Soccer
Soccer is a game of awareness, decision-making, and teamwork. A player’s first touch, movement off the ball, and ability to read the field can completely change the outcome of a game. At Maccabi Sports Camp at the Ranch, athletes spend their mornings building technical skills through focused training sessions, small-sided games, and competitive challenges that improve ball control, passing, shooting, and tactical understanding. Living and playing together in an overnight camp environment gives players the chance to develop confidence, resilience, leadership, and friendships that extend far beyond the soccer field.
More Than a Day Camp: The Overnight Advantage
Day camps develop skills. Overnight camp develops players.
The difference happens in the hours between sessions — the team meals, the cabin conversations, the early morning stretches, and the late-night debriefs after a hard day on the pitch. These are the moments where real confidence is built, where players learn to trust their teammates, and where friendships form that last long after the final whistle.
At Maccabi Sports Camp, our overnight model means your child is fully immersed in the game and the community for the entirety of their time with us. They aren’t being dropped off for a few hours. They’re living it — housed at Ranch Camp, sharing meals in the dining hall, and training on the sports fields.
Boys and girls train and grow together. Our co-ed structure mirrors the reality of club and recreational soccer — where boys and girls develop alongside each other, push each other, and learn from each other. We’ve found this creates stronger competitors and better teammates across the board.
Elite Soccer Training Built on Four Pillars
What separates a great soccer camp from a good one isn’t the number of drills — it’s the philosophy behind them. Our coaching staff, led by experienced mentors first and tacticians second, has designed a development model built around four interconnected pillars:
1. Technical Skill
From first touch and passing accuracy to finishing technique and set-piece execution, players at every level will work on the mechanics of the game in structured, high-repetition sessions. Our coaches use progressive training methods that challenge beginners and advanced players alike.
2. Tactical Intelligence
Great soccer is played in the mind before it’s played on the field. We spend real time teaching players to read the game — understanding positioning, pressure, transition, and space. Players leave with a sharper soccer IQ and a vocabulary for the game that will serve them for years.
3. Physical Conditioning
Speed, agility, strength, and endurance are trained deliberately and progressively throughout the week. We meet each player where they are and push them to a level they didn’t know they could reach.
4. Character Development
This is the pillar that makes Maccabi different. Every session includes intentional lessons in sportsmanship, resilience, leadership, and teamwork — grounded in Jewish values that have guided athletes and communities for generations. We don’t just train athletes. We help shape the people they’re becoming.
What Boys Gain at Maccabi Soccer Camp
For boys, Maccabi’s soccer program is a chance to be pushed — hard — in a setting that supports risk-taking, recovery, and growth. Male campers consistently tell us the training intensity surprised them, and the friendships they left with surprised them even more.
For the competitive player: structured small-sided games, position-specific coaching, and tactical sessions designed to prepare players for club tryouts, school teams, and beyond.
For the developing player: a patient, progressive environment where building confidence on the ball matters as much as winning games. Every player gets real coaching attention — no one gets lost in the crowd.
For the social kid: an overnight community of peers who share a love of the game. Boys form bonds in our CSUEB campus cabins and on our fields that feel nothing like a school-year friendship — and often outlast them.
What Girls Gain at Maccabi Soccer Camp
For girls, Maccabi provides something genuinely rare in the Bay Area: an overnight soccer experience that treats female players as serious athletes — full stop. No shortened sessions, no watered-down curriculum. Girls train alongside boys and receive the same elite-level coaching attention, tactical instruction, and competitive game opportunities.
For the aspiring club player: technical work that translates directly to tryout performance, plus tactical exposure to systems and concepts that most youth programs never get to.
For the player looking to build confidence: a team-first culture where female athletes are celebrated and challenged in equal measure. Our coaches understand how to build the mental side of the game, not just the technical side.
For the girl who loves camp and soccer equally: Maccabi is the only overnight soccer camp in the Bay Area with deep Jewish camp culture woven into the experience. It’s the best of both worlds — and then some.
