In Irvine and Orange County, “top notch soccer” is not a brand you buy – it is a five-question phone call. Ask any trainer: which USSF license do you hold by name, what team are you coaching right now, how many players will be on the field, what is the all-in price, and what happens in session one. A program that answers all five in plain numbers is worth a trial session. A program that answers in adjectives is not. Below is the script with good and bad answers, real Orange County price bands, and what actually changed for two players.
- Screen on license, group size, and price transparency – not on logos, kit design, or highlight reels.
- Top Notch Training rates as of August 2026: $95/hour private; $70, $60, or $50 per player/hour small group by size; $45 or $55 per weekly group session by age band.
- County-wide bands as of August 2026: roughly $75-150/hour private, $25-60 small group, $50-125/day camp.
- More than 800 youth, club, and high school players have trained with Top Notch Training as of August 2026.
- No honest program guarantees a roster spot. Effort, coachability, and technical level are what a coach can actually control.
Why the label is meaningless and the call is not
Search “top notch soccer” and you get clubs in six states, facility rentals, and Instagram accounts – the phrase has no gatekeeper, so it tells you nothing. What does tell you something is whether a stranger on the phone can produce five specific answers without stalling.
If you are still mapping how rec, club, and supplemental training fit together first, start with our guide to Orange County youth soccer leagues, clubs, AYSO, and training. Then come back and make the calls.
The five-question first call, in order
The five-question first call
This takes about six minutes and screens out most of the field. Ask the first two verbatim.
- “Which USSF license do you hold, by name?”
- “What team are you coaching right now?”
| Question | Good answer | Weak answer |
|---|---|---|
| Which USSF license do you hold, by name? | Names the rung, offers the number or issue date. | “Fully certified.” No rung named. |
| What team are you coaching right now? | Names the club, age group, and league. | “I used to coach at a high level.” |
| How many players on the field in my child’s session? | A hard cap, stated as a number. | “Depends who shows up.” |
| What is the all-in price, including field or travel fees? | Per-hour rate plus what can change it. | A package price with no per-session math. |
| What happens in session one? | Assessment of named mechanics, then a plan. | “We’ll get a feel for it.” |
The US Soccer coaching ladder runs, ascending: Grassroots, D, C, B, A Youth or A Senior, and Pro. Verify by asking for the license number and issue date, or by asking the coach to confirm their record in the US Soccer Learning Center. Question two matters because a coach currently running a competitive team is tested weekly by real opponents.
A trainer who cannot name their license is not automatically bad, and a licensed one is not automatically good. The license only tells you someone other than their own marketing has assessed them. Pair it with one trial session before you judge, and book a session rather than a package.
The belief worth correcting: the club badge is not the quality signal
Most Orange County parents assume the higher the club tier, the better the development. A club team’s job is to win league games, and a good club coach does that while managing 16 to 18 kids and a season schedule. Nobody in that setting has 40 minutes to rebuild a weak-foot mechanic or teach a player to receive on the half-turn under pressure.
More than 800 youth, club, and high school players have trained with Top Notch Training as of August 2026, and the ones who improve fastest are almost never the ones with the most impressive team badge – they are the ones getting extra touches every week.
Two players, what changed, and what it cost
Program pages describe skills in the abstract. Here is what the work actually looks like, including a diagnosis I got wrong.
The 13-year-old whose “bad first touch” was not a touch problem
I spent three weeks fixing a 13-year-old’s first touch across the body, convinced it was a technique fault. It was not. He was receiving blind, no shoulder check, so his body was already turned the wrong way before the ball arrived. Once we drilled scanning, the touch fixed itself in two sessions. Diagnosis beats reps, and I got that one wrong first. – Coach Elmer Chacon
The lesson for parents: if a trainer prescribes a drill in the first ten minutes, they are guessing. Session one should be assessment. Our piece on first touch training for Irvine and Orange County players covers what a real touch diagnosis looks at.
Nicholas, over several years of private, small-group, and camp work
Marco and Lisa Joca’s son Nicholas trained with Coach Elmer across all three formats. In their words, the work covered “technical skills and tactical understanding to confidence, discipline, and the mental side of competing at a high level,” and they credit a great deal of his development, and his continued love of the game, to that time.
That is the honest shape of a multi-year case: not a single measurable jump, but compounding. At the weekly group rate for club and high school players, a season of consistent Thursday sessions is a line item most families can plan around.
What it costs in Irvine and Orange County
Here are Top Notch Training’s rates, current as of August 2026, for any age group.
| Format | Rate | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1-on-1 private | $95 per hour | 1 to 2 hours, weekly or bi-weekly |
| Small group, 2 players | $70 per player/hour | You bring your own players |
| Small group, 3 players | $60 per player/hour | 6 players maximum |
| Small group, 4 to 6 players | $50 per player/hour | Lowest per-player rate |
| Weekly group, ages 9-12, all levels | $45 per session | Open enrollment, Oak Creek Park, Irvine |
| Weekly group, club/elite/HS, ages 12-17 | $55 per session | Open enrollment, Oak Creek Park, Irvine |
Two things move the total: travel to your field, and any field or permit fees. A permitted turf complex costs more to run than a public park field, and peak evening slots are tighter than mid-morning. County-wide as of August 2026, private runs roughly $75-150 per hour, small group $25-60, and camps $50-125 per day. Anything well under those bands usually means a bigger group than you were told.
