelling, and/or closing. While the club had hoped to provide a return to league and tournament play in some fashion this spring, it is now apparent that this is not going to be possible. Most leagues and tournaments have now been cancelled for the spring season and Kentucky Youth Soccer Association has determined that no club soccer activities should take place before May 18th, a date that will likely be pushed again soon. For these reasons, the NKSA Board of Directors has decided it will no longer hold out hope of playing any league games or events during the spring season. The club will try to offer training and friendlies as described below once is determined to be safe to return to play.

With this decision, the club will now be able to complete the process of calculating refunds of unused player fees to all members as we start receiving refunds from leagues, events and other registration fees. Despite most of the spring season being cancelled, the club has incurred significant costs for facility maintenance, registration fees, league fees, tournament fees, insurance and other administrative costs. Unfortunately, most of these costs are not fully refundable to NKSA. As a result, the club will not be able to provide complete refunds for the spring season. Refund amounts will be determined on a team by team basis, looking at the costs incurred by the club and team specific costs. For example, some teams will receive less because they played some early league games or tournaments. A separate email will be sent out in the next week to each team which will provide that amount, as well as a Refund Options Form which must be filled out in order to process each family’s refund.

Like other non-profit organizations, NKSA has been significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. During this uncertain time, your support is more critical than ever. Being shut down has caused us to be unable to host our annual NKSA Spring Classic, which the club relies on to support operations. Included in the Refund Options Form will be the option to donate all or part of your refund to the club. We encourage you to consider this option if you are able. If you are not in a financial position to donate your refund at this time, we understand and appreciate your support.

As you know, the club has worked diligently to put together a program for our members to continue to develop while at home this spring. This will continue through May. In addition, when allowed and deemed safe, NKSA plans to provide training and friendly matches at no charge for existing players and teams who are interested. Individual teams may also decide to register and play in events rescheduled to the summer months, assuming any youth sporting events are allowed to take place this summer. We are also planning for the 2020-2021 soccer year and will provide more details on the tryout and team formation process in the next week.

April 13 Update

Earlier today KYS announced that their Kentucky Youth Soccer Board of Directors voted unanimously to suspend all state-run activities (Kentucky Premier League, 9U Academy, ODP and Coaching Education) through and including May 1, 2020. Kentucky Youth Soccer will continue to monitor the COVID-19 virus and may be extended at a later time if deemed necessary.

This announcement falls in line with a similar statement from Ohio South Youth Soccer on April 9th.

Both organizations continue to support opportunities for the return to soccer this spring, and are exploring extending the season to late June as a possibility for both league and tournament play. More will follow.

KYSA Published Statement- April 13

OSYSA Published Statement-April 9

March 23 Update

NKSA Family:

While there continues to be significant uncertainty on the effect of the current COVID-19 pandemic on the spring soccer season, we will continue to provide regular updates regarding the process and our contingency plans.

First, please understand that the club has little control over the decisions made regarding games and tournaments hosted by other organizations. NKSA teams play games in five different leagues and those leagues will each decide if the spring games will be played and if the season will be extended into the summer months. We will advocate on behalf of our members to have these leagues make decisions that create a positive soccer experience and minimize disruptions and we assume other clubs playing in these leagues will do the same.

Similarly, each club hosting a tournament will make their own decision on whether to cancel or reschedule their events. We will work with these clubs to create a policy that works for all of our teams. For example, if a club decides to reschedule their event to a date that does not work for our teams, we will seek to obtain a full refund of the tournament fee and enter the team into a different event that works for their schedule.

As of today, we expect the current suspension of in-person soccer activities will last until at least April 20th. It is possible the entire spring season will be canceled, and we are preparing for this possibility. The NKSA Board of Directors recently reviewed all expenses for the season to determine which expenses can be avoided if the season does not move forward. NKSA is a nonprofit entity and the club intends to return any unused player fees if the season is canceled. Some expenses have been incurred and some teams played in early season games and tournaments, so these would factor into how much each family might be refunded. We will have more information on how refunds would work as soon as other soccer organizations are able to make final decisions on the spring season.

