alexandria travel soccer

AASA Year Round Program Calendar:

• Registration opens for U9/U10 
• Winter Training begins for U11+ travel teams at NorthStar
• Indoor Soccer for K-3rd Grade at NorthStar
• Registration closes for U9/U10 and evaluations are held at NorthStar
• MYSA League Scheduling for U11+ travel teams
• U9/U10 Rosters Completed
• Indoor soccer sessions wrap up at NorthStar
• Outdoor practices begin for U9-U18
• MYSA League play begins for travel teams
• U4-U8 Summer Programs Begin
• MYSA League play continues for travel teams
• Tournaments for travel teams 
• All summer programs wrap up
• MYSA State Tournaments held
• Soccer Camp held last full week for players going into 1st grade through High School
• Registration opens for Fall Soccer for U5-U12
• Fall Soccer for U5-U12
• Soccer Youth Night held at Alexandria Area High School
• U5-U12 Fall Soccer wraps up
• Registration opens for U11-U18 Summer Travel Teams
• Travel Team Evaluations  for U11-U18 Summer Teams at NorthStar
• MYSA League One travel team rosters completed
• Wrap up Travel Team Evaluations for U11-U18 Summer Teams at NorthStar & rosters completed

Travel News

The Alexandria Freedom U14 girls team opened its spring season by winning the Classic Division of the 2010 Arlington Spring Invitational Tournament.  The Freedom won two games and tied another in pool play to advance to the championship match against the Chantilly Revolution. Down 1-0 for most the game, Darby Philbrick scored with 2:30 left in regulation forcing the match into the mandatory (2) five minute overtime periods. Chantilly countered quickly and went up 2-1 in the second minute of the first OT period, but the Freedom answered with another dramatic come from behind game tying goal by Alison Lindsay in the waning seconds of the second OT, sending the game to penalty kicks. The team converted three kicks from the penalty spot, and goalkeeper Gianna Knutson made several saves allowing just one goal to ensure the win. This is the Freedom’s second tournament championship in the 2009-10 campaign to go along with two other tournament second-place finishes.

The Alexandria Freedom continued their winning ways this weekend (March 20-21) winning their second preseason tournament in as many weekends; by winning the 2010 Stafford St Patrick’s Tournament Championship.  They won all four of their matches and allowed just one goal in the process.  Freedom defeated the CYA Hotshots 2-1 on goals from Alison Lindsey and Katie Egbert. The team had numerous highlights for the weekend, Darby Philbrick was given the "Golden Boot" award for scoring the teams most goals.  Gianna Knutson again provided outstanding net minder skills not allowing a goal until the championship match.  Overall, defensively Katie Egbert, Marjie Woods, Kaileen Rouin, Megan Golinowski and Julia Beiro helped shore up the back line of defense. http://www.staffordsoccer.com/ Tournaments/2010Schedules/ index_E.html

Alexandria Sees Success at Fall 2009 Tournaments

U-10 Alexandria Fusion White Great Falls VIP Tournament Finalists

The U-10 ASA Fusion White boys team recently competed in the 2009 Great Falls VIP Tournament and were Finalists in their fourth consecutive tournament.  In the Championship game, the boys lost a heartbreaker to the Great Falls Rapids, 2-0, after playing in an unprecendented three games in four hours!  Throughout the tournament, the boys put on an offensive and defensive display on their way to outscoring their opponents, 24 - 3.  Congratulations boys on another successful tournament showing and good luck the rest of the 2009 Fall season!

U-14 Dynamo - Busch Gardens Classic Champions!

The U-14 Dynamo went undefeated in the Fall 2009 Busch Gardens Classic.   GO DYNAMO!!

U14 Freedom - Dulles National Tournament Champions!

The team went 4-0, scoring 7 goals and we did not allow any.  The team competed in the Champions bracket which was the middle tier of the 3 offered.

U14 Freedom - Finalists in Williamsburg Cup!

The freedom beat the Titans and then the Legacy Sunday and took 2nd place in the U-13/U14G super group.  On Saturday they had tied SYA Arsenal and lost to the champion Chesapeake United SC Flash http://www.gotsport.com/events/resultsgrid.aspx?EventID=5796&GroupID=91978

U10 United for make the Cardinal Cup Final

Alexandria Sees Success at Spring 2009 Tournaments

U-10 Atletico Win Virginian Championship

U-12 Thunder Win Virginian Championship

U-9 United White Advance to Virginian Final

The defense--Jack Hall, Aaron Carges, Tommy Hart, Matt Leaonard and Randy (pants) Harrell--played a great tournament led by the goalkeeper Jack Carver allowing only 1 goal in four games.

The offense--Kevin Ortez. Yousef Beidas, Jack Clare, Aidan Fielding Nick Cargas, Camille El-Baba, Colin Bell and our newest edition Spencer Amarantides--maintained a high level of pressure which created many scoring opportunities over the course of the weekend.

Our injured players Ben Cermak and Connor Ortman gave huge support and motivation to the team throughout the tournament, showing what a true teammate is.

The Dynamo Elite are the true meaning of the word team and with this much heart and determination the sky is the limit.

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Still kicking at 50: The story of Alexandria Soccer Association’s half century

By Cody Mello-Klein | cmelloklein@alextimes.com

Drive around Alexandria for five minutes and it’s impossible to miss it. It’s on the bumpers of countless cars and on fields across the city. An emblem in the shape of a shield, with a red soccer ball and fearsome crimson beast with a leonine body and snakelike tail, reminiscent of an English family crest – with “Alexandria” emblazoned in blue on top.

