{"id":18310,"date":"2023-05-31T16:40:35","date_gmt":"2023-05-31T16:40:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/?post_type=article&p=18310"},"modified":"2025-12-15T05:11:14","modified_gmt":"2025-12-15T05:11:14","slug":"mls-next-the-first-steps-towards-tapping-into-north-americas-considerable-soccer-talent-pool","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/mls-next-the-first-steps-towards-tapping-into-north-americas-considerable-soccer-talent-pool\/","title":{"rendered":"MLS NEXT: the Program’s First Steps Towards Successfully Tapping into North America\u2019s Considerable Soccer Talent Pool"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n
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\n 31 May 2023 <\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>Articles<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

MLS NEXT: the Program’s First Steps Towards Successfully Tapping into North America\u2019s Considerable Soccer Talent Pool<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n \n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Category<\/div>\n Coaching & Development<\/a> <\/div>\n
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https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/mls-next-the-first-steps-towards-tapping-into-north-americas-considerable-soccer-talent-pool\/<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/section>\n\n\n\n\n
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Justin Bokmeyer, MLS NEXT\u2019s first GM, is the person tasked with developing the region\u2019s talent identification and development programs.<\/p>\n \n \n \n

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By John Portch<\/h6>\n
Justin Bokmeyer was announced as the first General Manager of MLS NEXT in February.<\/h6>\n

The New York-based MLS NEXT was founded in 2020 as a youth soccer league in the United States and Canada with a view to establishing itself as the premier talent identification and development program in North American soccer.<\/p>\n

It is well on the way to achieving that aim. In a little over three years, MLS NEXT has grown to consist of 137 clubs, 628 teams and more than 13,500 players.<\/p>\n

Bokmeyer was seen as the ideal candidate for the GM position following his sterling work at the NBA where as the Head of Strategic Initiatives he helped to found the Basketball Africa League. Earlier in his career, he also served as the Director of Lacrosse Operations at the United States Military Academy at West Point for two years and spent 11 years on active duty in the US Army.<\/p>\n

The Leaders Performance Institute asks Bokmeyer if he was attracted to MLS NEXT because, much like the Basketball Africa League, it is a new venture.<\/p>\n

\u201cAbsolutely,\u201d he replies. \u201cIn my military career and in working in the NBA, I was working in new things and got to build them from scratch.\u201d He cites examples from the athletic department at West Point, where he helped to establish programs, as well as the numerous NBA academies set up on his watch. \u201cThat was one of the exciting things about me taking this MLS NEXT role. I don\u2019t know if I can jump into something that\u2019s set for 20 or 30 years. That\u2019s a very different mindset and a very different leadership skill.\u201d<\/p>\n

MLS NEXT\u2019s aim is to provide the requisite coaching contact and a unified approach akin to the English Premier League\u2019s Elite Player Performance Plan that taps into the region\u2019s large talent pool.<\/p>\n

Here, the Leaders Performance Institute outlines Bokmeyer’s first steps.<\/p>\n

Year one, hands-on<\/strong><\/p>\n

Bokmeyer explains that he feels he needs to be heavily involved in his first year as GM. \u201cI\u2019m very hands-on this year but then, leading into next season, people should feel very empowered,\u201d he says. \u201cThey\u2019ll know our culture, the standards, our norms. They\u2019ll know which decisions they can make.\u201d There are, at present, ten people on his staff who share responsibilities for operating and executing the program, player engagement and experience, and commercial opportunities.<\/p>\n

Bokmeyer has ensured that roles and responsibilities are clearly defined across the team. \u201cIt\u2019s the focus on how we work,\u201d he continues. \u201cIt\u2019s being very deliberate in the platforms we use, how we communicate, when we meet, what decisions need to come to me, being very deliberate in how we work.\u201d<\/p>\n

MLS NEXT has made inroads but brought onboard its first GM because the league understands there is still a ways to go. \u201cOne of the things that I pride myself on is being able to piece things together; really diving into how we make those decisions and what the long-term effects are. Are we solving the problem we need to solve? The ability to think through second and third order effects is one that I pride myself on, making sure that we stay focused on what we\u2019re trying to solve for.\u201d<\/p>\n

Development tools<\/strong><\/p>\n

Bokmeyer has introduced a series of tools to support his staff\u2019s development. \u201cWe held a staff meeting on the theme of decision making and so we introduced the idea to them around a decision journal and why that\u2019s important for different decisions,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

He also introduced the Questions & Empathy <\/em>card deck to his team. It is a 56-card companion to Michael Ventura\u2019s book Applied Empathy<\/em>. \u201cSeeking clearer understanding or deeper connections?\u201d asks the Questions & Empathy<\/a><\/em> website, \u201cLet these cards guide your conversation and exploration.\u201d The deck is: \u201cdesigned to help inspire empathic exchanges among individuals, teams, and communities alike.\u201d<\/p>\n

