ID camps · 4 min read
What an ID camp is actually for
A camp is a tryout you pay to attend. That is not a criticism — it is the thing to be clear-eyed about before you book one.
It is a look, not a showcase
A showcase puts your club team in front of many programs at once. An ID camp puts you in front of ONE staff, on their field, usually for a day. The value is entirely in whether that staff has a reason to look at you — which is why a camp at a school with no opening at your position in your class is an expensive training session.
Go where the roster math already says go
We hold 1,692 camps with their dates and hosts, and the point of joining them to a scored list is that you attend the ones at schools that already fit. The order matters: build the list, email the staff, then book the camp at a program that has replied or has a real gap. A camp is the second conversation, not the first.
What to ask before you pay
Who is coaching it — the head coach, or camp staff? How many players per session? Is it position-specific? A camp that cannot answer those is selling a day of soccer, which is fine, but it is not recruiting.
Sources
Figures attributed to Startline are counted from the data we hold and update when it does. Recruiting rules change — check anything dated against the governing body itself.