PROGRAM FAQs
AGE DIVISIONS/ PLAYER DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVES
***For a detailed list of Divisions for the Fall Season, see our AGE DIVISION section on this page.
Player Divisions for our Fall program are grouped by by age (birth year) and gender, except for our youngest divisions which are sometimes coed. This means that for those players with birthdays late in the year, they may be in a different Division than their "younger" classmates.
As a member organization of U.S. Soccer, AYSO (starting in 2017) switched from a school year registration to a birth year registration in order to align with U.S. Soccer's Player Development Initiatives ("PDI's") which, in turn, aligns with the rest of the world. The objective of the PDI's is to set a standard for U.S. youth soccer that more closely resembles the international standards for youth soccer development. There have been some changes since this was introduced, but the key elements (birth year model, small sided games, focus on skill development, etc) remain and the positive impact is already noticeable. Player Development is one of AYSO's "six philosophies" and continues to be an integral part of our program.
WHEN DOES FALL SOCCER START?
For the 9U/10U division and up, teams start to form in Late August with the first practices starting as early as the last week of August...ultimately, the goal is to form teams before Labor Day weekend so teams can start ASAP. Keep in mind volunteer training & player evaluations (9U/10U & older) start in early August. (check our Calendar for tentative dates)
For 7U/8U divisions, teams are formed by early September with first practices starting ASAP. (check our Calendar for tentative dates)
For 6U, there is no separate practice days so they teams are formed shortly before their Opening Day. (check our Calendar for tentative dates)
FIELD LOCATIONS
Our primary field for practices & games is Fairfax High School, but may vary depending on what field permits we have for the Fall.. All of our field permits come from LAUSD and/or the City of LA Rec & Parks) & usually determined by mid-Summer. While our primary fields are at Fairfax High School, we may also use other nearby schools & parks like Pan Pacific Park (if more space is needed). If your child's school has field space that you are able to secure, please contact us at [email protected]. Note: 14U & Upper Division teams play an "Area" schedule..."Away" games will be played at other fields in our Area.
PRACTICE & GAME DAYS/ "SUNDAY-ONLY" TEAMS
Most teams (7U & up) will have one weekday practice & one weekend game. For practice days/ times, it can be any day during the week depending on your coach’s schedule...we do our best to match up with the available time of our volunteer coaches as well as available field space. At registration, we do allow parents to request ONE weekday when their child cannot practice...while there is no guarantees, we do our best to accommodate. The time of our volunteers & balancing teams is our top priority. With all of the logistics in planning the season, we ask for your patience & flexibility...it may not be possible to make everyone happy here, but will do our best. For 5U/6U, other than potential weekday clinics, there are no weekday practices.
In terms of game days/ times, the season schedule will be posted mid-September....game time varies for each team weekly. Generally, through 14U, most games are played on Saturdays, but may mix in some Sunday games.
"Sunday-Only" Teams - With many Sabbath observant families, our program includes Sunday-Only teams starting with players born 2016. This is sometimes referred to as a "Sunday League", but we do our best to manage the schedule so the competition includes games against teams that also play on Saturdays. For Upper Division teams 16U/19U, there usually is a mix of Saturday & Sunday games with no guarantee on the number of Sunday games. NOTE: For those looking for a Sunday option in the Fall for younger age divisions (5U-8U), contact us - [email protected].
TEAM ASSIGNMENTS
Our Team Assignment for Divisions (7U & Up) starts in late August & will wrap up by usually by Labor Day. We will notify you once your child has been assigned. Teams may begin practice once teams are finalized.
Group & Team assignments for 5U/6U may not be finalized until a few days before or the day of Opening Day in mid-September. 6U teams, unlike older Division, are formed in coordination with 6U Coach volunteers.
For Divisions 10U & up, every team in each Division goes through a balancing process. During the month of August, we may schedule a formal player evaluation or a set of soccer clinics, scrimmages, in part to give players an opportunity to practice, but assist with our goal of "Balanced Teams" (one of the key principles of the AYSO philosophy). Once team assignments are made, they are FINAL & cannot be changed. Furthermore, a coach may NOT change a players team assignment OR add any new player. All player assignments are run through the Division Director.
