The 26th Annual College Search Kickoff (CSK) has been cancelled due to the low number of both teams and college coaches registered for the event according to Muscatine Parks and Recreation Department officials.
CSK has provided, and will continue to provide, elite competition under the watchful eyes of scouts from all divisions of the college ranks.
“This has been a premier event every summer and we were set to host another tremendous CSK experience for players, coaches, scouts, parents, and fans,” Rich Klimes, Parks and Recreation Director, said. “However, as much as we wanted this event to happen, we will not compromise on providing those attending with the best possible experience.”
The premier fields of the Muscatine Soccer Complex were prepped and ready for the athletes and college coaches that were scheduled to be on hand July 29-30, and Klimes says that the event will return next year.
The Parks and Recreation team sent out 110,030 team recruitment emails and 8,727 college coach invitations since last fall in preparation for the 2023 event, but the response was lower than expected. Klimes has been in constant contact with the teams, college coaches, vendors, and city administration for the past several weeks prior to the decision being made.
“Every team was understanding that circumstances beyond our control forced us to make the difficult call to cancel the event for 2023,” Klimes said. “However, each team did commit to participating in 2024.”
CSK started in Muscatine in 1996 and was the vision of Ramona Barber to provide an opportunity for soccer youth of our community and throughout the Midwest and beyond to have an opportunity to further their lives through soccer. Muscatine offers the kind of facilities that provide excellent opportunities for eager players to showcase their talents in front of interested college coaches, and for families, friends, and fans to support these athletes in their endeavors.
The CSK invitational showcase has been an amazing success and was gifted to the City of Muscatine in 2018 by Barber who remains active in promoting youth soccer. An influx of similar events in larger metro regions have reduced the number of teams available, but Muscatine remains a favorite place to compete due to the facilities and community support.