The realistic Orange County alternatives, and who each one suits
Where each format fits
Top Notch is not the right answer for every family. Here is the honest field.
Club team training only
Format: 2-3 team practices weekly, 16-18 players, cost folded into annual dues. Suits players who are technically sound and need game reps and tactical reps, not mechanical repair. If your player already gets corrected by name at practice, extra training may be redundant.
Large academy or facility clinics
Format: drop-in clinics and camps, often 15-30 players per coach, commonly in the $50-125 per day camp band. Suits beginners, Youngers building a love of the game, and families who need school-break coverage. Not where a specific fault gets fixed.
Independent 1-on-1 trainers
Format: one coach, one player, generally $75-150 per hour countywide. Suits a diagnosable fault: weak foot, first touch, finishing mechanics, or confidence after a hard season. Quality varies enormously, which is exactly why the five-question call exists.
Top Notch Training, Irvine
Format: weekly groups at Oak Creek Park, small groups of 2-6 you assemble yourself, and privates. Suits players who need diagnosis plus consistent extra touches. Wrong fit if you want a guaranteed placement pathway, or if you cannot travel to Irvine for the weekly slot.
Whichever direction you lean, our breakdown of Irvine youth soccer development formats helps match format to the actual gap, and our screening process for finding a soccer trainer near you covers what to watch from the sideline once you are there.
Your next step
Coach Elmer Chacon holds a USSF B License, coaches in the Strikers FC Irvine MLS NEXT program, and has spent nearly two decades in Southern California soccer. His philosophy, in his own words: “I teach the game so it becomes natural.”
When you request a session, send four things: your player’s age and birth year, current team and level, the one skill you most want fixed, and the days and times that genuinely work. Session one is then an assessment – touch, both feet, scanning habits, body shape under light pressure – followed by a plain statement of what to work on and roughly how long it takes.
No program can promise your child a roster spot, and any that does should worry you. What a coach can promise is an honest diagnosis and reps that match it.
Frequently asked questions
How much does private soccer training cost in Irvine?
Top Notch Training’s 1-on-1 rate is listed in the pricing table above and is current as of August 2026, with sessions running 1 to 2 hours, weekly or bi-weekly. Across Orange County, private rates generally fall in a $75-150 per hour band. Travel to your field and any field or permit fees can change your total.
Is small group training better than 1-on-1 for my kid?
It depends on the problem. A specific mechanical fault is fixed fastest 1-on-1. Decision-making and competitive pressure need other bodies, which is what groups of 2 to 6 provide at a lower per-player rate. Many families alternate between the two.
Where do Top Notch Training sessions take place?
Weekly group trainings run at a fixed slot at Oak Creek Park in Irvine. Private and small-group sessions are arranged around your field in Orange County, and travel plus any field or permit fees can affect the total.
How do I check a soccer coach’s USSF license?
Ask which license they hold by name, then ask for the license number and issue date. Coaches can confirm their credentials through the US Soccer Learning Center. The ladder runs Grassroots, D, C, B, A Youth or A Senior, then Pro.
How often should my player train outside of team practice?
Once a week is enough to change something if the sessions are diagnostic and the player does homework touches in between. Twice a week moves faster during an off-season or school break. More than that alongside a full club schedule usually costs more in fatigue than it returns.
What age groups do you train?
Programs are organized as Youngers (8-11), Olders (12-16), and High School/Elite. Weekly group sessions split into ages 9-12 all levels, and club, elite, and high school players ages 12-17. Private and small-group training is open to any age.
Can training guarantee my child makes a club team?
No, and no honest program will say otherwise. Selection depends on a club’s needs, roster space, and an evaluator’s judgment on a given day. Training controls technical level, decision speed, effort, and coachability, which are what evaluators actually notice.
Reviewed by Elmer Chacon, USSF B Licensed, MLS Next Coach, CIF Coach of the Year, Head Coach at Fairmont Preparatory Academy - last updated August 15, 2026.
Sources for this article
- Pricing doc: $95/hr private; $70/$60/$50 per player/hour small group; $45 and $55 weekly group; 1-2 hours, weekly or bi-weekly; travel and field/permit fees affect total; rates cur
- Pricing doc: weekly groups at Oak Creek Park, Irvine; ages 9-12 all levels and 12-17 club/elite/HS
- Site-verified stat: 800+ youth, club, and high school players trained as of August 2026
- Pillar post: club team's job is to win games, coach managing 16 to 18 kids; the plateau gap
- Joca testimonial: Nicholas trained across private, small-group, and camps; technical, tactical, confidence, discipline, mental side
- Camp posts: Coach Elmer Chacon, nearly two decades in Southern California soccer, "I teach the game so it becomes natural"
- House rules: USSF license ladder, US Soccer Learning Center verification, county price bands $75-150/hr private, $25-60 small group, $50-125/day camp, USSF B License and Strikers F
Facts drawn from this site's own documented knowledge and first-hand experience.