It’s the symbol of the Alexandria Soccer Association, a community athletics nonprofit in which entire generations of Alexandria families have participated in recreational and travel league teams. Over the course of its 50-year history, which ASA is celebrating this year after delaying the event due to the pandemic, ASA has evolved from an entirely volunteer-run provider of youth soccer to a professionalized organization with paid coaches and fulltime staff.

Still firmly based in grassroots community involvement, ASA has expanded its reach and legacy across the city. Between 2010, when ASA hired its first full-time executive director, Tommy Park, and 2021, ASA increased participation in its programs from 1,000 to about 6,000 players.

The Alexandria Times spoke with ASA’s directors, coaches and players to look back on 50 years of Alexandria Soccer history, the role it has played in Alexandria and how a community-based organization has adapted to an ever-changing urban landscape. It seems like almost everyone has a story about ASA, whether they coached, played or watched. But between the stories of family bonds forged on the field, bitter defeats and hard-won victories, one thread remains the same: ASA is about more than soccer – it’s about community.

“[Fifty years] is proof that ASA is committed to this community – and not just pockets of it but the whole damn thing. Everyone who lives here deserves to be a part of the community,” ASA Board President John Lavalle, who played in ASA when it started in the early 1970s, said. “… I’m a true believer in a community that partners together. I don’t care if it’s soccer or tiddlywinks. If we work together, we can solve a lot of [our] problems together.”

A group of residents founded ASA in 1970, and for the first 40 years of its existence, ASA was rooted in the hard work of volunteers. That first year, ASA had about 60 players.

From 1970 to about 1980, ASA only offered recreational soccer, what was then known as “town soccer,” and was organized around neighborhood teams. Compared to the scale of ASA’s operations today, the early days of the organization seem modest. Katie Brooks, public relations and community director for ASA, has been collecting newsletters from ASA’s early days that were published by parents and shared the most minute details of the games in any given week.

“I have all of these newsletters that are like, ‘The Silver Sharks showed well on Saturday. Jimmy and Crystal sprinted down the field,’” Brooks said. “… Now, we share a lot of stories, but I’m hardly ever calling out a specific kid because there’s so many kids. I don’t need to mention the tot that learned to dribble on Saturday with their pinkie toe – and that’s in this newsletter.”

But in the 70s, those little details mattered and helped bond teams spread across the city. Lavalle started playing on his father’s Rosemont team at the age of 4 in 1971 and continued playing on ASA teams until he was 16. He recalled his powder blue uniform – “That was Rosemont. Everybody knew it.” – and the feeling of putting on his first travel uniform when ASA started offering travel soccer, known as Select, in the 80s.

“I remember when you first got your travel uniforms you were wearing it to school like it was a shirt,” Lavalle said. “It was sort of braggadocious, but it was like, ‘Yeah, I’m on the travel team.’”

By the time the 1980s and 1990s rolled around and ASA started offering these new opportunities, volunteers had taken on significantly more responsibility. They were organizing and coaching neighborhood teams, getting up at 5 a.m. on Saturdays to line the fields for games and processing registration. Brooks said she found notes from an early volunteer who had created mathematical equations to paint perfect 90-degree angles on fields. Parents who had their children on Select teams would pool money and give it to a volunteer who would register a team for tournaments and pay coaches a modest stipend.

Although many volunteers and community members viewed ASA’s origins as the halcyon days, they also admitted that this period had its challenges.

For starters, ASA was a boys’ only league for its first few years and did not allow girls to play until the late 70s.

“I can’t tell you how frustrating it would be for me and friends of mine,” Stephanie Satterfield, a former ASA volunteer, said. “We would go and watch our brothers play or friends of ours play, and we had to sit on the sidelines. We just couldn’t do it; they wouldn’t let us.”

Satterfield’s father coached her older brother in the 1970s, although she got her chance to play – at the age of 15 – when ASA opened its programs to girls. Satterfield would play for two seasons and later return as a volunteer coach for her children between 1990 and 1997.

Community connections

The volunteer-run nature of ASA is what helped root it in Alexandria and continues to be the core of the organization. Parents and children alike have found new ways to connect with their neighbors and community through sport and friendly competition.

“I think the biggest thing is [my kids] created this whole network of soccer friends, so it’s been a very social thing,” Veronica Babineux, who played in ASA Select in the 90s and later volunteered as a rec coach for her daughter in 2017, said. “They’re already going to have this network of friends that they created at the age of 7, 8 and 9 years old because of soccer.”

“The adults who have coached or who have had their kids in soccer for a long time, I’ve gotten to know [them]. Those have become friendships and relationships that I wouldn’t have otherwise,” Jon DeNunzio, who has been a volunteer coach since his daughter started playing in ASA in first grade, said. DeNunzio still coaches his daughter, who is now a sophomore at Bishop Ireton High School.

Years later, several volunteer coaches marveled at the growth they saw in not only their own children but all the children they helped on the field. Babineux recalled coaching a team of 4-yearolds at the beginning of the season and how the experience felt like “herding sheep.” One child spent the entire first practice following her around and telling her what he wanted for Christmas instead of scrimmaging. But by the end of the season, Babineux’s work had paid off.

“I saw a couple kids cutting the ball and doing a move, like a fake,” Babineux said. “… Then, they would run up to me later and say, ‘When are we going to play soccer again?’ even though it was the end of the season.”

For many parents, the experience of coaching their children or being involved directly in their child’s athletic experience is an opportunity to bond in a way that few city programs offer.

Satterfield’s daughter, unlike her mother, was able to start playing in ASA leagues at a young age. Her daughter went on to play college soccer and now coaches an all-girls high school team in Bristol, Virginia.

