An announcement came out of the blue today: Minnesota United FC and Shattuck-St. Mary’s (SSM) are teaming up to create “an integrated soccer development academy system.” The boarding school in Faribault, Minnesota said that its Director of Boys Soccer, Tim Carter, would be leaving the position to head up the new joint venture with the Loons. When asked to comment, Minnesota United FC said, “No comment.” Wait, what?
The details are hard to come by, but it looks as if Shattuck-St. Mary’s jumped the gun and announced a partnership that is either not finalized or not ready to be announced. The Loons are quite famous for refusing to comment on stories that are already widely known.
This announcement, then, brings up more questions than answers. Some sort of partnership between Shattuck-St. Mary’s and Minnesota United was inevitable, but questions about access (more specifically, cost) will persist.
Shattuck-St. Mary’s is a boarding school located an hour south of the Twin Cities. Tuition for boarding students is $40,000, but there would likely be some sort of scholarship program with United involved. SSM’s most famous alumnus is New England Revolution’s Teal Bunbury. I know that some agriculture scholarships are available.
Minnesota has another Development Academy in the Minnesota Thunder Academy that has produced the likes of Mukwelle Akale (Villareal), Cody Cropper (MK Dons), Eric Miller (Colorado Rapids), and Ismail Jome (MN United).
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