I am a 76 year old grandfather of a 12 year old who elected to move to DME after the coach on his prior club was injured and the management of that program was in disarray. His prior coach was a mature gentleman who improved the individual and team skills of the children remarkably. The children loved their coach and their teammates. When they won their final tournament they won as a team. My grandson is a straight A student and loves soccer, but he has no illusions about his abilities like many of the PARENTS of other players. I have participated in team sports as a player until I was 72; coached, managed and officiated children's sports; and my own children also successfully participated in various sports. Is this a good program for young children? Based on my observations of practices and attendance at games limited to this particular team, I must unfortunately respond in the negative. First, it must be emphasized that this program is FOR PROFIT. DME explicitly empasizes it is a one dimensional program in which "winning" is everything. At the age of 12? Really? YOUR child will WIN, so they say. He may get a college scholarship. Who knows? Maybe he will be the next Messi? BS. More likely he will be a victim of a greedy narcissistic owner who should reveal that it is his business that will in the end "win." Now with regard to my grandson and the other participants on the "team." There was little or no camaderie or cohesion on the team. Several of the CHILDREN whose parents paid for their participation were ignored, often being moved aside by the coach in practices while he devoted his time to those he believed would promote his career. Then they sat on the bench during games. Fortunately my grandson played for both team levels but he was relegated to playing weak side defense even though originally designated a midfielder. After he elected not to "try out" for the next season for DME, he did not play the final game. During the prior season he had developed an unusual ability at corner kicking, with THREE unassisted corner kick goals (nearly impossible) and multiple assists. This season he had about 8 corner kicks. Nearly every kick cleared the goalie and went across the goal mouth, with one being tipped across the line for a goal. The coach seemed not to notice. Most of the players who did get attention were the usual dribble the ball around in the middle of the field until you are pressed and lose the ball types. If there were any goals scored on set plays, I certainly did not see them. More like disorganized chaos. They seldom scored, but fortunately the team had a talented goalie. Only in the last few games did I observe ANY actual spacing and attempts to make passes to open positions. Otherwise, the team played most of the season in a "pack" like 8 or 9 year olds. One of the players regularly, and I do mean regularly, used profanity, shouting and challenging other players, the officials, and even the FANS. The coach did nothing. This is an unforgiveable failure and the child will suffer when he moves on to a more responsible coach who will impose appropriate team and personal discipline. The player excelled in fouls in the goal box resulting in penalty kicks. He was exceptional in pushing, shoving, tripping and threatening. At the end of the season, he was given a certificate as "team leader" by the coach. My grandson received the certificate for "sportsmanship" which he deserved. The parents of the players were also out of control. continuously berating the officials, coaching from the sidelines, etc. In overheard conversations, I noted that more than one of the parents entertained delusions about the skills of his child (yes, always the fathers). I have unfortunately observed such conduct in the past, but never on this level. So, beware. If you are interested in a positive experience and builidng upon the character of your child, you should exercise caution. Also, I must note that insofar as DME advertises that their coaches are all licensed, I overheard a conversation at the END of the season in which the coach was discussing that he had just received his license. As a final caveat, I must state that my observations are limited to this team. read more