Says Bokmeyer: \u201cHow do you have deeper conversations and get to know people so you develop that trust quicker? You really speed up that learning; and so I use those questions and empathy decks often within our group to open up conversation.\u201d<\/p>\n

The work of Daniel Coyle, author of the Talent Code<\/em> and Culture Code<\/em>, has proven useful too, with some tools freely available<\/a> on his website.<\/p>\n

\u2018What keeps you up at night?\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

Bokmeyer and his staff will endeavour to visit each of MLS NEXT\u2019s 137 clubs at suitable moments. \u201cI\u2019ve told my team several times that we cannot lead and be actual leaders from the New York office,\u201d he says. \u201cWe have to be out to see the environments and talking to people. We\u2019re in this initiative now over the next couple of months visiting all parts of the country, seeing the clubs, MLS clubs, non-MLS academies, anybody and everybody, getting out there, talking to them, and meeting them in their environment and not over Zoom. That lowers the defences, it creates more trust, and so we\u2019re absolutely committed to getting out there.”<\/p>\n

He runs through his itinerary at the time of our interview. \u201cWe\u2019re going to hit the four clubs in San Diego next week; a couple of weeks ago I was at a site visit in south Florida for an event and visited the local clubs, five clubs in Miami, to make sure that I attend matches, training and see their facilities. Really trying to understand it is critical. You lose so much if we say we\u2019re going to make these policies from the New York office.\u201d<\/p>\n

What is the first thing he asks those stakeholders? \u201cWhat keeps them up at night?\u201d he says. \u201cThat\u2019s the biggest thing. Absolutely understanding that. Everybody we\u2019re visiting, they\u2019ve got to play the long game and we\u2019re requiring them to play the long game and focus on that while they have to produce short-term results. And I know that they have families \u2013 their jobs and livelihood depend on that. So trying to balance that. Understanding what keeps them up at night is critical, whether that\u2019s they don\u2019t have enough players, their talent ID process is wrong, who they\u2019re hiring, anything like that, we want to know. Then really focusing on what we can do to improve.<\/p>\n

\u201cTell us your recommendations, competition schedule, talent ID, roster numbers, any of that. We\u2019ve got this blank slate. ‘Tell us, if you were in our role, what would you do? What would you be looking at?’ That really brings out some good insights across the board from all these clubs.\u201d<\/p>\n

The role of college soccer<\/strong><\/p>\n

Bokmeyer believes that young players growing up in North America may have a unique opportunity to sample different sports to a competitive level. \u201cI think the benefits of being exposed to a lot of different sports in the United States and Canada can provide a unique athletic skillset that other countries may not have,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Tapping into the large talent pool remains the primary goal. \u201cHow can we access that talent pool better? We\u2019ve got some things in the works with technology and AI, but we want to be able to canvass the entirety of North America and find the players that could be hidden in different parts of the country.\u201d<\/p>\n

He also feels that the unique North American college system can complement MLS NEXT\u2019s goals. \u201c<\/strong>We know that 90% of our players won\u2019t go pro pathway right away,\u201d he adds. \u201cEveryone is looking to go to college unless you\u2019re going pro, so we have to ensure that the right conversations are happening, that the players are deciding what\u2019s best for them and their development and not pushing them either way.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe still see the college pathway as being a unique ecosystem for late developers or bloomers. If you look at Matt Turner, who played university college soccer in the US and now look at him playing in the Premier League with Arsenal. He\u2019s one of those guys. We had 19 players who played at NEXT, went to college, and then were drafted in the MLS SuperDraft this past year. So there is still a viable pathway for NEXT players to go to college and then get drafted at some point during their college career and still get that chance.\u201d<\/p>\n

What\u2019s next?<\/strong><\/p>\n

The research on athlete maturation by Sean Cumming at the University of Bath is of considerable interest to Bokmeyer, as is biomechanics, but, beyond specific physical markers, his immediate interest is to stimulate MLS NEXT\u2019s development.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re very clear on what we want to accomplish, we know how we\u2019re going to do that, and we\u2019ve got the things in place to do it and we\u2019ve got the right clubs in place as well,\u201d he says. \u201cThat\u2019s through our standards and governance, that\u2019s through clear communication and trust between the league and member clubs. And what it looks like is absolutely athlete-centred, and that\u2019s putting player\u2019s rights, whether it\u2019s their data, first and foremost. We want to be aligned in our behaviours and in what we do \u2013 and we won\u2019t have to be talking about that because it\u2019ll just be known that we are athlete-centred. They\u2019ll see that it\u2019ll just be part of the behaviour and culture that we\u2019ve set.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n <\/div>\n \n \n \n <\/div>\n

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