Street soccer is an informal game played in small spaces, typically no larger than your common neighborhood street.

Nearly all of the world's greatest players developed their skills through street soccer. This is why Artisan Social players aged 6–12 focus exclusively on two formal versions that capture its essence: streetbol and futsal.

In our culture, where impromptu street soccer games are rare, these structured alternatives—streetbol and futsal—provide the essential foundation for soccer excellence.

Streetbol and futsal are formal versions of "street soccer." Many of the world's best players focused almost exclusively on these small-sided games in their youth. We recognize their immense developmental value and believe young players benefit most from this focused approach.

On smaller courts with fewer players, each athlete gets more touches on the ball and stays constantly involved in both offense and defense. The games' simplicity and fluid positioning teach players to maximize limited space effectively. The fast-paced nature of streetbol and futsal develops quick thinking and decision-making skills, helping players master soccer's fundamentals and become independent thinkers on the field.

While many clubs treat streetbol and futsal as mere supplements to "real soccer"—rushing players toward the full-sized game—we take a different view. We see these formats as the essential foundation for developing well-rounded soccer players.

Best of all, streetbol and futsal are thrilling to both watch and play, making the learning process more enjoyable for young athletes.

Children may participate in both Artisan Social and another club through the U10 age group—though other clubs may not permit this dual participation.

Starting at U11, players must commit exclusively to Artisan Social to continue in the Academy.

US Soccer organizes age groups by calendar year (January 1–December 31). This policy often separates children born late in the year from their friends and classmates born in the following year—something we believe should be more flexible.

To address this, the Streetbol Academy allows players born late in the year to play with their grade-level peers. For instance, children born between August 1 and December 31, 2016, can join the 2017 age group.

For 11v11 soccer, which begins at Artisan Social in the spring of a player's U12 year, players must compete with their birth-year group to comply with USSF guidelines.

Players can continue playing streetbol and futsal with their friends, regardless of age group.

We strongly recommend that girls play with boys as long as they wish to and are able, particularly in games like streetbol and futsal at younger age groups.

We recognize, however, that some girls prefer to play exclusively with and against other girls, so we will create girls-only teams for them.

We have chosen to train indoors at Storm Sports Academy rather than outdoors for these key reasons:

1. A consistent, high-quality playing surface is essential for effective skill development. The indoor courts at Storm Sports Academy provide this ideal environment, while outdoor grass fields can often hinder player development.

2. Since streetbol and futsal are played in confined spaces, we don't need extensive outdoor areas. In fact, the limited space helps develop better technical skills—which is one of the main reasons we focus on these formats.

3. Indoor facilities protect us from weather disruptions, ensuring that training sessions run reliably year-round with optimal playing conditions.

We organize streetbol competitions in three formats:

1. Player-created teams with friends

2. Pickup games with randomly assigned teams for 8-minute matches

3. Organized matches against other local clubs

For futsal, we participate in local competitions organized by other groups.

Yes. When players reach the spring of their U11 year, they will play 7v7 for one year as a bridge to 11v11 soccer. While other clubs will have already been playing 7v7 and 9v9 for several years by this point, our players will transition to 11v11 in the spring of their U12 year—up to six months earlier than other clubs. This spring season serves as an introduction to the full-sized game.

By the start of the U13 season, Artisan players will compete in 11v11 soccer alongside other clubs.

For 7v7, we will partner with clubs interested in this format for U11-U12 age groups, since formal leagues only offer winter tournaments. We are building relationships with local clubs to create these opportunities.

For U13 11v11 soccer, we will assess league options as that age group approaches. If existing leagues don't meet our standards in the evolving soccer landscape, we'll create our own league. We're currently in discussions with other clubs to ensure the best possible experience for our players and families.

With the soccer landscape seemingly in constant flux, we cannot state at this time which league we will join. If we find existing leagues to be unsatisfactory options, however, we may continue with the development of our own league with partner clubs. This will be determined over the next several years, and we will keep interested families updated on developments.

U11 and U12 age groups are still several years away from implementation, and currently there no 6v6 leagues to play in. But we feel strongly that this is a better path forward for youth soccer, and in the next few years we plan to lead the development of a 6v6 league with like-minded clubs to serve this purpose. We will keep all interested families updated on developments.