Region 114 Coach FAQ
How do I sign up to be an AYSO Coach
Visit our Coach Sign-Up page for detailed instructions and step-by-step assistance.
What are the requirements to be a Head Coach?
Submit a volunteer application (each year). Then complete the online background check (each year). Then get fingerprinted (one time). Then complete some safety videos (one time). Then attend a Coach Certification course. (one time) And that's basically it. Visit the Coach Sign-Up page for more info.
How do I take the online safety courses?
The Region 114 Volunteer Sign-Up PDF shows you how, step-by-step.
Do I have to attend the coach certification training every year?
No. Once you are certified at that age level, you are set for life.
How can I tell which certifications I have, or which safety courses I need to take?
Log into ayso114.org and click Volunteer. Your volunteer profile shows you the status of all of your certifications and safety courses. You can also see more when you visit AYSOU from your Volunteer page.
I coached in a different region before. Will my existing certifications transfer to 114?
As long as you use the same login information, yes it should. If it does not, contact [email protected] and they can help transfer your credentials.
What is the minimum age to be an AYSO Coach?
You must be 18 years old or older to be an AYSO coach. Though AYSO appreciates and encourages young people to participate in all aspects of soccer including coaching, an individual under 18 years of age may not be listed as the head coach or assistant coach on the official roster, due to liability issues. They can certainly assist in training and even make decisions regarding the team, but can’t ever be left alone with players and can’t be listed on the official roster.
When do I receive my roster?
We build teams in July. Typically we hand out rosters at the Annual Coach meeting. Upper divisions (16U/19U) can draft players if there are more than 1 team.
Can I request players on my roster?
As Head Coach, you will always coach your own player. Region 114 also allows all Head Coaches to "lock" one volunteer and the player associated with that volunteer. (The parent/guardian associated with that player must submit a volunteer application as Assistant Coach, Team Parent, or Referee.)
At U10 and above, volunteering as Head Coach and submitting your "lock" player is the only way to guarantee a teammate. At the youngest levels U6 through U8, where scores and standings are not kept, we do allow parents/guardians to submit a "Teammate Request" at the time they are registering. However, we are unable to accommodate teammate requests at U10 and above.
When do I practice?
Whenever you want. It's your team. (If another parent wants to dictate the practice schedule, they should have signed up to be a coach!) Of course, if you set practices for 3pm, don't expect everyone to make it. Find a time that works best for you, but be mindful of other families' work/school schedules.
Note: The Coach Administrator will let you know when you may begin practices (usually early August). Although at the youngest age groups, you might not need to start practices until mid-to-late August.
How do I select my practice spot or dates/times?
We don't have specific field or time slots, except at the upper age groups. So for the ages U5-U10, there are certain areas of the park where you should practice. This is described in the Region 114 Current Coach Info page.
Where do I practice?
All practices must be at Heartwell Park between Woodruff and Palo Verde. The other side of Heartwell Park is reserved for other soccer organizations and off limits to Region 114.
Field 7 is reserved for U12 teams. Field 6 is reserved for U14 - U19 teams. Fields 9 and 10 are reserved for U10 teams. Share the space nicely. Take up just what you need.
How often do I practice?
U5 and U6 practice once per week for about 45 minutes. (5 minute warmup game, 30 minutes of skills work, and 10 minutes scrimmage.)
U7 and U8 practice once per week for about an hour. (15 minute warmup game, 30 minutes of skills work, 15 minutes scrimmage.)
U10 and up practice twice per week. The length of time depends on the age group-- typically between one hour and 90 minutes, at the coach's discretion.
When are games?
Games in the Fall season occur once per week, September through November -- each team plays roughly 9 or 10 games (depending on Division). Most games are Saturdays, although the U7, U8, and U12 - U19 divisions might have occasional Friday evening games under the lights, which is an electric (pun!) atmosphere for the players.
If I coach multiple teams, will they play at the same time?
If you are the Head Coach of multiple teams, then we will build the schedule so that your games do not overlap.
What are the game formats?
AYSO games are broken into two halves, with brief water/substitution breaks at quarters for U5 - U14. (U16 and U19 do not have quarter breaks.) The quarter-breaks are for substitutions and a quick drink of water. The quarter breaks are not full breaks, so keep the players on the field and quickly do your subs, and get them playing. The clock continues to run during the quarter breaks. A full break occurs only at halftime for all divisions.