“For me, watching her from the beginning when she was kind of a mess on the field to seeing her progress to now where she’s sharing what she learned all these years, I’m extremely proud of her,” Satterfield said. “She just rocks as a coach. That legacy for me, from my dad to me to her, that’s priceless.”

Big changes, little city

ASA’s all-volunteer structure presented some challenges for the organization’s long-term growth.

“I know the flaw: It was all run by parents who care about their kids, so interest comes and goes with that philosophy,” Lavalle said.

Between a board and coaching staff that would turn over frequently, Lavalle said it was often hard to get momentum going for various long-term initiatives. Often, parents’ involvement would start and end with their child’s involvement and could produce conflicts of interest when it came to coaches’ decisions on the field.

According to Satterfield, volunteer referees also didn’t always have a firm understanding of soccer, which could produce arguments between referees and parents in the stands. In order to provide that foundation, Satterfield and a few other volunteers put together a handbook and held classes for volunteer referees.

During its first few decades, ASA was also more akin to a franchise model, Tommy Park, ASA’s executive director since 2011, said.

“Every coach did their own little thing. You could play for ASA, but you wouldn’t know what’s our style of play, what are our priorities at each age group, what fundamentals do you need to be introduced to to master the sport over time?” Park said.

By 2010, ASA had grown to about 1,000 players, and the organization had hired some part-time office administrators and, at one point, a parttime executive director. It had grown from its offices in the basement of Del Ray Methodist Church to a closet-sized office in the Lee Center. However, the volunteer-led board decided that, in light of U.S. soccer’s skyrocketing profile, ASA needed to professionalize its operations and focus its growth in order to reach more players and areas of the city.

In 2011, ASA hired Park, who was coaching at DeMatha Catholic High School and for D.C. United’s under 20 program, as its first full-time executive director. From the start, Park said his intent was to expand ASA’s programming and reach to areas of the city that had long been underserved.

“There’s a lot of unstructured play in the city, but they weren’t really aware of how to join a team. We spent the last 10 years ensuring that no matter what it took, every kid in the city – and now adults – are aware that, ‘Hey, I can join a team regardless of where I live in the city, how much money I have or the other barriers to entry,’” Park said.

Park and his full-time staff expanded programming to include early childhood and adults, as well as futsal, a popular form of indoor soccer played on a smaller field and with a small ball. Participation has grown to about 6,000 players, including 1,000 players in its free after school leagues. ASA also increased its scholarship offerings from about $4,000 in the 90s to about $600,000 for 1,500 players in 2022.

During the last 10 years, ASA has made both big and small changes. The travel program is now called Academy and Academy coaches are paid as part-time employees. Volunteer coaches in the rec league are still not paid, but ASA now pays for all gear and equipment, from goals and cones to jerseys and first aid kits. There are also now in-house coaching clinics.

According to Park, the goal has been to maintain ASA’s grassroots emphasis while developing a unified vision.

“The point is no matter what form of an organizational structure we’ve developed into, that organic interaction between neighbors and developing lifelong friends not just for the players but for the parents is one of the most powerful things,” Park said.

For some volunteers, ASA’s evolution has been an improvement.

“If you need some help figuring out what to run in practice, they have more resources and they have more people who are willing to come and out help,” DeNunzio said.

For others, ASA’s shift toward professionalization has provided structure sometimes at the cost of the creative problem solving, collaboration and diverse viewpoints that came from an entirely volunteer-run operation.

“Everybody brought their own perspective to it, and it wasn’t just, ‘Ok, this is what we’re doing,’” Satterfield said. “Not that there’s anything wrong with that because structure is good in certain ways, but I think that things came out of having all these different people. Ideas came out of all these different people.”

Pandemic play

More recently, ASA had to undergo an even more significant evolution due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In March 2020, like all athletics organizations, ASA paused everything. Suddenly, the very concept of close, physical contact was a threat.

In lieu of in-person programming, ASA coaches offered virtual workout sessions, training and drills. However, since soccer is an outdoor sport, ASA was able to start transitioning into physically distanced, masked summer camps in 2020. By fall 2020, ASA started opening up its program offerings, requiring masks for coaches, staff and players on the bench.

Although the pandemic posed challenges for ASA, the organization was able to focus further on community partnerships with Alexandria City Public Schools and the city’s Department of Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities in the form of its School Plus and Camp Alex programs.

“With ACPS, we did an all outdoor classroom for the entire year where we had kids come whose parents needed care during the day, and we had stations during the day,” Park said. “… We hired half coaches and half educators, so when kids had little breaks, the coaches could go do little activities with them in small groups. Then while the kids were learning virtually, they all had their little computers, we had tutors to help make sure that they were on board.”

Ellie Goodrich, a current ASA player and recipient of the first annual ASA Griffin Award, said the pandemic gave her the opportunity to get involved in the community in new ways.

“To me, it was great individually to focus a little bit more on skills and focusing on myself instead of being immersed in a team that has a broader goal,” Goodrich said.

Looking back on the last 50 years of Alexandria Soccer – the friendships formed, games won and lessons learned – Lavalle, who has been there almost since day one, said although Alexandria and ASA have changed, the value of a community organization like ASA stays the same.

“I don’t think every kid wants to be or should be or there’s a chance for them to be a great soccer player, but if it gives them a love for sport, I think sport can solve, if you embrace it, a lot of our issues in this world,” Lavalle said. “We tend to come together for sport.” 

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Meeting planner tools, welcome to alexandria: a world-class city for soccer and futsal.

Stay in Alexandria and support Alexandria Soccer Association (ASA) which offers soccer and futsal programs for kids and adults of all abilities and ages here in Alexandria, VA. Supplement your weekend by visiting Old Town Alexandria . Find more than 200 independent restaurants and  boutiques  plus intimate historic museums,  hotel deals  and new happenings at the waterfront .

