Do yourself a favor and either download, listen, or watch the latest episode of Welcome To The Party, a podcast hosted by former U.S. women’s national soccer team members Julie Foudy and Abby Wambach, two of the greatest legends in the world of women’s sports.
In this week’s episode, the hosts welcome another legend: U.S. national team pool member Charlotte North.
In the second phase of their talk, North points up some of the barriers to entry for people looking to get into the game, not the least of which is cost.
“it’s it’s a whole slew of things that you need in order to participate, especially on the men’s side,” North said. Like, you need head-to-toe pads, you need gloves, stick, all that. And and so that’s that’s part of the cost, the travel, the club atmosphere and environment has grown into a different beast as well.”
During the course of the conversation, it was pointed out that North, the talisman of her era in the game of lacrosse, didn’t pick up a school until middle school, a marked contrast to some of the players who are in mini-lacrosse leagues while still in elementary school.
“It’s insane. These kids, these schedules that they have days.” she said. “I’m like, ‘Guys, you are going to hate this sport in six months, and you are never going to want to play again. And it’s sad because like the best part about sports is when people just love and obsess over it and they want to go out to the field and they want to watch their favorite teams and players. Those are the best type of athletes that I feel like have the most success, and when you you go through that phase of burnout like you lose all that, and this is so sad.”
Given what we have seen in the last 30 years when it comes to the rise of club programs in all sports, Charlotte North speaks truth.
We’ve gotten to the point where there are pay-to-play club sides in many sports that have become world-famous — the Germantown Academy Aquatic Club in swimming, the W.C. Eagles in field hockey, SkyWalkers in lacrosse, and F.C. Delco in soccer. There are also “super-prep” teams like The Hill Academy in girls’ lacrosse, The Peddie School in swimming, and Oak Hill Academy in basketball. They have built stars out of the various participants, sending some to national teams, others to the Olympics, and others into the professional ranks.
To me, when one of the greatest players in the history of the game questions the player development model of the sport for which she is royalty, I’m hoping the people who run the sport will listen up.
And you can say much the same about the fact neither North nor the players on the U.S. national teams — both men’s and women’s — do not get paid for playing in the World Championship or the Olympics. It is an issue that Foudy and Wambach discuss at the end of the podcast.
“The thing I don’t like,” Foudy said, “is what they’ll throw back at them; that you should just (play) sit for the pride of wearing the red, white, and blue. And I and I used to say to (former U.S. ice hockey captain) Cammi Granato way back in the days when hockey would throw that back at her is, ‘OK. Is your coach getting paid? How about the person (at USA Hockey) that just told you that? Are they getting paid? Are they working for free as well?’ No, they are not. So, why should we (the players) have to work for free as well?”
Wambach, whose nephew played for the United States at an age-group world championship without being paid, added to this perspective.
“And it’s interesting because you know I think that there is a system in in place where they’re saying, “But we’re nonprofit,’ ” she said. “And that doesn’t mean anything. I think it’s actually probably beneficial that both the men and women’s programs can probably unite (for receiving compensation).”
Mind you, this conversation was driven by two alumnae of a national team who waged a six-year battle for equal pay against their federation.
Makes you wonder if a similar movement on behalf of elite lacrosse players may be afoot.