Whether we play a modified spring season of competitions or not, a significant part of our soccer club activities are focused on skills development and soccer IQ. Our players should continue training and learning both to improve their skills and knowledge of the game and to provide an alternative to the reduction of other available activities. NKSA Directors and Coaches rolled out Phase 1 of a remote training program last week. Phase 2 will be communicated later this week. Thanks to the knowledge of our Directors and coaches, these programs can be tailored to players needs as opposed to using a generic soccer skills app. If you have any questions or concerns regarding this program, please contact your coach or director. The response so far has been very positive. We want to make sure everyone has an opportunity to have some fun with this and improve their skills.

We will continue to provide updates as new information becomes available. Please feel free to contact our staff or any board member with any questions.

Thank you for your continued support of your player and NKSA during these trying times.

Sincerely,

Dave Meyer
NKSA Board President

March 16th update

March 16, 2020

Covid-19 Update

NKSA Family:

We continue to closely monitor developments and recommendations regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. Our first priority is the health and safety of the players, parents and coaches that make up our soccer club family. We will continue to rely on the direction provided by youth soccer associations and medical professionals as well as abiding by restrictions imposed by state and local governments.

Our goal is to restart group activities as soon as it is considered safe to do so. The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented and evolving situation. On Friday, Kentucky Youth Soccer Association announced that it was extending its current suspension until at least April 5th. As a result, NKSA will also extend its current suspension of in-person soccer activities through and including April 5th. Virtual instruction and training challenges created by our staff will begin this week. Please look for communication regarding this opportunity to stay engaged and continue learning and preparing to play.

We know there will be many questions regarding the impact on the spring season such as rescheduled games, training sessions and tournaments. The NKSA Board is discussing various contingency plans. At this point, we are unable to finalize any plans until we know when we will be able to continue group activities. NKSA will coordinate with other clubs and the leagues we play in to determine a path forward to provide the best possible experience for our players and families.

We will continue to provide updates as new information becomes available. Please feel free to contact our staff or any board member with questions. Be safe and let us all work together to get through this.

Thank you for your continued support of your sons and daughters, their teams, and our club.

March 12, 2020

NKSA players, families and staff:

Similar to many companies and organizations, we have been monitoring the recent developments and recommendations regarding the corona virus (covid-19). In the past two days, US Soccer and US Youth Soccer, in addition to both Kentucky and Ohio state soccer associations, recommended suspending soccer games, including all National teams and MLS. Today, all of the leagues that our teams play in decided to suspend games for a period of time—generally until April 15^th. In addition, most of the tournaments scheduled for the next few weeks are moving their events to dates later in the spring. (Your coach or a director will communicate specific changes to you as the information continues to change.) We will also lose the use of certain training facilities during this time as colleges and schools close their campuses or prohibit use of their facilities.

As a result of these decisions and recommendations, NKSA will suspend all group soccer activities including training and games until at least March 30th. We will provide an update as we approach this date that will be based upon the information that becomes available. Ideally, we would like to get back to training a week in advance of any games or events, although we will only do so if it meets with the recommendations of youth soccer associations and any applicable government restrictions.

In the meantime, the club’s staff will work to provide players with ideas and activities to continue their instruction at home. Look for information on this in the next week.

We wish all the best to you and your family during this difficult time. Please be safe and look out for each other. We look forward to safely moving past this, and seeing everyone on the field as soon as possible! Further reading is available by following the links below.

David Meyer
NKSA Board President

Wil Cagle
Club Director of Coaching

https://www.kysoccer.net/ky-youth-soccer-message---covid-19/

https://www.osysa.com/coronavirus-update/

https://www.usyouthsoccer.org/2020-usys-leagues-program-and-conference-activities-suspended/

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html