Find tournament schedules, kid-friendly activities and more things to do below.

About Alexandria Soccer Association (ASA)

Tournament schedule.

• Heritage Cup | October 7-8, 2023
• Harvest Cup | November 17-19, 2023
• Capitol Futsal Cup | December 16-17, 2023
• Feature Weekend | February 2-4, 2024
• Alexandria Spring Kickoff | March 2-3, 2024 and March 16-17, 2024

Hotel Accommodations

Alexandria Soccer Association has teamed up with HBC Event Services to offer discounted lodging accommodations for each event. These special arrangements and discounted rates are only available via the websites listed below.

• Heritage Cup | October 7-October 8, 2023 – Hotel Accommodations
• Harvest Cup | November 11- November 9, 2023 – Hotel Accommodations Coming Soon
• Futsal Cup | December 16-17, 2023 – Hotel Accommodations
• Feature Weekend Showcase | February 3-4, 2024 – Hotel Accommodations
• Alexandria Soccer Kick off (Full Sided) | March 2-3, 2024 – Hotel Accommodations
• Alexandria Soccer Kick off (Small Sided) | March 16-17, 2024 – Hotel Accommodations

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U9 (2015) – U19 (2005) Boys and Girls

Gunston soccer will provide two tryout opportunities per player for each age category. It is highly encouraged to attend both sessions.

Dates: May 7-14th

Register Travel FAQ’s Travel Annual Outlook 2022-2023 Coaching Staff

**2023-2024 Coaching assignments will be announced soon.

TRYOUT SCHEDULE (COMING SOON)

Gunston Soccer Travel Program Fees for 2023-2024

U9 (2015) & u10 (2014).

2 payment options: Monthly payments or payments in full

• $400 Deposit due upon acceptance
• 8 monthly payments of $186.88
• Total Amount: $1,895

U11 (2013) and older

• 8 monthly payments of $199.38
• Total Amount: $1,995

After receiving your invitation to join the travel team, families will have 72 hours to register and pay the first payment to secure their spot on the roster. Gunston Soccer Club will provide two payment options for 2022-23 travel program fees: monthly payments or payment in full.

• Coaching Salaries (payroll & taxes): All GSC-qualified and professional coaching staff fees are included
• Operational and administrative support staff
• Coaching Education: GSC makes coaching education a priority for all travel coaches. GSC covers the cost of every coach’s coaching education.
• Training: Fall and Spring (2-3 times per week), Winter (1 time per week)
• Administrative Fees: TeamSnap, Operations, Registrations, Fields & Maintenance, Management
• Background Checks, and Safe Sport Compliance: Background checks are performed on all GSC staff and team managers. In addition, they are required to be Safe Sport trained annually.
• League Fees: VYSA, USYSA, USSF, NCSL/EDP/, and Referee Fees
• Fairfax County Player Fees and Permits
• Field, practice, and gameday equipment
• Gunston Soccer Club Uniform Fees: All players for the 2022-2023 Season must purchase the current GSC uniform package: 2x Game Uniform (Home/Away), 1x Practice Jersey, and 1x Backpack. This will last for 2 years. Additional items such as tracksuits, rain jackets, etc. will be available for purchase.
• Gunston Soccer Club Team Fees (Tournament Participation): Additional team-specific programming including tournament competitions (2 fall and 2 spring)
• Additional Gunston Soccer Club Programming: GSC Summer Camps, FCPS clinics, Winter League,  S.A.Q, futsal competitions, etc.

Questions? 

Contact our Executive Director Dave Sanford via e-mail: [email protected]

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This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Community Corner

Travel soccer tryouts, the 10-to-11 year olds came out for the fun of it, but worked hard to get a chance to play competitively., robert j. riccio , neighbor.

In the United States, soccer is still a growing sport, played by most as an introduction to team sports before moving on to other games. But for those grade school children for whom the sport has its own allure, trying out for the highest level of competition available, travel soccer, is a rite of passage.

At around 5 p.m. on a hot Tuesday in May, the Bryant School field began to fill up with 10-to-11 year old boys vying for a spot on a Lee Mount Vernon Sports Club (LMVSC) travel team. The temperature, by 5:30 that afternoon, was in the mid-90s, but felt hotter on the artificial turf. Brightly colored cones delineated the four small areas on the full-sized soccer field that were going to be used for testing.

On the sidelines, there were two large tents set up that housed a registration table and room for players to drop their gear and water bottles in relative shade. Large plastic cards were filled out with player information on one side and a large number on the other. “Please fill out the information side of the card and then pin your son’s jersey with the card," a father was told by a club official. "It helps us identify him and group him as we go through the tryout."

Find out what's happening in Greater Alexandria with free, real-time updates from Patch.

Coaches, most dressed in dark red T-shirts and shorts, carried clipboards and shouted orders at the players, with a cacophony of British, Spanish, and Texas accents, to organize the event. “John, Peter, Steve, and Michael, in light blues, on field number three.” The players ran to a pile of practice "pinnies" and donned the correct color before racing to the field where a coach awaited. Then the work began.

For more than 75 minutes of constant action, interrupted only for water breaks, seven coaches put the three-dozen players through their paces with a short spate of warm-up drills followed by continuous 4X4 competitions. The mini-games were designed to allow returning players and newcomers to co-mingle and for the coaches to see who had lost a step, who was still in form, and which newcomers showed early promise.

As the tryouts progressed, players were switched from team to team and position to position. Coaches took note of each boy’s athleticism, ball control, first-touch skills, decision-making on and off the ball, plays completed or erred on, goals scored or prevented, passes completed or made in error, balls recuperated from their opponents or lost to them, the constancy of each player’s movement, and the purposefulness (attitude, work ethic, and initiative) of their game.

