FAQ's

You will need to register with a local affiliate club. To find figure out what clubs are close to you, please visit our interactive map! Or check our All Affiliates page if you prefer a list.

It stands for "under." So 10U means players must be of an age 10 and under.

Registration with MSYSA costs $7.75 per recreational player and $13.25 per travel player. This is charged directly to the club the player registered with. It covers US Youth Soccer membership, insurance, player cards, rostering fees, and administrative costs.

MSYSA recognizes recreation and travel classifications. Clubs and leagues may use additional classifications within their organization to help them administratively.

ODP stands for Olympic Development Program. It is a US Youth Soccer sponsored program designed to identify and provide additional training for highly-skilled players. ODP does not replace club play. However, it supplements club play by providing additional training and instruction to the players selected. Teams, or pools, of players are selected within their particular birth years to train together under specially selected age group coaches. Then the strongest identifiable talent for each birth year is invited to attend a US Youth Soccer ODP Regional Showcase and ID camp in June–July to represent Maryland.

Complaints should be submitted to the club (Director of Coaching or Club President) or coach directly and everyone is encouraged to work together toward a resolution. MSYSA does not get involved with local complaints unless all other avenues have been exhausted without a resolution.

Complaints should be submitted to the league directly. MSYSA does not get involved with local complaints unless all other avenues have been exhausted without a resolution.

Clubs have varying age requirements. Please contact your local club for more information.  

Generally, yes. However, that decision is ultimately made by the clubs and leagues. Players cannot register for ODP tryouts in an age group outside of their birth year.

Yes! TOPSoccer is US Youth Soccer's program geared towards children of all types of disabilities. There are a small handful of TOPSoccer-like programs in Maryland already. However, there are efforts to produce a more sustainable framework and expand TOPSoccer in our state.

You can go to our Forms and Documents page to search all of our forms. They are also available within pages they are applicable to.

Yes! MSYSA currently runs our highly successful Summer Soccer Academy each year. There are numerous other camps run independently across the state as well.

State Cup and Presidents Cup are the two state-level tournaments that are part of larger US Youth Soccer tournament series' which allow teams to compete for a national title.  For local tournaments, please consult our list of USYS sanctioned tournaments in Maryland. 

Please visit our Become an Affiliate page for more information on what is required to have your new club recognized by MSYSA.

You can follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, or stop by our office anytime to chat with one of our knowledgeable staff!

The first step to becoming a coach is to contact a local club and see if they have any openings!

As a member of U.S. Soccer, MSYSA is committed to providing all coaches, from beginner to advanced, with education opportunities tailored to their experiences and the needs of their players. The U.S. Soccer Coaching License Pathway consists of a series of courses designed to meet the specific needs of a coach at every step of the way. U.S. Soccer believes education is a journey, and their goal is to provide the necessary tools, guidance, and mentorship a coach requires.

More information can be found in our Coaching Education pages.

Some general information can be found on our Coaches Resources page. Information regarding coach education and licensing  can be found on the Coaches Courses page. Additionally, in-person courses are added to our Events Calendar as they are approved by the Director of Coaching Education.

Recreational coaches are generally volunteers and there are no minimum coaching education requirements, though coaching education is strongly encouraged. The head coach of a travel team is not always a volunteer, but many are! They are also required to meet minimum license requirements to be rostered as a head coach for a travel team.

• Annual background check through MSYSA
• Annual Safe Sport Core Training (or refresher course)
• Biennual CDC Heads Up Concussion Training
• Recent photo upload (during registration)
• Meet following minimum license or higher: US Soccer Grassroots Pathway 
  • Introduction to Grassroots Module
  • Two in-person Grassroots course (one must be 11v11 and the other can be 9v9, 7v7, or 4v4)
  • One online Grassroots course across any of the four levels (11v11, 9v9, 7v7, 4v4)
  • For full details and to see other equivalent accepted licenses, CLICK HERE
• MSYSA encourages all coaches (Rec & Travel) to seek at least some coaching education and training to further enhance their ability to develop soccer players!

You will need to request a Certificate of Insurance from our Registration Specialist. Information required in the request can be found on our Insurance page.

Accident medical coverage is only meant to be supplemental to a pre-existing health insurance plan. After claims have been submitted to health insurance, you may fill out the Insurance Claim Form. Once complete, please call the MSYSA office at (410) 768-5401 for verification and next steps.

First and foremost, be kind and supportive. Referees are human too; love the sport of soccer and give their time and energy to officiate games. There is a referee shortage in all sports across all states in the US and abuse is the top reason referees quit. We also recommend that everyone educate themselves on the Laws of the Game, as complaints often stem from a misunderstanding of the rules when they were enforced properly.

Only when a referee has truly enforced a Law improperly should the league be contacted. The league is able to then contact the appropriate referee association, if they desire. The referee association may then seek additional training for the referees involved.

The State Referee Committee functions independent of MSYSA. You can get more information from the Maryland Soccer Referees website, including a schedule of upcoming introductory courses.