TRAINING UPDATES:

• March WSSkills offered for sign up - LINK PAGE 🔥

• Weekday Goalie training has been extended to March, players signed up for Jan-Feb do not need to sign up again.

• Still room for 2/28 CCNY Skills training too!  

EVENT UPDATES:

🔥 Massapequa Spring Kick Off Canceled 🔥

• Due to excessive snow and related  safety concerns of field conditions, the event has been canceled.

• Team managers will reach out with potential alternatives

WEST SIDE SPOTLIGHT: 

• So much talent to showcase!! SEE OUR NEWS PAGE, with highlights below:

  • Congratulations to Jose Cedeño for his spotlight in Coaches of New York

  • Congratulations to Julian Boehning for being named EDP 30 coaches under 30

  • And...Congrats to all the West Side players who were chosen for Red Bulls Select teams, RDS, and related RB winter programs.

TRENDING: 

• In light of the recent NYT article regarding the epidemic of ACL injuries, we have asked RedBulls Education Team what measures are in place to protect our players.  READ THEIR REPLY HERE

• More to come on this important topic.

BIG UPDATE ALERT

Make sure to read through!

IMPORTANT: Winter training for Monday 2/23 is canceled due to school closures.  

• Make-up sessions @ CCNY Saturday Feb 28th:

  • B2014 Premier: 1:15–2:30pm

  • B2012 Premier: 2:30–3:45pm

• PS9 Ball Mastery: If you signed up for Monday, you may attend 2/25 (Weds) at the same time (please notify us if attending).

• BJV (B15): Monday practice canceled; resumes normal time @ CCNY next session.

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• Save the Date:  

  • March 18: Red Print Spring Edition – Mandatory

  • This meeting will cover: Improvements + updates to the Red Bulls Development Program & Updates to West Side Travel
    
    

BIG NEWS: Coach Announcements!!

• Please welcome our new coaches (bios + team assignments):

  • Dario Mariti — B2012 Premier, G2015 Premier, B2016 Gold

  • Mina Ibrahim — G2012 Gold, G2014 Gold, G2017 Blue

  • Kevin Ramos — B2017 Blue, B2014 Gold, B2012 Gold

  • Michael Croft — B2018 Blue, B2015 Premier II

• Coaches will reach out to each team manager and parent coach to connect.

• As a reminder, we will continue to expect high standards from our coaches, players, and families to maintain a positive team and club culture.

Practices & Permits

• Weekday Spring Practices begin:  March 16

• March Practice schedules: ⚽HERE⚽

• April Practices TBD

Tryouts

• Tryout preliminary info, schedule & FAQ Link Here

• All Travel players are required to attend April 25th tryout.

• If you do not plan to return this spring or for the 26-27 season, please let us know: Departure Form Link

DIRECTORY of ALL LINKS  

• Absence Form Link: Please submit absences in advance whenever possible

• Communication Form Link: This ensures a leadership member can respond appropriately

WINTER TRAINING 2026:

• Reminder:  No winter training sessions for 2/16 & 2/17 

• Gaynor sessions:  open 2/18, PS9 & CCNY remain closed until 2/23

• We're happy to hear that weekday winter sessions and the extended training options have provided more flexibility to families

• Ball Mastery remains the top add-on session at CCNY, and Striker Clinic has quickly become a mid-week favorite

• We’ll continue providing these add-on sessions keeping them high quality, local, and affordable

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SPRING SEASON 2026 Practice & Game Schedules

Practices & Permits

• • Weekday Practices begin:  March 16 week!

  • March Practice schedules are posted: ⚽ HERE ⚽

    • NOTE: Due to limited fields and spring break schedules, some teams have combined practices (March only)

  • April Practice schedules are permit pending

    • We are still waiting for the bulk of spring permits for April onward to finalize those schedules

    • We will attempt to keep practice days consistent, but cannot guarantee the schedule

Spring Game Timeline

• • EDP games: Individual game time released: TBD

    • March 21, 22, 28, 29

    • April 18, 19, 25, 26

    • May 2, 3, 16, 17, 30, 31

    • June 6, 7

  • WYSL games:  Individual game time released: March 22nd

    • April 12, 19, 26

    • May 3, 10, 17, 31

    • June 7, 14, 21 

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RED BULLS COACH CHANGES

Coach Update

• Yes — there are coach changes again for spring season. 

• West Side is one of the most sought-after RB partner clubs for coaches, but changes happen due to personal circumstances — not dissatisfaction.

