> If you don't start playing soccer really young, you will never be able to catch up to someone who did.

Why would they need to catch up to anyone? I'd rather have my child love the game or hobby than cram every waking moment into some activity. The ability to hear yourself think and actively listen to others is more important imho. There is so much noise in US culture telling kids who they should measure up to. As a parent I feel I need to be the counter balance to those messages.

There are also plenty of examples of professional sports players who started in their teens. "Google <sports league> late start."