- U5-U6: 5v5, no keepers, small pop-up goals. 10 minute halves, 5 minute quarters. (Note: Scores and Win-Loss records are not kept)
- U7-U8: 7v7 (6 field + 1 keeper) 20 minute halves, 10 minute quarters (Note: Scores and Win-Loss records are not kept)
- U10: 7v7. 25 minute halves, 12 minute quarters
- U12: 9v9. 30 minute halves, 15 minute quarters
- U14: 11v11. 35 minute halves, 17 minute quarters
- U16: 11v11. 40 minute halves, free substitutions
- U19: 11v11. 45 minute halves, free substitutions
What size ball do we use?
- U5-U8: Size 3
- U10-U12: Size 4
- U14+: Size 5
What size fields and goals do we use?
- U5/U6: 30yd x 20yd, Pugg goals
- U7/U8: 50yd x 30yd, 6' x 18' goals
- U10: 80yd x 40yd, 7' x 21' goals
- U12:100yd x 50yd, 8' x 24' goals
- U14-U19: 110yd x 60yd, 8' x 24' goals
How does Post-Season play work?
Regardless of win-loss records, all teams that have accrued the requisite number of volunteer points are eligible to play in Region 114 post-season play. See the Volunteer Point page to learn about point requirements and accrual.
At the Core U5-U8 divisions, the Commissioner's Cup is a friendly tournament-- teams play two games, but outcomes are not tracked, and there is no "winner" of the Cup. But there is FREE PIZZA and medals to each participant! We want it to feel like a real tournament. Remember it is just for fun and play.
The Core U10 and above divisions participate in the Commissioner's Cup. which typically has teams playing two games on Day 1 and advancing to play one or two more games on Day 2. The winner from each division advances on to Area Z Tournament to compete against other Area Z region winners. The winner of Area goes on to Section 11 Tournament. The winner of Section advances to Western States Championships.
What is Core? EXTRA™? All Stars? Spring Select?
The most common AYSO program is the Core program (Fall only). This is the program that the vast majority of our players play. It consists of nine or ten weeks of games, with practices beginning in August, and games usually concluding before Thanksgiving.
AYSO EXTRA™ is a completely separate program from AYSO Core. EXTRA™ is also separate from All-Stars and Spring Select. Region 114 EXTRA™ teams, called "Long Beach United" form for both Fall and Spring EXTRA™ seasons. (Don't confuse the "United" team name with AYSO's United program which is the Official Club Program of AYSO soccer. Region 114 does not have a United Program.)
EXTRA™ is AYSO's program offering a higher level of play and requires try-outs. To qualify for Fall and Spring EXTRA™ programs the players must attend one of the tryouts that are usually held December - February. More info can be found on our EXTRA™ page.
All-Stars teams are fielded through invitation, from a pool of the Core U10 and above players, and play in the Area Z All-Stars Tournament in January. There may also be play in some optional tournaments immediately after the Core season, from late November up through January. Winners of the Area Z tournament advance to the Section 11 Tournament, and winners of Section 11 advance to Western States Championships.
All-Stars teams are formed by using the player ratings cards that Core coaches are asked to fill-out during the Fall season, so it is very important that all coaches complete them as requested. Note: Not every gender-division may form an All-Star team... it depends on whether a coach volunteers to form an All Star team for a given gender-division level. If you are interested in coaching an All Star Team, please reach out to the Region 114 Coach Administrator.
Spring Select teams are formed by the Spring Select coach. Usually the first opportunity to fill the team is given to Fall All-Star players, and then other slots may be filled by the coach. Often the opportunity is given to children of dedicated volunteers that want to continue playing in the Spring. (Another reason to volunteer!) Spring Select has a 10-week schedule that runs from March - May, with the Spring Select Tournament wrapping up in early June. Spring Select Teams play against other Spring Select teams within Area Z, so some travel is involved. (Downey, Lynwood, South Gate, Wilmington, Lakewood, etc.)
Region 114 attempts to have a Spring Select team for every division, and in fact sometimes we have two from the same division, but ultimately it is subject to how many Select Coach volunteer applications we receive. If you are interested in coaching a Select Team, please reach out to the Region 114 Coach Administrator.
How do you apply for post-season coaching?
Check out our Post-Season Coaching Page for more information.