FC Cincinnati Academy launches Residency Program

CINCINNATI – The FC Cincinnati Academy has launched its new Residency Program to support the club’s expansion of national youth recruiting to fill its five teams.

With increased emphasis on scouting FCC Academy recruits from across country and internationally, greater residency needs are required to home out-of-market players in the Greater Cincinnati region.

The Residency Program allows non-local Academy players to live with screened host families and attend local schools during the team’s training and competition season, which typically runs from late July through early June.

[+READ: FC Cincinnati Academy launching three new youth teams for 2020-2021 season]

“The Residency Program is the next evolution for our Academy,” FC Cincinnati director of player development Larry Sunderland said. “We’re ambitious when it comes to talent identification and recruitment within our region. And with the introduction of this program, our reach will become even greater. This is an opportunity for local families to play a significant role in the life of future FC Cincinnati players.”

Potential host families will be heavily vetted during the application process – including background checks, in-person interviews and home inspections – in order to ensure a safe environment for the Academy players. Host families will be asked to provide a living space for the player, three nutritional meals a day and, in some cases, provide transportation to school, practice and home games.

The FC Cincinnati Academy will provide educational meetings and materials to assist the host families with the various aspects of hosting a player. Host families receive $500 per month to help support each player they host.

[Host Family Frequently Asked Questions]

Entering its second season in 2020-21, the FC Cincinnati Academy has expanded the club’s player development pyramid to five youth teams. Beginning next season, the club is comprised of two Pre-Academy teams (Under-13 and Under-14 teams) and three Academy teams (Under-15, Under-17 and Under-19 teams). All FC Cincinnati Academy and Pre-Academy teams will compete in MLS’ recently-announced elite player development platform.