Youth Soccer Frequently Asked Questions

What age division should my player be in?

• XL uses the same age cut-off as the Virginia Youth Soccer Association. ​

  • ​For Winter 2024/2025 league, we are using the 2024-2025 column​

• Players may play up in age divisions but may not play down. Players wanting to play up will have to call XL Richmond to register

• Chesterfield County youth sports and XL Sports World Richmond do not require Youth ID for registration. We trust and expect team managers, coaches, and parents to register their team and players in the appropriate age division. However, if questions about a players age arise, we may ask for proof of age. High School Players may be asked for proof of enrollment in school.​

  • Eligible Proof of Age Documents​​

    • ​Birth Certificate​

    • Drivers License/Permit

    • Gov. ID with picture and birthdate clearly shown

  • Eligible Proof of Enrollment Documents (documents without pictures may need to be supported with identification documents from above)​​​

    • ​School-issued ID card with picture, name, and current school year​

    • Recent report card/transcript with name & current school year clearly shown

    • Letter from school admin with official school letterhead stating that student is enrolled in the current school year

    • Screenshot of student portal (i.e. Student View) that shows the student's name/picture and current school year

Please review the table below to find what age division your player or team should play in. It is up to the coach and/or parents to register their team/player in the correct division. IF a coach/parent registers for the wrong league and it is caught after schedules have been released or after all age brackets have been filled, XL cannot guarantee you another spot in the correct league. Teams or players in the wrong league are subject to removal from the league altogether. These are exact age restrictions, with no exceptions for older players. If your younger player would like to play up but falls outside the age restrictions please call XL to register (804-744-4600).

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*PLAYERS IN HIGH SCHOOL LEAGES MUST BE ENROLLED IN HIGH SCHOOL FOR THE 2024-2025 SCHOOL YEAR

*Players born in 2006 will only be eligible if they are actively enrolled in High School.

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WINTER 2024/2025 LEAGUE STRUCTURE

• All age groups, with the exception of U7/U8 will offer a Boys/Coed League and a Girls Only League

  • See Below for how teams will be split regarding playing level

• Number of teams per league WILL be capped due to field space availability. 
• IF leagues reach their capped amount, we will offer a waitlist. Day Smart Recreation will let you know if the league is closed. We encourage all teams to register as soon as possible. We've set league cap numbers based on the amount of teams each day can accommodate,
  • Waitlist teams will be placed into the league if the following occurs:
    • Other leagues don't fill out, therefore opening more space for others​
    • A team drops out
  • If you would like to join the waitlist for a certain league please email our Youth Director at ana@xlsportsworld.com
• Individual registrations are capped at 3 teams per age group for boys/coed and 1 team per age group for girls only.
  • Cap numbers for house teams are based on previous league trends
  •  Each house team is capped at 12-15 players per team.
• All teams in all leagues will play 8 games​.
  • Bye weeks and double headers may be a factor in your schedule due to uneven amounts of teams in a league.​
• There will be no youth playoffs. Teams who are at the top of their respective divisions are names XL Indoor League Champions. Please see rule book for tie breaker rules.
• Games length: 21 minute halves, no more than 2 minute half time.
• ENTERING/EXITING THE FIELDS
  • ENTER the field through glass doors in the middle​
  • EXIT the field along the walls​

TEAM PLACEMENT / BRACKET LEVELS

• XL Sports World would love to see every game determined by a single goal. This is our objective when we form leagues. To accomplish this XL will ask during the registration process for team managers to indicate where a majority of their team plays in the outdoor leagues. Player parents will also be asked individually where they play and at what level.

• XL Sports will use the information provided to create various brackets, appropriately matching teams with similar competitiveness and experience.

• For Winter 2024/2025, XL will also use the first 3 games (depending on the season) to assess each team and make schedule adjustments as necessary. Scores from assessment games will still count toward overall league standings even if moved to a different league.

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BOYS/COED VS GIRLS ONLY LEAGUE

• Leagues labeled GIRLS ONLY are for teams made up of all girls players

• Leagues labeled BOYS/COED are open to coed teams as well as ALL BOYS teams. 

