They had 3 players from other countries on the roster in 2021 and 2022, 2 in 2023, 1 in 2024. I don’t think one foreign recruit for the 2025 team is a major departure. More than 20% of Harvard’s student body is from other countries.
Well, I think if a parent of a kid that has applied tells the school they intend to make a gift, regardless of whether they play a sport or not, that can oftentimes be taken into account in getting into a school. Legacy programs were a proxy for this practice at many prestigious private schools. Whether the ability and intent to make a gift should help or not, its not illegal, at least at private schools.
As it relates to non-revenue Olympic sports teams, coaches have for years recruited not only the best players, but also kids whose families can help the programs financially. The interview of the Stanford sailing coach during the Varsity Blues scandal revealed what had been a well known practice: recruit kids who are good enough at their sport to arguably make the team, but whose families can financially benefit the program, taking stress off athletic department budgets. This was encouraged by all athletic administrations prior to Varsity Blues.
I cant speak of other schools but as a parent of ct woman water polo player graduating princeton, i can assure you that you are dead wrong about the tigers.. not a little but completely and utterly wrong. Writing a diatribe like you did without any substantiation or proof about the programs, parents & players on those teams isnt going to help ur kid get recruited.
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For the record, I wasn’t writing a diatribe. And I’m not trying to pick a fight. I apologize for potentially impugning the merits of your daughter or any other specific student-athlete. Going to, and playing for, Princeton is an unbelievable accomplishment, and one that should be celebrated. I purposefully didn’t mention Princeton or any school in particular (other than the Stanford sailing coach who was interviewed in the Varsity Blues documentary) and what I said is very dependent on coaches/programs/schools that were revealed in the Varsity Blues investigation.
In responding to the posts earlier, I was simply trying to shed some light on what the system looked like pre-Varsity Blues, relying on the record of the two trials that went forward, and personal experience from development departments at multiple small private colleges. To that end, there is substantiation in the massive record produced in the Varsity Blues investigation, especially the two trials, of the role development departments played in admissions decisions.
At the end of the day, I’m sure the overwhelming vast majority of students and student-athletes are admitted based on their own unbelievably impressive merit with no promise of donations. And that was also proved by the record in the Varsity Blues trials.
Lastly, my kids couldn’t get into Princeton even if my last name was Rockefeller, so the point of this is not to help my kids get recruited by an elite Ivy league school. We’ll make do with some lowly California public school.
And that’s it for my “diatribe.”
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Signings seem to be starting to pick up a bit with Long Beach signing two International Players, one from Hungary/Brazil and the other from Spain via LBCC. I assume they are additional to any 2025 signed players and the portal.
Davis is bringing a Croatian center from Mladost, a player from Barcelona and a Canadian afaik.
Don’t know if this has been brought up or if this belongs in the House Settlement thread, but would it possible, or even legal, to restrict the NIL and/or scholarship limit to US athletes only? Or cap the amount of NIL/scholarships going to non-US athletes? Again, not even sure if this is legal but is that a possibility for NCAA or whatever entity emerges from this going forward?
Foreign students aren’t allowed to work off-campus unless they have a work permit. Not sure how they’re going to work around that USCIS requirement with the current administration’s threats of deportation.
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I’ve been looking at college water polo rosters, and it’s shocking how many teams have 60% or more international players, on both the men’s and women’s sides. For a sport that is already incredibly expensive in the U.S., this is a huge problem.
Honestly, if I were a parent, I would seriously reconsider investing in water polo unless my child were exceptionally tall or physically dominant. The reality is that families spend tens of thousands of dollars on clubs, travel, coaching, and camps, only to see college roster spots increasingly taken by international players, some of whom are 20 years old and enrolling as freshmen. That creates an uneven and discouraging playing field.
I’m not against international athletes. They absolutely bring value to the college game. But there should be reasonable limits on how many roster spots can be filled this way. If the sport wants to survive and grow in the U.S., it must protect opportunities for domestic athletes and the families who are heavily investing in it.
Without changes, water polo risks losing participation at the youth level. If parents feel there’s little to no realistic pathway to college, many will simply redirect their time and money into other sports that offer better opportunities. That’s bad for the long-term health of the sport.
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Why did you feel the need to post this so many times at once?
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@RJB could you please stop reposting the same comment across multiple threads? You’ve made your point.
Since you seem new to this community, it may help to know that members here are generally responsive and offer knowledgeable perspectives even when a point is posted once.
