HFC 2024-2025 Select Season

Are you interested in a higher level of competition? If so, consider joining our Select League! 

2024-2025 Select League Evaluation
For girls and boys: Birth Years 2009-2016

Session 1: Wednesday, June 12th at 6PM
MTU Upper Soccer Field

Session 2: Monday, June 17th at 6PM
Houghton High School Turf Field, 1603 Gundlach Rd, Houghton MI 49931

*an additional date may be offered in August depending on the availability of coaches and roster size of the teams formed at that point. However, we encourage everyone to participate in June dates to ensure your participation

Evaluation is free to participate. Sessions will last between 60-75 minutes. All players should wear soccer cleats, shin guards, athletic clothing and bring a water bottle. Attending the evaluation does NOT commit a player to the Select League.

Registration Timeline:

  • Early July: Coaches will determine the teams and rosters, and extend invitations to players that participated in June evaluation.
  • Accepted players will receive an email with an official registration link on Gotsport.
  • June 15: Registration with non-refundable deposit (50%) is due.
  • August 19: All registration and final payment must be paid to complete enrollment for the select teams.

What to expect:

Select teams are meant for players who want to develop as a player and are willing to work for it. Players are expected to participate in scheduled practices. All players will have an opportunity to play in games however, the practice participation may be taken into consideration when making game roster decisions.

Schedule:

The select season runs from August – October 2024 and Late April-June 2025. Practice will be held twice a week with games scheduled on select weekends. Houghton FC select teams plan to play games against other teams in the Upper Peninsula including Marquette, Iron Mountain, Ironwood, Escanaba, Kingsford and Niagara. Houghton FC will host a game day on rotational basis. We expect two to three game days in the fall and in the spring within the Upper Peninsula. We also plan to participate in one or two additional tournaments in the fall and in the spring. If a team wants to participate in additional tournaments, families and coaches may do so upon approval of the select league coordinator.

Tentative Fall Schedule:

  • August 5th: Practice begins
  • August 17th: Northwoods League (Marquette)
  • September 6-9: Tournament (TBD)
  • September 14: Northwoods League (Houghton or Ironwood)
  • October 5: Northwoods League (Escanaba)
  • October 11-13: Tournament (TBD)
    *Additional friendlies may be added to the schedule.
    **All schedule tentative. Dates/location may change. Schedule will be confirmed on team communication app during the season.

Spring Schedule will be added later once we have more details.

Cost:

  • U10: $230
  • U12: $230
  • U14: $250
  • U15/Girls select team: $250

Registration fee is for the 2024-25 full season year. (Fall 2024 and Spring 2025).
The registration fee covers:

  • Practice facility fee (Fall and Spring)
  • 85+ hours of organized practice time and coaching
  • Referee & tournament fee for the Northwood Soccer League and other games within the U.P.
  • MSYSA administrative & insurance fee
  • Team equipment

Additional Fees:

  • Fall & Spring Tournament fee: Approximately $50 per player per tournament, payable only by those participating in the tournament
  • Uniform: Uniform is REQUIRED for all select team players
  • All personal travel expense to tournaments (gas/lodging/meal, etc.)

Coaching & Team Roster Format

The number and composition of select teams will be determined after the evaluation dates are complete. It depend solely on the number of interested players as well as availability of coaches. While we do expect most players to participate during the game days, we also want to ensure that each team has a large enough roster, so a team is able to participate in the scheduled games with sufficient number of substitute players even with absence of several players. We hope to participate in tournaments with the maximum roster allowed. The tournament roster members are decided by the coaches.

Our goal is to have three coaches per team where at least the head coach has past experience as a competitive soccer player or a coach. We hope to build a Houghton FC culture of coaching that provides continuity from one year to another as players develop. While coaches have independence on making coaching decisions for the team, all select coaches will have regular coordination amongst them to build common expectations for players’ code of conduct across all teams.

Uniforms are Required for Select League

Uniform cost is separate from registration cost. Cost of kit:  

  • Youth: about $80 plus shipping  
  • All teams in all age groups use the same uniform, one red jersey, one white jersey, black shorts, one pair of red socks and one pair of white socks
  • Kits will be available through the online Team Store and links will be e-mailed after registration is complete. You may also purchase from local store (CenterIce)

Other Requirements

Players are required to bring the following items:

  • Soccer cleats & shin guards 
  • Soccer ball
  • Water bottle
  • No jewelries or watches of any kind allowed
  • Uniforms on game days REQUIRED