Both the Revolution Academy and Beachside SC have produced numerous college players over the years. (New England Revolution)
How college soccer teams recruit players and build rosters has drastically changed over the last decade.
As UMass men’s soccer coach Fran O’Leary put it, "college soccer used to be a 21-and-under game. Now it’s a 25-and-under game."
When O’Leary first started at UMass in 2015, he mostly recruited American-born high school players from the Northeast. However, recruiting looks a lot different in 2025, thanks to myriad factors that have shifted the landscape.
So what’s changed?