At day’s end, evaluations were still on-going and several players were invited to return on one of the three subsequent tryout days to allow coaches another chance to evaluate them. Eventually, those making the grade will be placed on one of three teams, in ascending order of current, age-appropriate development (the white, blue, and red teams). Each boy who makes the squad will be allowed to transfer to and from each team depending upon a mix of his current skill level, the team’s needs, and his adjudged potential. For all of the participants, making the team is a badge of honor. “If I make it, I will be the only 4th grader in my school on travel—that’s pretty awesome,” said one aspirant.

The LMVSC, our area’s biggest and most established soccer club, has been in existence for more than 40 years and boasts thousands of players in their recreational and competitive divisions. Players can begin learning the sport at kindergarten age and can complete competitive playing at the high school level. Most players spend several seasons playing club soccer until other life callings intervene; others work themselves up from recreational league to travel level and become club graduates, and a few have moved on to the ranks of Major League Soccer and to U.S. National Team prominence.

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Roma defender under investigation for celebrating win over Lazio by waving giant rat flag

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ROME (AP) — The Italian soccer federation has opened an investigation into Roma defender Gianluca Mancini’s celebrations at the end of Saturday’s capital derby which saw the player waving a huge flag in Lazio colors that also had a giant rat painted on it.

Mancini, who said he was “the happiest man in the world” after his goal gave Roma a 1-0 win over Lazio in Serie A, joyously celebrated with the rest of his team in front of the Giallorossi fans but sparked controversy when he was seen waving the flag.

“I didn’t want to offend anyone, I took the first flag they gave me,” Mancini said. “I apologize.”

FIGC president Gabriele Gravina confirmed to Italian media on Sunday that the federation had opened an investigation.

The 27-year-old Mancini faces a potential fine but could also risk a suspension.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/Soccer

Copyright © 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.

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Alexandria Soccer Kickoff

Alexandria soccer association.

Soccer Tournament March 16-17, 2024 1501 Cameron St, Alexandria, VA 22314

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Alexandria Soccer Kickoff is a soccer tournament that takes place in Alexandria, VA

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Jefferson-Houston PreK-8 School Field

Alexandria, VA

Brenman Soccer Field

Hammond Upper Fields

Fort Ward Synthetic Field

Simpson Field

Limerick Field

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Nancy Pelosi joins House Democrats in urging Biden to halt arms to Israel

Bernie Sanders ramps up pressure on White House: ‘My view is no more military aid to Israel when children [there] are starving’

More than three dozen congressional Democrats – including representative Nancy Pelosi, the former House speaker and a key Joe Biden ally – signed a letter to the president and the secretary of state Antony Blinken, urging a halt to weapons transfers to Israel.

“In light of the recent strike against aid workers and the ever-worsening humanitarian crisis, we believe it is unjustifiable to approve these weapons transfers,” the letter said. It was signed by Pelosi and 36 other Democrats including Representatives Barbara Lee, Rashida Tlaib and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

Friday’s letter also calls on the US to withhold future arms transfers pending a US investigation into the airstrike on the World Central Kitchen humanitarian workers or if Israel “fails to sufficiently mitigate harm to innocent civilians in Gaza”. A spokesperson for Pelosi later said the congresswoman was encouraged at early steps Biden’s administration had taken to investigate the strike on the WCK staffers “and respects his judgment on how to proceed”.

Nonetheless, on Thursday, hours after Biden told Israel to take concrete steps to protect civilians and aid workers in Gaza or risk losing military support from the US, top senators belonging to the president’s Democratic party had also ramped up pressure on the White House to go further.

The progressive senator Bernie Sanders was among the strongest voices. “Israel should not be getting another nickel in military aid” until it markedly facilitates the flow of provisions into a region that the US suspects is already grappling with famine, he said.

“We are looking at one of the worst humanitarian disasters that we have seen in a very, very long time … because Israel is not allowing the humanitarian trucks into Gaza, and especially into the areas where people are in most desperate condition,” Sanders told CNN on Thursday.

Adding that it was not the US’s job to worry about how Gaza may tie into the political future of the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, the Vermont senator added: “My view is no more military aid to Israel when children [there] are starving.”

Meanwhile, the Democratic senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland insisted that the president enforce a national security memorandum signed in February that aimed to condition the transfer of military weaponry to Israel on its adherence to humanitarian benchmarks.

“I was glad to see the president indicate that he’s going to monitor compliance and base US policy going forward on the government meeting these requirements,” Van Hollen told Politico Playbook . “That suggests no more ‘anything goes’ when it comes to policies towards the Netanyahu government.”

Topping the list of policies that Biden could leverage against Israel is the suspension of transferring “offensive weapons” to Israel if it fails at “reducing civilian harm” or “getting desperately needed assistance to people in need”, Van Hollen said. The senator alluded to that policy days after Israeli airstrikes killed seven employees of the international food charity World Central Kitchen (WCK). Following the attack, a cargo ship carrying 240 tons of food destined for Gaza returned to Cyprus.

The Massachusetts Democratic senator Elizabeth Warren said she would seek to impede the sale of F-15s to Israel after the killings of the WCK staffers , which included a US-Canadian citizen and three British nationals.

A day before the WCK workers were killed, a report surfaced that the Biden administration was mulling an $18bn arms transfer package to Israel that would include more than two dozen F-15 fighter jets.

“We cannot approve the sale of arms to a country that is in violation of our own laws on this,” Warren told CNN . “And that includes access to humanitarian relief.

“This is a moral question – it is also a legal question. Congress has responsibility here, and I’m willing to take that responsibility.”

