Soccer in VA is and always has been a big deal. From youth, college and pro the level is known to be high. Individually they consistently have players on the US Youth National Teams. Let’s look at the best youth soccer clubs in Virginia and see how they conduct things.
Futbol culture in Virginia
The futbol culture in Virginia is awesome. Tons of players at all levels, which allows for some to come out of their shells late instead of feeling they are not good enough and quitting.
A good friend of mine (former college teammate & indoor pro), Vassar Cates used to coach in Northern Virginia.
Having coached in multiple cities, Vassar said there’s more club loyalty in Virginia. Most of the players stay with their club from age 7 all the way up. One age group has multiple teams/levels and players have the opportunity to move up anytime.
People would think you’re crazy to drive 30 minutes to practice with someone else. When I lived in Northern California it was the same. Whereas in Texas most players drive 25-45 minutes.
The coaching is good and the training culture is strong. There’s a lot of good soccer history in VA.
VDA
VDA Virginia Development Academy
Is currently an easy choice for a top soccer club in Virginia! In 2025 the girls side had 4 different age groups ranked #1 in the ECNL Mid-Atlantic standings.
Big soccer schools like Wake Forest, Clemson and Stanford are signed players from VDA in 2025 alone.
Leagues: ECNL
College commits: 16-25 per year
Locations: Woodbridge, Haymarket, Dumfries, VA
Arlington Soccer
Arlington Soccer has over 95 travel soccer teams.
In addition they have a rec program which is one of the largest in Northern Virginia with 6,500 players every spring and fall.
The boys ECNL side is currently the #1 soccer club in Virginia because 4 age groups are top 2 in the Mid-Atlantic standings.
Established in 1970
Ages: Travel program is from U9-U23
Leagues: ECNL, NCSL, CCL, USYS
Locations: Arlington, VA
Fairfax Virginia Union
Fairfax Virginia Union is without a doubt a top 5 club in Virginia. With 30 players who have signed pro contracts since 2008 it’s easy to say they make the list.
In regards to D1 colleges, there are too many big schools to name. For instance, UCLA, Florida State, Georgia to name a few. These are from the ’25 class alone.
Leagues: ECNL
College commits: 16-25 per year
Location: Washington, DC
McLean
McLean is another program that offers rec, but then has competitive travel teams as well.
Philosophy: Coaches are teachers first. Our coaches must be age appropriate communicators. The coaches of the younger teams (U8-U12) will be good demonstrators, have a positive influence, and be team builders. For our older teams, coaches will be motivators, understand the physical demands of the modern game, and be able to read the “details” in the match.
Ages: rec ages 3-18 and select 7-18.
Leagues: MLS Next, ECNL, ECNL R, SCSL
Location: McLean, VA
Beach FC
Beach FC not to be confused with the Southern California club…
The boys are currently one of the strongest clubs in the Virginia / NC area.
The girls ECNL teams are mostly ranked around 10 in the Mid-Atlantic region.
All in all this organization has earned it’s way to be one of the top youth soccer groups in the area.
Leagues: ECNL
College commits: 16-25 per year
Location: Virginia Beach, VA
NVA
NVA ‘Northern Virginia Alliance’ is a new program where players from Loudoun Soccer and Valor come together.
Leagues: ECNL
College commits: 16-25 per year
Location: Leesburg, VA (Loudoun County)
Loudoun Soccer Club
Loudoun Soccer Club is a hybrid of rec and club. It’s the largest program in VA with over 16,000 registrations annually. WOW!
Established in 1978
Their rec programs is organized with multiple divisions per age. I like that because the biggest problem with rec is the mix of kids desire/skill.
They have 90+ travel teams.
Leagues: ECNL, EDP, NCSL
Location: Leesburg, VA
Richmond United
Richmond United isn’t as big as the clubs above, but they have been consistently playing at a high level and producing players.
On the boys side, most of their teams are ranked top 5-8 in the ECNL Mid-Atlantic conference (VA, NC, SC). They have a 2012 team that is top 3.
The girls are even stronger, having 4 teams (different age groups) ranked top 3 in the conference.
Although this is a club that is recognized and plays in competitive leagues, the website wasn’t not fully working. Therefore, it was hard to collect more data.
Leagues: ECNL
College commits: 16-25 per year
Locations: Richmond, VA
VA Rush
As a whole, Rush is the largest youth soccer club in America. They were founded in Colorado and have spread like wildfire across the country and world.
VA Rush is not currently ranked in the ECNL Mid-Atlantic conference in any of the age groups I looked at. Therefore, not sure if they deserve to be mentioned as a top club in Virginia…
Leagues: DPL, USYS, NPL
College commits: 16-25 per year
Locations: Virginia Beach
College opportunity in Virginia
As much talent that Virginia has, it’s still not easy to play for your home state Universities.
When looking at the men’s roster of Virginia Tech and University of Virginia there were only 3 players from VA on each team.
Although, there are so many schools within 1 hour north that are not in state. U of Maryland for example.
In addition, the very best players have options to sign with other big soccer schools near by. Wake Forest, Marshall, UNC .
Schools in state: (top 25 colleges in VA)
- University of Virginia
- Virginia Tech
- William & Mary
- George Mason
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