Our Home: JCC Ranch Camp
Maccabi Sports Camp is now hosted in Elbert, Colorado at JCC Ranch Camp. With over 380 acres in Colorado’s Black Forest, JCC Ranch Camp offers a scenic setting for outdoor adventure and community connection. Operated by the Staenberg–Loup Jewish Community Center, the property features cozy cabins, a central dining hall with a kosher kitchen, a swimming pool, a 60,000-square-foot sports field, equestrian facilities, and high and low ropes courses with a zip line. Miles of trails wind through pine forests and rolling hills for hiking, mountain biking, and horseback riding, while cottages, bungalows, and platform tents offer additional lodging options for family camps and retreats.
Jewish Values. Real Friendships. Unforgettable Summers.
Maccabi Sports Camp is the West Coast’s only Jewish overnight sports camp, and a flagship partner of the Oshman Family JCC. On a baseball diamond, that culture shows up in how players handle adversity, how they compete, and how they treat opponents — win or lose.
Baseball is a game where failure is constant. The best hitters in the world fail seven out of ten times. How a player responds to that — how they carry themselves after a strikeout, how they lead in the dugout when things aren’t going well — is where character lives. At Maccabi, that’s coached as deliberately as swing mechanics.
Jewish players feel immediately at home. Players of all backgrounds consistently tell us they leave Maccabi with something they didn’t expect to find at a baseball camp: a group of people they competed hard with and genuinely trust.
Shabbat, evening programming, and community traditions are woven through the week in a way that feels alive — not scheduled or obligatory.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is this camp co-ed? Can boys and girls attend together?
Yes — Maccabi Baseball Camp is fully co-ed. Boys and girls train and compete together in the same program. And to be clear: our girls players play baseball, not softball. They receive the same position-specific coaching, play in the same game situations, and are held to the same competitive standard as the boys. We don’t offer a separate girls program — because baseball doesn’t require one.
Do girls play baseball or softball at this camp?
Baseball. Real baseball — same field, same rules, same positions as the boys. Maccabi Sports Camp is one of the only youth sports camps that offers girls a genuine co-ed baseball program rather than redirecting them to softball. If your daughter wants to play baseball, she’s in the right place.
What ages and skill levels is this camp for?
We welcome players ages 8 through 16, from kids picking up a glove for the first time to competitive travel and school team players working on specific skills. Our kids baseball camp sessions are progressive and ability-grouped — so every player is challenged and coached at the right level, not sorted by age alone.
Is this an overnight camp or a day camp?
Maccabi Baseball Camp is a true overnight, sleep-away camp. Players live at JCC Ranch Camp for the duration of the session. For a sport with as much mental complexity as baseball, the overnight format — with team film sessions, evening discussions, and the accountability that comes from living and competing together — produces better development than any day camp can.
Where exactly is the camp located?
Maccabi Sports Camp is owned and operated by JCC Ranch Camp and takes place on its 380-acre property in Elbert, Colorado, nestled in the Black Forest. Campers enjoy cabin accommodations, a 60,000-square-foot sports field, a swimming pool, and miles of trails through pine forests and rolling hills. The JCC’s administrative office is in Denver, but camp takes place at Ranch Camp in Elbert.
Does my child need to be Jewish to attend?
Not at all. Maccabi Sports Camp welcomes players of all backgrounds. Our Jewish values create a culture built on character, integrity, and community — qualities that resonate across traditions. Jewish players feel deeply at home; players of all backgrounds consistently tell us they leave with friendships they didn’t expect to make at a baseball camp.
How do I register?
Use the Enroll Now link to start your application through the CampInTouch portal. We’re happy to answer any questions and help you figure out if Maccabi is the right fit for your player. Contact us.
Ready to Give Your Child the Summer They’ll Talk About Forever?
Whether your child is stepping into the batter’s box for the first time or pushing toward their next competitive level, we want them with us at Maccabi Sports Camp this summer.