You might also find it useful to read the full thread titled “Impact of NCAA recruiting on water polo…”—this issue isn’t new and has been discussed many times.
If you have any new insights to add, that would be both helpful and productive.
Factually: https://ncaaorg.s3.amazonaws.com/research/pro_beyond/2023RES_ProbabilityBeyondHSFiguresMethod.pdf
Relative to other sports, water polo sits roughly in the middle of the pack in terms of the percentage of high school athletes who go on to compete in the NCAA. When looking specifically at Division I, water polo actually offers a higher probability: 3.1% for boys and 4.4% for girls, compared with averages across other sports of 2.1% and 2.6%, respectively, roughly a 50% higher likelihood. The issue is lack of D3 programs relative to other sports.
If the point is that high school students should not rely on playing NCAA sports because the pathway is highly selective, that argument is valid. However, water polo is not unique in this regard.
With regard to your specific point about international players, first, this is not unique to water polo. Second, many programs that recruit international athletes do so because of a lack of interest from high-level domestic players.
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Well you are overlooking the problem that if 50 percent of the roster spots are taken by internationals then water polo is 2.7%! All they did here was look at rostered players and divide by how many kids play in high school. Also this is from 2024, pre roster limits. my guess is that number is now 2.5% or lower accounting for internationals and roster limits. To your D1 comment I would guess that is more like 1.5% since D1 has a higher percentage of Internationals. Do the math, 23 D1 teams (including St. Mary’s, according to NCIS), if 40 percent are international that leaves 331 domestic players on rosters, 1.55%! Look at LAAC’s roster for National league, 9 of their players are international, 41% and they probably represent 65% of the playing time. Now water polo is not the only sport impacted by international players but some would argue it is a higher percentage than many other sports.
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If college play is the only reason for kids to be in sport the vast majority should just hand their kid a video game controller and give up… truth bomb. There are a million reasons more than college athletics. The tiny number that get to NCAA should not be why anyone plays. Is it expensive, yes. What club sport isnt? That is a whole different conversation I think.
Edit: Does my son have a dream of playing D1 ball? Yes. Does it hurt to have dreams? Nope. Even if he doesnt get there he will be better for giving it his all in pursuit.
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Agreed, many kids just have the goal of being a high school star or strong contributor on team with friends. Playing in front of your home community is more rewarding than playing in front of a dismal college crowd made up of parents and girlfriends.
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I wonder how prevalent this drive for playing in college really is throughout all sports. It seems really high in water polo. Not every basketball or football players’ parents think their kid can play D1. In polo, it’s seems so many do without realizing how hard it really is or what the costs (financial and otherwise) are. The outcomes for kids who play youth sports and then go pursue a full college experiences at the right school for them can be much better than those who focus primarily on dreams of college athletics. There is more to life than winning games. Play a sport you love for as long as you can and is appropriate. The goals for every kid should be different with a holistic mindset.
I can’t imagine the world where people only took up tennis to play in college.
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Not sure. I had dreams of achieving at a high level but it didnt revolve around college play. Whether it is an Olympic dream, pro sports, or just seeing where you stack up against the best in your region/nation… I think the process and learning done in pursuit is more valuable. At least that is what I convince myself of since I never stood on the top step, but I am proud of my bronze and am certainly better for the pursuit. 
I did not play waterpolo.
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I think there’s a natural relationship between the time and resources families devote to a sport and the hope that it extends beyond high school. Water polo requires a particularly heavy investment (time and money), so it’s understandable that many families quietly hope their kids have the opportunity to keep playing at the next level.
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It’s worse than simply playing in college. Anyone can play in college. Club water polo may be available at schools in every state. Many schools will take players on varsity who can get into the school through the front door. Parents think that water polo will get kids into schools that their kid is otherwise unqualified for. Those options only exist for the best of the best, and not every kid is in that group, regardless of what their parents think. There’s a sure fire way to play in college for good players, get into MIT.
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I still remember the moment I told my son, “Why are you swimming when water polo is the same; just better?” 
Addressing some of the questions below (adjusting to 14U+, geographic concentration cost adjustments, and bonus probability of becoming an Olympian)
and footnotes
I can share the ChatGPT query if someone is interested in writing a PhD dissertation on the topic.
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This reminds me of the saying people play squash when they are too fast and too strong to play tennis. Love it!!!
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