• Please see note from Ethan Blakely (Regional Coordinator) ⚽ HERE ⚽

• Current changes include:

  • Donovan moved upstate NY

  • Tim moved to New Jersey

  • Yusuf's school internship affects weekday availability

  • Felipe's daytime work schedule changed

• We’re grateful to have continued veteran leadership and program commitment from Danny, Julian and Jose, who will remain with their teams 

• Teams will receive direct communication on staffing as assignments are finalized

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ATTENDANCE:

Private and public school spring breaks

• • Players are required to attend practices when their school is not on break

  • Players are expected to attend if they are local to NYC

  • Please indicate your players availability to your team managers, on the attendance form, or team snap (where applicable)

Reminder:

• Any premier team players who have missed excessive mandatory winter practices without communication risk being removed from spring game rosters

• If you have communicated this does not pertain to your player

Important Forms & Communication

• Absence Form Link: Please submit absences in advance whenever possible

• Departure Form Link: If you do not plan to continue this spring or will not return next fall, please kindly let us know 

• Communication Form Link: This ensures a leadership member can respond appropriately

  • Email reminder: If communication falls outside of the google form, please note that any messages without a clear subject line will get buried 

• DIRECTORY of ALL LINKS  

🔥 WRAP Document 🔥

• Review all relevant links, & sections within this new WRAP

• Player corner includes all relevant info for your players

• Parent corner lists similar details for families

• As a reminder, we will not repeat answers that are clearly provided within this organized framework (please take time to read it all to save us all time).

• WINTER TRAINING REMINDER  

  • Gaynor closed:  2/16 & 2/17

  • PS9 closed: 2/16 thru 2/20

  • CCNY closed:  2/21

  • Vist the Winter Training page for links to full schedules 

• The WRAP gets a makeover!  

  • A mobile friendly and more intuitive framework 

  • Please note the categories at the top left corner

  • Pages are still under construction, we will continue to update with important information

  • Practice schedules are forthcoming!

• All winter training sessions are canceled for Monday 1/26

• Meeting Recording Link 
• Passcode: ZTJ&Uu5L
• Access to slides here: Google Slides
• The google form will remain active Parent Questions: LINK HERE
• Please direct feedback or questions regarding this topic via the form instead of email. We will provide responses where appropriate and applicable (although not immediately).

WINTER TRAINING 2026 Updates

• Please review winter training schedules carefully: ⚽LINK ⚽

• Premier teams are required to attend their assigned weekday winter training

• High school teams are required to attend both weekday and weekend training 

• Winter training for non-Premier teams is strongly encouraged

• **Red Bulls Trainers will use winter training as one component of the evaluation process for the upcoming team formations**

Extended Winter Training Sessions:

• For those interested, please register for extended/add-on winter sessions before they close:⚽ LINK ⚽

Coaching Assignments

• Winter training coaches may differ from fall coaches 

• These assignments do not indicate spring coach placement

• Coaches assigned for winter training are winter-only

SPRING SEASON 2026 Practice & Game Scheduling

Spring Timeline

• • Practices begin:  March 16 week

  • EDP games: March 21 

  • WYSL game:  April 12, 19, 26,  May 3, 10, 17, 31,  June 7, 14, 21 

Practices & Permits

• • Field permits are divided pre- and post–April 1

  • March practice schedules will be sent out next week 

  • We are awaiting the bulk of spring permits for April onward to finalize those schedules

  • We will attempt to keep practice days consistent, but cannot guarantee the schedule

  • As per your offer, players are required to attend practices even if the days have changed (no exceptions)

Regarding private and public school spring breaks

• • Players are required to attend practices when their school is not on break

  • Players are expected to attend if they are local to NYC

  • Please indicate your players availability to your team managers, on the attendance form, or team snap (where applicable)

TOURNAMENTS

• • All Premier teams are required to attend 4 tournaments, 2 large scale, and 2 single day events 

  • Unless otherwise stated, all premier teams that did not attend Harvest Fest will be expected to participate in a preseason one day tournament:

  • Massapequa Spring Kickoff (March 7 or 8)

  • Team managers will reach out with additional information

  • ALL TRAVEL TEAMS are required to attend the Memorial Day Tournament:  

Lincoln Page in Massapequa 

• • May 23rd & 24th 2026 LINK HERE ⚽

ATTENDANCE POLICY (Important)

• Unfortunately, this past fall several teams experienced persistent player absences which impacted practice sessions and game performances.  

• Given the burden it places on teammates and RB coaches, we are taking a more direct approach to address this issue.  Practice attendance will be enforced through playing time.  

  • Players who are chronically late or do not show up to practices, will not play in games

  • Players who do not indicate a valid reason for their absence will not play in games

  • If teams are short rostered due to players sitting out, dual-roster players will be invited to cover

  • Player attendance will factor into team formation decisions for 2026-2027

How to report your player’s excused absence:

• U8–U14 Players:

  • Must complete the attendance form  AND notify team managers

• High School Players:

  • Must indicate your absence AND reason for absence on TeamSnap

PARENT COMMUNICATION:  Link here ⚽

• Parents are asked to follow the new communication steps before involving leadership. 

• This process helps maintain consistency and allows volunteer leaders to respond effectively while respecting their time and responsibilities.  

• Most often, parents should reach out to team managers before leadership.