  • *Not every team in Boys/Coed leagues are truly coed*

• In some circumstances, if league registrations are low, XL may have to place ALL GIRLS teams in the BOYS/COED league for their age division. XL will not do so without the approval of the team manager. 

• Girls may play in Boys/Coed leagues, boys may not play in Girls Only Leagues

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INDIVIDUAL REGISTRATION

• Registering as an individual places your player on an XL House Team.

• Look for "[age division] XL INDIVIDUAL REGISTRATION" & follow registration steps from there

• XL House teams are coached by in-house coaches as well as parent volunteer assistant coaches.

• House teams mostly compete in the Recreational league, however if the experience level of the team collectively is greater than the recreational level will move the team up to the appropriate bracket. 

• Each team will practice once a week, and play a game once a week (with exception of bye weeks or double headers).

• XL will make every attempt for a Girls Only team and a Boys/Coed team for each age U9+, however this is dependent upon registration numbers. 

  • If we need to combine teams, girls will be moved to Boys/Coed team with approval from player and parent/guardian.

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INDIVIDUAL PAYMENTS

• Those who register as an individual will be responsible for paying individual fee and membership fee in full at the time of registration. 

• All players are required to pay membership fee.​

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TEAM REGISTRATION

• A team manger will need to register the team first. From there they can invite players to join their roster via email.

  • Click 'register' and be sure to check box next to "are you a team manager" from there the Youth Soccer League will appear, click 'View'

  • Find your age group and click 'view' or 'register' next to that league

• Full teams registering will be scheduled for 8 games throughout the season. Team registration does not come with practice time. Practice time is extremely limited this season. To learn more email Youth Director, ana@xlsportsworld.com

• ALL youth teams must have a coach or supervisor over the age of 21 on the sideline for every game. 

• The team manager is responsible for seeing that all team fees are paid on time and ensuring that his or her team is aware of the rules of the game, as well as all XL’s policies and rules. 

• The team manager is the representative for the team and is responsible for communicating any information that XL needs to pass on to each team.

• XL Sports World reserves the right to relegate or promote teams and or players to leagues other than the requested league to ensure fun and competitive games. 

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TEAM PAYMENTS

• All outside teams U9 - High School will be assigned $800 team fee to be split among roster players.

• U7/U8 scrimmage league teams will be assigned $500 team fee to be split among roster players.

  • $100 deposit required to register a full team. (Deposit will go toward team fee)​

  • Full team fees are due no later than the start of your team's 3rd game

• Team manager is responsible for assigning team fee's and communicating them to players. Fee's can be assigned directly to players via the "manage team" feature on Day Smart

• All players will be prompted to and must pay membership fee when being added to a roster or when making team payment.

• XL Sports World reserves the right to cancel games if team fees are not paid.

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TEAM ROSTERS

• U9 - Highschool team rosters have a 20 player maximum. 

• U7/U8 Scrimmage League teams rosters have a 12 player maximum.

• Players may be added to a roster up to the 3rd game. All rosters are frozen after the 3rd game is played. No players may be added to the roster in the 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th or 8th game.

  • It is recommended to add players to roster if they may be an “alternate” player at any point during the season. These “alternate” players will not be eligible to play after the 3rd game if they are not already on the roster.

• Players may play on more than one team in a division provided they are on both rosters. However, the player must designate a home team. The player's home team is the team that the player will play on if his/her two teams play each other. 

  • Players may not switch teams once a game has started even if they are legally listed on each roster. However, once the first game has officially ended, the player may play in another game if he/she is listed on the roster.

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SCHEDULE QUESTIONS

• HOW MANY GAMES WILL MY TEAM PLAY?

  • ​Each team will be scheduled to play 8 regular season games. No playoffs will be held in youth leagues for the forseeable future. Teams who finish in the top of the league will be winter league champions.

• WHEN WILL THE GAME SCHEDULE BE RELEASED?

  • XL will use the time between registration closing and games starting to build game schedules. 

