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The AYSO Incident Report Form is used whenever there is a personal injury, a player or coach is sent off (red carded), damaged property, or threats of violence, or actual physical violence surrounding an AYSO game, practice, event or property. The form should be prepared by the coach, AYSO Official, or AYSO Volunteer supervising the event. Contact any member of the Region 128 board for assistance in completing the form or if you have questions about whether the form is needed.

The form is available through the AYSO National web site, in the Libraries (Incident Form) and a link is available on this site through the Forms Page.

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The Laws of the Game indicate that a charge is only a foul when it is done carelessly (foul), recklessly (foul+yellow card), or with excessive force (foul+red card). A charge, when done fairly, is not a foul. So, what’s a fair charge? What is allowable in a soccer match?

The answer, as often happens, is that “it depends”. It depends on the skill and age of the players, both generally in the match overall and specifically for the two players involved in contesting for the ball. It also depends on what’s happening in that particular match, and what level of contact is appropriate, in the referee’s judgment, to keep the match Safe, Fair, and Fun.  What might be considered a careless charge (and thus a foul) in a U12 match often won’t be called in a U16 or U19 match.  Particularly in an older match, one player may wind up on the ground as a result of a fair charge.

A recent Ask A Soccer Referee column discusses charging, and it’s a good read.  The key points are that the players have to be contesting for the ball, the contact should be shoulder to shoulder (as much as the players sizes allow), and the players should each have one foot on the ground.  Lowering the shoulder, playing the other player (instead of playing the ball), launching oneself at another player, throwing a hip (instead of using the shoulder), contacting another player in the spinal area, and pushing out with the arms are common signs that the contact was not a fair charge.

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Teams are formed by age range, as shown on the Age Divisions page, as U6, U8, U10, U12, U14, U16, and U19. The U6 (or “under 6 years old”) division is coed. All others divisions have separate boys and girls teams.

The main thing we do in forming teams is to make them as balanced as we can and make sure that siblings are together. The teams are not shuffled around between Fall and Spring seasons, unless there’s a compelling reason need to re-balance teams.

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If you need to withdraw your child from AYSO soccer, you may get your money back as long as practices have not started. Once practices start, your money is forfeited or reduced. Contact the coach prior to practice or call the AYSO hotline and leave a message. Your call will be returned as soon as possible.

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There is a lot of planning that goes into creating a season or special event for the region.  Although extenuating circumstances occur and plans change, these changes affect other families and the regional planning.  Therefore, we ask that refund requests be submitted as early as possible.  The following items outline our regional policy:

• All refunds must be requested in writing along with supporting documentation if for medical reasons.
• No refunds for cancellation within 14 days of the registered event start date.  For regular seasons, the first practice date is the official start date.
• Children who leave during the program due to injury or illness will receive a prorated refund, assuming doctor’s verification is provided.
• A $25 handling fee will be required on any refunds.

To request a refund, please contact us at [email protected].

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Basically, the correct AYSO jersey for your child’s team, soccer cleats, shin guards, socks to go over the shin guards, comfortable shorts, and a ball.

See the Player Equipment page for details.

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A quick summary – Just about any shoe with some sort of traction, good protection of the foot, and safe for other players is an acceptable soccer shoe. What to watch out for is long and very narrow or sharp cleats usually at the toe that will cut or injure another player if they slide into them. Rounded or gentle ridges or nubs that will not cut may be allowed, even if they could conceivably bruise without penetrating the skin.

Whether the cleat is hard plastic, nylon, or has a metal end piece is not the question. The question to ask is: Will it slash or penetrate with a sharp point or narrow ridge? In which case the answer is – NO. Or is it a blunt object that may bruise but will not cause a penetration injury? In which case in general the answer will be – YES.

• Sandals – NO – not safe for the person wearing them inadequate support and protection
• Golf Shoes, Track Shoes – NO – not safe pointed spikes that will penetrate and cause puncture wounds.
• Dress shoes – discouraged highly – too smooth on the bottom and slippery risk to player wearing them and the other players from loss of traction and sliding out of control.
• Cross country running shoes, Tennis shoes, Keds, etc. – YES.

Parents, coaches and referees need to keep this clarification in mind and work together to ensure that the players are safe while out on the pitch. If you have further questions, please email the referee administrator at [email protected].

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Anyone who’s 12 or older can become an AYSO referee, and parents absolutely can work with their children as parts of a referee crew.  The basic process is

1. Send an email to the Region 128 Referee Administrator ([email protected]) to let us know of your interest and to find out when the in-person (“companion”) classes will next be scheduled. The in-person class is the companion to the on-line class and covers parts of refereeing that are best learned in-person.
2. Get your AYSO ID number (see What’s My AYSO ID?).
   If you’ve never registered as an AYSO volunteer, you’ll need to do that to get an AYSO ID number.  The best way to do that is to go to www.ayso.org and register as a new volunteer.  Go all the way to the end (e-signature) and print out a copy of the final paperwork.  You’ll need to bring this with you to the class (described below).  For youth, you’ll need to have a parent or guardian work with you to get this registration done.
3. With your AYSO ID number in hand, go to www.aysotraining.org.  Sign in with your AYSO ID and last name.
4. Click on “Start Now” under Referee Training.  This will launch the on-line Basic Referee class.  Go through this class as many times and at your own pace.  You’ll need to complete this before you come to the in-person class.  Don’t worry about bringing the certificate of completion at the end — we can see that you’ve done it through the eAYSO records.
5. Click on the “Start Now” link under Safe Haven.  You also need to go through this before the in-person class.
6. Click the “Start Now” for concussion awareness training. This is an annual class required by both Tennessee state law and AYSO national policy for all referees.
7. Come to the in-person class (4 hours) prepared to review the material and go over the basic signals and the AYSO philosophies.  There is a test at the end of the class.  You’ll need to know the material from the on-line class, the AYSO Philosophies, AYSO guidance on coaching (Positive, Instructional, Encouraging).  Passing this class and test gets you certified as an AYSO Regional Referee.  Regional Referees normally work U8 and U10 matches.  As you get more experience, you can move to doing matches for older kids.
8. We’ll work with you for some mentoring on your initial assignments.  We use an on-line scheduling tool at http://www.cgisports.com/ref/5148/, so you can sign up for matches as your schedule allows.

As you gain experience and interest, you can work your way up to Intermediate Referee, Advanced Referee, and even National Referee.  You can always request a mentor work with you on a match, get an informal observation, or even a formal assessment.  Formal assessments are part of the Advanced Referee and National Referee certification processes.

Also see the Referee FAQ page on the AYSO National Site for more info.

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Every player and volunteer registered with AYSO gets and AYSO ID number (sometimes called an eAYSO ID).

If you need your AYSO ID number and don’t know it, there are a couple of ways to find out:

• Email the volunteer administrator ([email protected]) with your full name, your home phone number, and your home address. We can look it up if you’ve ever registered with AYSO, even if it was in another region.
• If you’ve used eAYSO (www.eayso.org), log in with the email and password you created there (or click the “forgot password” link) and you can find your AYSO ID number there.
• If you’ve not used eAYSO before, you can go to www.eayso.org, create a profile there, call the AYSO national office at the number provided, let them verify your identity, and they can then link your records to this eAYSO account and provide your AYSO ID.

If you’ve never been a volunteer and would like to help, you can go to www.eayso.org and register as a new volunteer.  You’ll get your AYSO ID number as part of that process.

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