“Playing Up or Down” – Carson City AYSO, Region 140, Regional Guidelines and Rules

Applicability

Examples of applicability are (1) a player in the U10 or older divisions wishes to play “up” by being part of a team in the next older division; (2) a player in a U12 division wishes to play in U10, because her sibling plays in that division; (3) a player with a mental handicap is unable to play at the U12 level.

Region 140 Decision-Making and Background

The guidelines and rules below were adopted by a majority vote of the Regional Board in June, 2006. Per AYSO Standard Regional Guidelines (Article 5, paragraph 2), the adoption of these rules by the Board puts them in place instead of any national guidelines or rules. Some of the materials examined by the Board in this decision are shown below (Current AYSO National Rules and Regulations, materials from Davis, California, AYSO). Note that National Rules do not speak to playing “up” or “down” – it applies only to transfers within the same division. We cite it here, because it is often misquoted as allowing players to move up or down with relatively little consideration.

Current AYSO National Rules and Regulations

Section IV, TRANSFER OF TEAM MEMBERS

A player may transfer from one team to another within one region or from one region to another, after the following conditions have been met:

A.     Approval of both coaches of the teams involved.

B.     Approval of regional commissioner(s).

C.    Approval of team member and parent/guardian; parent/guardian approval is not required if team member is of legal age.

From AYSO Region 218, Davis CA.

Play Up / Play Down Policy

The group that you belong in depends on the age you are on July 31st of each year. So, if you are 9 years old when July 31st comes around, you are in the Under 10 (U10) age bracket.

Players may be allowed to play up (play in an older age group) if they petition the registrar along with the two documents indicated below, no later than the last date of guaranteed placement. Generally you must be within a few weeks of the cutoff, and be a player of above average ability. We will not move a player for social reasons, as the player's safety is the most important consideration. The following two items must be submitted before consideration and/or approval is done:

1) A letter/email from the parent(s) indicating their request for their child(ren) to play up a division; and

2) A letter/email from the player's previous season coach indicating their recommendation.

After requests have been received, it will then be forwarded onto the Commissioner for review and approval if granted.

AYSO Region 140 Play Up/Play Down Policy

Playing “down”

AYSO National policy, and Carson City AYSO, permit playing down only under extraordinary circumstances having to do with physical or mental disability. A request to play down a division should be made in writing to the Regional Registrar (registrar@aysocarsoncity.org, or P.O. Box 512, Carson City, NV 89702), clearly stating why the child must play in a younger division.

Playing “up”

First, AYSO Region 140 thinks that players should play in their age-appropriate divisions. These are the most salubrious environments for player development as well-rounded individuals and athletes. Thus, regional policy is to rarely grant requests for playing up.

If granted, some of the consequences of playing up are (1) the player is not eligible for selection as an All-Star in their “up” division; (2) the player is not eligible as an All-Star in the division they would have played in; (3) many tournaments will not allow players to play out of their age divisions.

Players in U6 are never allowed to play “up”. There are no exceptions to this rule.

Players in the U8 division must have truly exceptional skill, maturity, and physical development to play up.

A player, parents of a player, or coaches, wishing to have a child play in the next older division than the division the child will play in following standard AYSO and Carson City birth date guidelines must observe the following steps. These steps first determine whether the player is eligible to move up and second describe the actions needed to move the player up.

            Eligibility

1. Is there a team in the target (older) division with space on their roster for the younger player?
   1. If there are age appropriate players eligible to play in the older division in a waiting list, then these players have first rights to participate in that division.

                                                              i.      The opportunity for a player to move up exists only if:

1.      All other eligible players, including those on a waiting list, have been offered placement on a team;

2.      There is room available on a team’s rosters.

2. What special circumstances merit the request for the younger player to move up? One or more of the following must be true for the player to be considered eligible to move up.
   1. Is the player close in age to a sibling playing in the older team?
   2. Is the player farther ahead in skill and knowledge of the game when compared to players within his/her own division according to the coach(es) of the child or a knowledgeable impartial observer (preferably a regional board member in the coaching staff of the board)?
   3. Has the player participated or has the player been selected consistently for All-Star teams and tournament participation due to his/her skill level?
   4. Has the player participated in AYSO Select or other competitive-developmental teams in addition to regular AYSO fall recreational play?  
   5. Is the player a participant of a year-round competitive club team that teaches more advanced skills?
   6. Is the player an ODP (Olympic Development Program) or AYSO CAP  (Complete Athlete Program) participant?
   7. Does the player have the physical capability, emotional maturity, and social skills to participate in the older division?

A “Yes” answers to any of the previous questions increase the chances for a child to be considered for evaluation to move up but does not constitute approval.

3. A player must be born within 12 months of the cut-off date for the division he/she is requesting to play in. Even so, only under extraordinary circumstances will players more than 6 months from the age cut-off be considered eligible. Such circumstances should be presented, in writing, to the Regional Board before bothering to get a coach evaluation.
4. Players must be in their second season in a two-year division (our normal division arrangement) to be eligible to play up a division.  

Evaluation

Players judged eligible under the guidelines and requirements above must then be evaluated to confirm that they are ready to play in the older division.

Player Evaluation Guidelines

An evaluation of the player requesting to move up cannot be performed by an immediate family member or nearby relative. Evaluations must be performed by:

1. The current coach or the last coach the child had prior to the request or, the prior coach or current coach must submit their recommendations in writing as to why they believe the child should be considered for play-up assessment.
2. The coach the child is requesting to play for or all the coaches for the division if the child has no preference on the coach.
3. The Coach Administrator for the region and/or the Coach Administrator for the previous region if the child is transferring from another region.

Player evaluation must address:

4. Technical skills appropriate for the age group as outlined within the AYSO Coaching Manual for the age division and,
5. The performance on the field of play with children at the division the request was made to play in and,
6. The mental and emotional capabilities of the child to play and be coached at the higher division.

Decision And Final Determination of Approval or Disapproval

The play up request must be made in writing, and must include the materials above. It should be submitted to the Regional Registrar (registrar@aysocarsoncity.orgor P.O. Box 512 Carson City NV 89702).

Final approval for the play up eligibility of a player will be based on the evaluation results. The decision rests with the Regional Commissioner. There is no process of appeal.

FAQ’s  

Q: If my child's birth date falls after the cut-off for his/her age division, how can he/she still play with kids from his/her grade?

A: . As the guidelines and rules above make clear, in order for this to occur, your child’s birthday would have to fall within the period of approximately February to July to meet the “six month criterion above. Even so, if their playing skills, physical development, and emotional maturity are not appropriate for the older division, they are unlikely to gain approval to move up. Although we understand there may be social reasons for the request, our concern is for player safety and appropriate player development.  

Consider this: there are players born in Aug/Sep/Oct/Nov/early Dec who every two years find themselves entering a division (particularly U8/U10/U12/U14) as one of a few players on a team in an older grade, with most at the lower grade, and a few two grades down (school-wise). The player will be one of only maybe 2 on the roster who are in the higher grade, and most will be in the lower grade and some will be two grades lower. The child can become more of a confident player in this situation. Many parents of players born in August, yes even coaches who have had other children in the AYSO program do not ask for a play-up to the next division. There are many, many players in AYSO who have August birth dates who are moving along at a comfortable developmental pace in soccer skill acquisition, who fit well on their team as an older player and in fact provide some degree of leadership to help the team-mates.

AYSO Region 140, Carson City, NV