  • While we make every effort to release schedules as soon as possible, final schedules may not be available until just prior to the first game. The schedules and standings are available on site and also on XL Sports World's web site: www.xlrichmond.com

  • We make it a priority to keep the web site up-to-date. XL reserves the right to make schedule changes during a session with sufficient notice to all teams involved. We ask that you please check the web site before calling the facility to ask for your game time. However, if you must call, we are happy to give you any information you need.

• WILL MY TEAM HAVE A DOUBLE HEADER OR BYE WEEK DURING THE SEASON?

  • As required to meet scheduling needs, teams may play two games in a day or a week. Teams may also have a bye week for this reason. 

  • Typically, leagues with an odd number of teams will play at least one double header.

• CAN WE ASK FOR A GAME TO BE RESCHEDULED?

  • Teams will be allotted up to 2 conflicts that MUST BE LISTED AT THE TIME OF REGISTRATION. XL will not schedule your games on those 2 conflicting dates/weekends.

  • Any other conflicts that arise are not guaranteed a make-up.

    • IF XL has the power to schedule a makeup, we will attempt to do so. Makeup game could be on a different day than your league usually plays.

    • Teams with additional conflicts other than the original 2 given MUST give at least a seven day notice. XL will investigate the possibility but cannot guarantee that the game will be rescheduled. In the event the game cannot be rescheduled, the requesting team must accept a forfeit.

  • No refunds will be given for either the forfeiting team or their scheduled opponents. 

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FORFEITS​

• Forfeits will be declared for games involving ineligible players, suspended players, or players with expired or no membership. 
• Forfeits may also be declared when a make-up game is unable to  be rescheduled. The team with the original conflict will be forfeiting team.​

• Teams will be given a forfeit for having less than four eligible players available at game time.

  • If teams know they will not be able to field a minimum of four players for a scheduled game, we ask that the team manager notify XL management no less than 24 hours prior to the game to give management time to contact the opposing team and the referee. Cancelations within 24 hours of less of your game may result in cancelation fees being assigned to team.

• A forfeit will be declared if a team is not ready five minutes after the referee has started a game clock.

  • XL places importance in beginning matches at their designated start time. Please help this effort by being ready to start the match promptly at the time scheduled. 

• Any individual posing as another person or using false information when joining XL will be considered an illegal player and all games involving illegal players will constitute a forfeit.

  • The guilty player will also be suspended from further activity at XL pending an XL disciplinary committee ruling. 

• Playing while knowingly suspended will result in a forfeit of the game and the guilty player will be suspended from further activity at XL pending a XL disciplinary committee ruling.

• The score of a forfeit game will be recorded as 5-0.

• The winning team in a forfeited game has the following options: 

  • Use the arena during the regularly scheduled game time for a closed practice where no referee is provided or

  • Agree to scrimmage the forfeiting team by sharing players and/or allowing the forfeiting team to pick up non-roster players.

  • In either case, no referee will be provided. 

  • In some cases, your time slot may be given to accomadate another match. In this event, you may request a field rental on a different day if space allows.

• No refunds will be given for forfeited games to either team.

WHAT IF OUR GAME IS CANCELED DUE TO INCLEMENT WEATHER?

• XL cannot guarantee a make-up game in the event of inclement weather without extending the entire season. ​​

• XL will email entire database (team managers & all player parents) to notify about facility closures due to inclement weather.  

  • XL will ​also post on Facebook about facility closure.

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COMMUNICATION

• The majority of league communication will be through email so it is very important to supply XL management with a valid email address. ​

• Team managers are responsible for communicating directly with their teams.

  • XL staff will communicate with manager who must relay any necessary information to their team.

• Secondary form of communication will be by phone. Our number is (804)-744-4600.

PLAYER APPAREL

• Teams should wear the same color shirts. ​​

  • If opponents are wearing the same color shirts, the Home team will be asked to change or wear pinnies. Pinnies can be provided by XL.

• XL House Teams will be provided with XL Jersey.

• Shin guards are mandatory. Socks must completely cover the shin guards

• Dangerous Equipment: Players shall not be permitted to wear anything deemed dangerous by the official.

• No metal or hard molded cleats

• No jewelry or watches

• NO CLEATS!!!

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