Palo Alto AYSO
Register
Volunteer
Nobody here is paid. Games happen because parents coach, referee and paint the lines.
Not sure where you’d fit? Tell us a bit about yourself and we’ll suggest something.
Coach
Two practices a week and a game on Saturday. You don’t need to have played. Most of our coaches hadn’t, and AYSO trains you for the age you’re coaching. Your division commissioner hands you a season plan and a set of drills. Assistant coaches are always welcome.
Training by age group
- 6U and 8U: a short online course and one session on the field. An afternoon.
- 10U and 12U: online coursework, a class (often on Zoom), and a field session.
- 14U: the Intermediate course, which is online work plus two days in person.
We run field sessions in Palo Alto before each season. Other regions nearby run the same courses on other weekends. Find them in AYSOU by zip code.
Referee
Without a trained referee, a game is just a scrimmage. 8U games need one. 10U and older need three. We ask every team for two or three referees from its own families.
Teenagers can referee from about age 12, and they earn gift cards for it.
How to become a referee
- Pick the Referee role in SportsConnect and take the online Regional Referee course.
- Come to a field class. Ours is in early October, and Area 2J runs more later that month. We email the dates to everyone who signs up.
- Start with 8U or 10U games. You pick your games in Arbiter, and a weekly email shows what’s open.
Questions go to rra@ayso26.org.
Paint the lines
Grass fields need new lines every week. The paint and the machines are in lockers at Peers, Seale and Pardee. Take a week, read the one-page instructions, and email equipment@ayso26.org for the locker combination.
Join the board
We meet once a month. These jobs are open:
- Assistant Regional Commissioner
- Registrar
- Safety Director
- Web and communications
- Division Commissioner, 6U
- Division Commissioner, 14U Girls
- Field assignments
Email rc@ayso26.org and we’ll tell you what each one involves.
Signing up
Every role starts the same way.
- Sign in to SportsConnect with the account you used to register your child, and open Volunteer.
- Pick a role, then do the background check and the Safe Haven course. AYSO and California law require both.
- Get fingerprinted. The UPS Store on El Camino does it, and cvpa@ayso26.org has the form.
Training lives in AYSOU, which you reach from SportsConnect. Our training guide walks you through it.