Burnley Wants American Feeder Clubs

• Soccerbyives.com , Thursday, July 23, 2009 3:30 PM

Burnley FC, a club recently promoted to the English Premier League, has plans to stay in the top flight and grander plans to establish new sources of talent to help make that happen. One of Burnley's ideas is to establish feeder clubs in the United States, with the hope of uncovering some gems on this side of the pond.

Hearing of foreign clubs trying to establish roots in the United States can often draw mixed reactions. There are those who are happy to hear that American players may wind up having more opportunities to move abroad, but then there are those who believe that having foreign clubs mining for young American talent can hurt American soccer by stunting the growth of Major League Soccer.

Writes Ives Ives Galarcep: "The reality is that the league's current [15] American clubs just can't cover a country the size of the United States. That will remain the same even after cities like Philadelphia and Portland come aboard. If foreign clubs can come in and help fill the gaps in player development that currently exists, gaps that are closing somewhat thanks to the growth of U.S. Soccer's Premier Development Academy, then young American talent can only benefit. Yes, there can always be concerns about the exploitation of young American talent by unscrupulous clubs and talent scouts, but those are issues that can be policed."

Read the whole story at Soccerbyives.com »