NEWBERG, Ore. — Youth soccer has existed in some organized form in Newberg since 1979, but for most of that time it looked a lot like what it was: a small, grassroots program tied closely to the high school and led largely by parent volunteers.
In recent years, that’s changed thanks to a group that wants to give the Chehalem Valley youth an opportunity to play high-level youth soccer here and showcase that talent together.
Chehalem Valley Soccer Club — rebranded two years ago from the longtime Newberg Youth Soccer name — now fields 19 teams serving more than 300 players across age groups from U11 to U19. It has a new executive director, two newly hired directors of coaching with elevated licensing credentials, and a board that includes business executives, educators, and a child psychologist. Tryouts for the upcoming season open May 11.
“It’s not just Newberg,” said club president Alex Nichols. “It’s Yamhill, Lafayette, St. Paul, McMinnville, Sherwood. The talent pool is expanding. But the Newberg community is where it starts.”
Nichols, a winemaker and former competitive player who came on as board president three years ago, describes the club’s core mission as a bridge — connecting kids who age out of recreational programs through Chehalem Parks and Recreation District with a higher level of training, and ultimately feeding prepared players into club teams or Newberg High School’s programs. The club has also partnered with CPRD on a youth entry program called Little Big Kicks.
The problem the club is trying to solve, Nichols says, is an exodus. Because there was no well-known local club option, families with motivated players were driving to the Portland metro area and enrolling elsewhere — taking local talent with them.
“If you don’t know there’s an opportunity here, how are you ever going to keep supporting that passion locally?” Nichols said.
The fees are structured to compete, Nichols said. Annual costs run $1,249 for the middle school age group (U11–U14) and $995 for the high school group — figures Nichols says are 30 to 40 percent below comparable clubs within a 30- to 40-minute drive. Portland Club United’s fees, for example, start at $2,095 for U11-12 and climb to $2,500 for U13-19.
The club is a nonprofit, and it intentionally sets aside 15 to 18 percent of its budget for scholarships — a figure Nichols ties directly to the share of Yamhill County households he says are in economically compromised situations.
“We want the club to reflect our community,” he said.
Paul Karver, the head men’s soccer coach at George Fox University and the head coach of the Oregon ODP (Olympic Development Program), has been watching the club’s growth closely. He’s also been part of it — George Fox has opened its facilities to the club, and Karver has consulted informally with club leadership on coaching development and club direction.
“One of my biggest things is I get to mentor 18- to 22-year-old young men,” Karver said. “One of the greatest things we can do for them is have them interact with and be around young people and be good role models. The club allows us to do that.”
Karver pointed to a broader trend in youth sports that he says shapes the club’s urgency. According to a national survey by the Aspen Institute’s Project Play initiative, the average child quits organized sports by age 11 — most often because it stops being fun. Karver said the dropout pattern is acute in soccer specifically, with the sport losing the vast majority of potential players before they reach their teens.
“And soccer might even be more than that,” Karver said. “Soccer loses players to sports like football and basketball just because those are the sports this country focuses on. If we can build community for them to feel comfortable and provide spaces for them to succeed, we may see a shift there.”
Competitive results are starting to follow the club’s investment. Two teams won the OYSA Founders Cup last season. Out of the eight teams that participated in the fall state tournament play, six or seven advanced out of the group stage.
That’s quite a change from three years ago, when only two teams competed in the tournament at all.
The club is also actively pursuing a permanent home facility in Newberg — a major logistical step for a program that has relied on shared use of Newberg High School fields and George Fox’s campus.
“Once we get that address identified, we’ll start looking to the community and say, when we build it, they will come,” he said.
Tryouts for all competitive teams — U11 through U19 — are scheduled for May 11 and May 14 at GFU’s Austin Sports Complex. Tryout registration is $10. More information is available at chehalemvalleysc.com.
Editor’s note: Newsberg editor Branden Andersen has a personal friendship with Alex Nichols. This relationship did not influence the reporting or editorial decisions in this story.