Netanyahu has said Israel killed the WCK staffers unintentionally, and two senior military officers have been fired as a result.

Sanders, Van Hollen and Warren are all part of a 51-49 majority that Democrats – and independents who caucus with them – hold in the Senate.

Biden and his administration have generally stood in steadfast support of Israel, which has struck Gaza on land and by air after the 7 October attack by Hamas killed 1,100 Israelis and also took hostages. But with the death toll in Gaza climbing above 30,000 and the humanitarian crisis worsening, the US – which provides Israel with at least $3.8bn in security assistance annually – recently abstained from a United Nations vote which resulted in a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

Biden on Thursday for the first time called for an immediate ceasefire, too.

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• US foreign policy

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Reworked Italian Jerseys That Celebrate Soccer Style

Plus: a Nancy Brooks Brody exhibition, a Nile sailboat charter and more recommendations from T Magazine.

Step by Step

The Wellness Entrepreneur Erica Chidi Shares Her Beauty Regimen

Interview by Caitie Kelly

I’m a big double cleanser, sometimes even a triple cleanser. Step one is usually Biologique Recherche Eau Micellaire Biosensible , followed by Lait Dermo-S . At night, I’ll use Vintner’s Daughter Active Renewal Cleanser with cold water. I’m a big fan of Clean Skin Club towels in XL. I’m prone to acne and hyperpigmentation, and those towels really changed my skin. I use Tower 28’s SOS Rescue Spray to prevent transdermal water loss. Then I do three big droppers of Dr. Barbara Sturm’s Hyaluronic Serum , followed by Paula’s Choice Discoloration Repair Serum and Biologique Recherche Crème Dermopurifiante . I use Supergoop’s Unseen Sunscreen to lock everything in. Every evening, I cleanse and do my Dr. Dennis Gross Spectralite FaceWare Pro LED mask. I use my hyaluronic serum and, after a few minutes, apply a Tretinoin Cream USP 0.1% — my skin responds well to the constant turnover. I’ll follow with my Biologique Recherche Crème Dermopurifiante and Prequel’s Skin Utility Ointment as an occlusive layer. As needed, I use Cosmelan 2 Maintenance Cream for a spot treatment and Biologique Recherche Masque Visolastine+ as a hydrating mask. SK-II Treatment Masks are just good to have in the fridge. I’m a devotee at the temple of Vanessa Lee from the med spa the Things We Do . I did a Cosmelan peel last winter and it took away 80 to 90 percent of my hyperpigmentation. I also love the High Frequency Wand ; when I have little breakouts, I’ll use that to help.

For makeup, I use just a bit of Ami Colé Skin-Enhancing Concealer , a lighter and darker one that I mix. For brows I use KS&Co Clear Strong-Hold Brow Gel . Kristie has done my brows for seven years, and she also tested her microblading technique on me. I use Merit’s Clean Lash and, for lips, I love Rhode’s Peptide Lip Tint and Tower 28’s Lip Jelly . They give you shine and condition the lips. Sunnie’s Lip Dip in Posh is my go-to lipstick and I also like the Lip Bar’s Nonstop Liquid Matte in Bawse Lady.

My baths are a whole thing. I’ll do a whole bag of Ancient Minerals Magnesium Bath Flakes and Osea Vagus Nerve Bath Oil . I’ll be in there for an hour. I’ll work in the bath, send voice notes in the bath. And then I get out and use the Rhode Glazing Milk all over my body. In the shower I use Nècessaire the Body Acne Wash and I like to have the Dr. Bronners unscented formula in the shower, too. Afterward, I use Biography’s Sea Chrome Revitalize Body Oil . Once a week I’ll do a first wash with Olaplex Bond Maintenance Shampoo , then T-Gel twice because I have psoriasis, then Olaplex Bond Maintenance Conditioner . After that I have this microfiber towel that soaks up all the water but doesn’t deposit any lint. There’s a trichologist I follow, Anita Wilson , who said the best thing to do if you suffer from dandruff or psoriasis is to cut all oils from your hair routine. I have to say, it changed my life. No dandruff at all. Instead, I started using this glycerin spray called Greg Juice that has nettle. It’s basically a hydrosol I spray on as my hair or scalp needs hydration. My Zuvi blow dryer is something I’m wild about; I use the diffuser, and I’m obsessed with it.

This interview has been edited and condensed.

A Parisian Apartment Rental Above an Iconic Restaurant

By Lindsey Tramuta

Paris is ever-changing, but La Tour d’Argent, the grande dame of French gastronomy overlooking the Seine, has been reliably constant since 1582. So when André Terrail, the seven-story restaurant’s owner and president, closed it for a 15-month, top-to-bottom transformation led by the architect Franklin Azzi, the ambition was clear: preserve and extend the experience that his family has offered for three generations. That included adding several new spaces, like a ground-floor bar and salon, a rooftop terrace that seats 45 and, most recently, L’Appartement, a 1,200-square-foot pied-à-terre on the fifth floor designed for couples. “La Tour d’Argent was already a destination, but now we can take it further, with a full tailor-made stay,” says Terrail. “If guests want to dine in the restaurant but have a full aperitif in the room with all of our best bottles, they can. If they want the multicourse dinner experience for six to come to them, we can do that, too.” Once inhabited by Terrail’s grandmother Augusta Burdel, the space was designed to embody the family’s French and Finnish heritage: Haussmannian molded ceilings, herringbone parquet floors and a fully equipped kitchen — complete with Christofle tableware and Baccarat glassware — merge with Scandinavian furnishings and an in-room sauna to harmonious effect. Vintage family photographs line the walls alongside contemporary commissions like the 1930s-style enameled ceramic piece “Le Souvenir d’Augusta” from the painter and ceramist Maximilien Pellet. But Terrail insists the most spectacular touch of all sits across the river. “What could be better than these views of Notre Dame right from the living room?” From about $4,860 a night, tourdargent.com .