PLAYER "TEAM REQUESTS"
AYSO policy is that we do NOT consider team requests (for example, a request to be assigned to the same team as another player or to be assigned to a specific coach's team). This includes requests for carpool reasons. The only guaranteed team assignment is the child of the coach. Note - There are EXCEPTIONS to this rule...listed here:
*5U - All team/ group requests are generally accepted.
*6U - Almost all team requests are accepted...however, in cases where there are too many players on a team, we may need to split up that group under two teams.
*7U/8U - Team requests are always considered, but NOT guaranteed. We require that the requesting family also have a volunteer referee in the family (they must also take the certification class). NOTE: There is a limit on this...we do not allow an entire team to be made of such players. Consider also that there will be a better overall experience for the players as a whole if we have volunteers spread out more evenly across all teams in a Division.
HOW CAN I VOLUNTEER? (IS EXPERIENCE REQUIRED?)
AYSO is ALL-VOLUNTEER. We need Coaches, Referees & other volunteers to make it all happen. Without enough volunteers, there are fewer teams/ fewer games. EXPERIENCE IS NOT REQUIRED...we provide the training & support. When you register, there is a place to indicate if you can volunteer. If you aren't sure, you can leave it blank for now as we aren't likely to start any training until sometime in August, but do let us know sooner than later so we can better plan for the season. Just contact us at [email protected]. For more information on volunteer positions & how to get started, go to our VOLUNTEER page.
GAMES/ REFEREES - IMPORTANT
Referees (trained and certified) are REQUIRED for all 7U & up games. In the event there is no referee, the game may be cancelled. This is especially important to keep in mind since we are an all-volunteer organization (most of our trained referees are Moms/ Dads). As long as we have enough volunteers to share the load over the course of a season, this should be an unlikely scenario.
VOLUNTEER POINTS/ REFEREE POINTS
All teams (7U & Up) MUST earn a minimum number of Volunteer Points in order to participate in the Postseason/ Playoffs, which is really the culmination of the entire season. The number of points is still TBD, but, important to keep in mind, the key way to earn points is by having at least one (ideally 3) referee volunteer on your child's team. That is why it's more often referred to as Referee Points...keep in mind that the referee must take our referee class if they aren't already certified. There are other ways to earn points during the season, but not enough...bottom line, teams need a referee to get into the Postseason/ Playoffs.
POSTSEASON/ PLAYOFFS
Teams (10U & Up) that have earned the required minimum # of Volunteer Points/ Referee Points will participate in their respective Divisional Playoffs to determine League Champion. Playoffs may start as early as the weekend before Thanksgiving & will conclude on the weekend of December 7/8 (and possibly as late as Dec 14/15). Division Champions advance to the Area 1P League Champion Playoffs on January. Note: Area Champs advance to Section 1 Area Champions Playoffs...winners of Section advance to Western States Championship in the following months. NOTE: In the event a team is unable to play scheduled playoff dates, that playoff opportunity will be given to the regional 2nd place team(s) (important to note for "SUNDAY ONLY" teams since the Area playoffs, and subsequent Section & Western states playoffs, usually include SATURDAY games).
For teams 6U-8U, the regular season ends the weekend before Thanksgiving. There are no playoffs, but, for teams that have earned their minimum # of volunteer points, we have the "World Cup" on the weekend of December 7/8 (and possibly 14/15). This is not intended to determine the "best team'....teams may even be mixed up (perhaps even coed)...these will be a round of matches/ games just for fun. Details & format still TBD.
ALL-STAR/ SELECT - "TOURNAMENT TEAMS"
In addition to our Fall Season ("Core"), we have a more competitive tournament team program for divisions 10U & Up (2016 birthyear & older). Only players that participate in our Fall Season, are eligible. For more info, see our ALL-STAR/ SELECT page.
SCHOLARSHIPS
We do offer a limited amount of financial aid for our families for whom our registration fee will be a financial burden. Please send an email to our Registrar at [email protected] for more information or to request financial assistance.
REFUNDS
A portion of the registration fee is non-refundable, and we do not give full refunds in most cases. For our full policy, please read our REFUND POLICY page.