East Meadow Soccer Club among country's best

The East Meadow Soccer Club has reached new heights. In fact, one of the highest levels a youth sports organization can reach. 

Club officials recently learned that its upper-level girls’ teams have been accepted into the Elite Clubs National League. The league offers the highest level of youth girls’ soccer competition in the United States. The EMSC, which has produced 10 state cup champions in the past six years, joins only 65 other organizations that were accepted into the elite league 

“I am so excited for the players,” said Jeff Gross, EMSC’s director of coaching. “They are going to play in the most competitive environment they could be in anywhere in the country. And they are going to see how good they are.”

Eric Schwartz, president of the East Meadow Soccer Club, credited the work of Gross, who is in his second year as a full-time director. He also said the recent success of EMSC’s teams on the regional level — including the Shooting Stars, the Dynamite, the Magic, the Sharpshooters and the Sparks — has yielded more interest from those outside of Long Island. 

“We are proud of the direction Jeff has taken us here since his arrival, and all the work of the players over the years,” Schwartz said. “It’s a tribute to how the club has developed over the last 40 years.”

Starting on Aug. 1, premier talent from EMSC’s U14, U15, U16, U17 and U18 divisions will compete against regional teams assigned to its conferences, and will also partake in national events spread out around the country. East Meadow joins Albertson as Nassau County’s only representatives in the ECNL, which was established in 2009. Many of the players participating in the ECNL are considered prospects for the U.S. national women’s soccer teams.  

“The main goal is to create as many positive soccer environments for every kid in the club, from intramurals to developmental to travel programs,” Gross said. “To get in leagues like this, it raises the profile of the entire club.”

Steve Epstein, executive vice president of the East Meadow Soccer Club, agreed, attributing the elite status to the organization’s overall profile. 

“It’s a national validation of the quality of the program, which is designed for every child,” Epstein said. “We have a place for every child to play.”

The East Meadow Soccer Club, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary, offers programs for players of all skill levels between the ages of three-and-a-half to 19. There are more than 2,000 member families from East Meadow, Bellmore, Merrick and beyond. Also, every August, EMSC hosts the annual Covanta East Meadow Soccer Club Tournament, which includes more than 400 teams from around the world. 

“We provide a place for children of all different levels to play,” Schwartz said, “for recreational experience and to develop and become the best of their age groups.”