Vintage Soccer Jerseys Made New

By Lauren Cochrane

In recent years, soccer and style have come together on the runway (see: Balenciaga’s Soccer City Series ) and off (consider TikTok’s Blokecore trend). Systemarosa, a New York-based clothing company and creative studio launched last year by Naomi Accardi and Sam Herzog, is the latest arrival at that intersection. Accardi and Herzog have created an archive of vintage soccer clothing for stylists to borrow from, an online shop where customers can buy curated pieces — 1970s jerseys sit alongside Prada Sport loafers from the 2000s — and a consultancy for others looking to bridge football and fashion (Adidas and Serie A North America are clients). Herzog plays soccer regularly, while Accardi, who grew up in Italy, is the daughter of a professional footballer. Both have experience in fashion marketing, and Accardi has worked with titles in the emerging cluster of fashionable football magazines, including Mundial and Season. They see Systemarosa as a service for two emerging groups: “fashion girls who love the look of a football jersey and maybe would love to know more about football, and the hard-core fans who would like to express the different facets of their life in a more fluid way,” says Accardi.

Their first collaboration — with the Danish sportswear upcycling label Nouveau Nova — arrives this month. The designer Nova Norgaard fused vintage Italian jerseys sourced by Systemarosa with knitwear to make six designs, including a track top, a ’70s-style dress with a frilled skirt and a long dress with corset-inspired lacing down its sides. “It’s more about integrating the appreciation for the game into your everyday life without necessarily looking like you’re going to play,” says Herzog. From $400, systemarosa.com .

The French Jewelry Brand With Picasso Plates in Its Showroom

By Angela Koh

The childhood friends Thomas Montier Leboucher and Iris de La Villardière started their Paris-based fine jewelry label, Viltier, in the spring of 2020. Montier Leboucher had previously worked in marketing for Cartier, while de La Villardière gained experience as an art director at the whimsical French jewelry house Marie-Hélène de Taillac. With Viltier (an appellation derived from their combined last names), they wanted to combine craftsmanship with environmental consciousness. All the pieces are made by artisans in Paris using 18-karat fair-mined gold, and all of their diamonds are regulated by the Kimberley Process , a certification that aims to ensure gems are ethically sourced. The brand’s first collection, Magnetic, features a magnet-inspired motif that shows up in diamond-linked bracelets with inlaid natural stones like malachite or lapis lazuli, and gold chain pendant necklaces. This week, Montier Leboucher and de La Villardière opened a showroom in the Seventh Arrondissement, adorning it with bespoke furniture, including a marble console from Porta Romana and pleated Dior couches reupholstered in their brand’s signature yellow hue. The space also serves as an art gallery with regularly rotating pieces. Currently on display is an abstract work by the French painter Serge Poliakoff and silver dishes by Pablo Picasso. The showroom is by appointment only, and those who book can also schedule a consultation with the designers for the creation of custom jewelry. For an appointment, call 011-33-6-50-88-84-36 or visit viltier.com .

Nancy Brooks Brody’s Delicate Final Works, on View in New York

By Laura Bannister

Throughout their lifetime, the artist and activist Nancy Brooks Brody — a native New Yorker and, from 1991, a founding member of the lesbian art collective Fierce Pussy — was concerned with the invisible. Moving between painting, drawing, sculpture and architectural intervention, Brody used commonplace materials to reveal unseen bodies and negative space. In “Broken Shells,” a series begun in 2002, the innards of smashed seashells were painted with jaunty enamels; arranged together, the cracked skeletons became a rainbow. An ink on newsprint series, “Merce Drawings,” outlined the outstretched limbs of Merce Cunningham dancers, containing and extending their movement.

Brody died in December, and an exhibition of their final body of work, “Ode,” opens this week at Klaus von Nichtssagend Gallery in TriBeCa, including several works made in the last week of their life. Brody hand-tore pieces of colorful tissue paper into ovoid forms, then affixed them to raw canvas. Each pared-back composition includes two stacked, hovering shapes that ripple, wrinkle and tear slightly along the taut surface, recalling the wheat-paste posters of Fierce Pussy. Marisa Cardinale and Joy Episalla, co-executors of Brody’s estate and longtime friends of the artist, compiled “Ode” with the gallery. The rounded silhouettes, they say, emerged from Brody’s longstanding fascination with circular forms in various iterations, including the growth rings of trees and painted coins. “Ode” is on view from April 5 to May 11, klausgallery.com .

A Traditional Egyptian Sailboat, Restored for Luxurious Trips Down the Nile

By Gisela Williams

In Pharaonic times, royalty and nobles traveled the Nile on dahabiya s, traditional wooden boats with two sails and private cabins. (“Dahab” means gold in Arabic; early forms of the boats were often painted to resemble that precious metal.) Steamships ultimately replaced the dahabiya in the late 1800s but lately the boat is back in style thanks to its slow pace and relative silence. This spring, a five-cabin boat called Set Nefru, originally built in the 1940s for a member of the Egyptian royal family, began accepting charters. Its Cairo-based owners — Margarita Andrade, the co-founder of the luxury linens brand Malaika; her husband, the lawyer Florian Amereller; and the entrepreneur Alexander Arafa — invested in a team of 50 craftspeople who restored it with reclaimed wood from historic palaces in Alexandria and laser-cut marble for the bathrooms. (Andrade and Amereller are also behind the Luxor hotel Al Moudira .) In the process, they discovered a hidden Art Deco painting on the boat’s saloon bulkhead. The interior was otherwise returned to its former glory with vintage French and bespoke furniture, Limoges porcelain tableware and Egyptian bed linens from Malaika. For chartered voyages (typically three days or more), Set Nefru, which comes with a staff of 11 including a chef, sets sail from Luxor and makes its way toward Aswan, stopping at historical sites like the Temple of Horus and for visits (and sometimes meals) at small family farms along the Nile. Price on request, setnefru.com .

From T’s Instagram

Caitie Kelly is an associate market editor for T Magazine. More about Caitie Kelly

Rec Coach Resources

Asa wants you to coach rec soccer, rec coaches, asa is looking for volunteer recreational coaches for ages 4 through 19.

Whether you have a child who plays soccer for ASA or not, all volunteers are welcome. No previous soccer experience is required! Coaching kids can be very rewarding and ASA aims to make the experience easy and attainable for all those interested.

• Coaches must pass a background check for safety measures
• ASA provides coaches with a coach shirt, coaching gear (cones, pinnies, balls) and weekly practice sessions
• ASA provides onsite support if needed at practices and games

I signed up to be a Rec League coach, what happens now?

First, THANK YOU! ASA’s Recreational League Director will reach out to finalize your background check and assign you a team to coach (your child’s team if applicable!). As the coach you get to select the day and time you’d like your team to practice. Once the practice schedule is finalized you will reach out to your team (ASA will provide you with the roster and contact information) to introduce yourself and provide the practice schedule.

Before the season kicks off ASA will hold a Coaches Meeting and a Coaches Clinic. Neither are mandatory but both are encouraged! At the meeting Rec League staff will cover game day rules and setup guidelines, distribute equipment, answer questions and generally give an overview of the upcoming season. At the coaches clinic ASA will demonstrate several practice activities (with kids!) and teach coaches how to run a seamless practice session.

• Coaching Education

We encourage Rec coaches to complete an online or in-person certification course for an entry-level coaching license. Registration costs associated with these licenses are reimbursed upon completion and certification! Please toggle the options below to learn about different options.

• E-learning (certificates, safety measures & more)
• Foundations of Coaching Certificate ($25)

Coaching education overview from US Soccer.

Introduction to Grassroots Coaching (online, FREE)

• Must complete before gaining access to grassroots courses.

Grassroots Courses

• 4v4 (online) $25
• 7v7 (online) $25
• 9v9 (online) $25
• 11v11 (online) $25

Coaching Education from USYS.

Resource Articles | Helpful Tips & Tricks:

• 3 Things to Avoid When Coaching
• What Coaches Need to Know About Social & Emotional Learning
• Coaching Tips from a Kindergarten Teacher
• 4 Ways to Manage THAT Parent on the Sideline
• Let's Respect the Ref
• 6 Tips for Coaching a Shy Kid
• What Can a Coach Do About a Bully

ASA has teamed up with MOJO to boost our recreation program this year. MOJO sets coaches up for success by providing hundreds of activities designed by top youth soccer coaches and child development experts, with videos produced by Emmy award-winning teams. The app helps build practices with the tap of a button — customized to age, skill level and more. Coaches can download the free MOJO app through the App Store and create a profile affiliated with ASA.

Practice Plans + Support

Rec league resources, prek & kindergarten.

Age appropriate 9 week practice plans:

1st and 2nd Grade

Age appropriate 8 week practice plans

3rd and 4th Grade

5th and 6th grade, u13 & up practice activities, isolation passing, 1v1 and 2v2, overload games, safety and rules.

It is imperative that coaches take steps to ensure kids are safe and remain injury free. The largest piece of equipment related to soccer is the soccer goal. (PreK-2nd graders use pop up goals that are less of an injury risk). Please follow the guidelines below to ensure that goals do not fall on kids or injury them in any other way.

Coaches should:

• Place sandbags on all large metal goals
• NEVER allow anyone to play or climb on the net or goal framework
• Always use extreme caution when moving goals. Portable soccer goals should be moved by adults who are authorized and trained to do so.
• Move any goals NOT IN USE away from the sideline (so that kids do not accidentally run into a goal post)
• Communicate with players (and spectators) of the potential dangers associated with moving or playing on portable goals

* Referee’s support the educational process of learning the offside rule at 3rd grade and may modify how they enforce the rule and lean more towards teaching the rule.

The law states that if a player is in an offside position when the ball is played, he or she may not become actively involved in the play.

A player is in an offside position if he or she is closer to the goal line than both the ball and the second-to-last defender, but only if he or she is in the opposition half of the field. To be offside, a player must:

• Be in the opposition half
• Be in front of the ball
• Have fewer than two opposing players between herself and the goal line when the ball is played by a teammate. (The goalkeeper counts as an opposing player in this instance).

*A player cannot be offside when receiving the ball directly from a goal kick, corner kick, or throw-in.

Learn more about the offsides rule here!

U5-U11 Age Groups

No heading in practice or games. In games, whenever the ball strikes a player in the head, play is stopped. The proper restart depends upon whether the player deliberately played the ball with his or her head. (Referee decision at U9-U11).

U12 Age Group

Limited (if any) heading in practice that focuses on proper technique. There is no restriction in games.

[email protected] (703) 684-5425

1108 Jefferson Street (Lee Ctr, 1st Floor) Alexandria, VA 22314

Office Hours Monday-Friday 9 AM to 4 PM

Community Impact

• Red and Blue Club
• Volunteer with ASA
• Privacy & Terms

Tournaments

• Feature Weekend Showcase
• Alexandria Soccer Kick Off
• Columbus Day
• Documents and Check-in