How to Register a New Soccer Travel Team

Being the coach of a youth traveling soccer team is a great opportunity to play against teams that have rosters with very talented players, make your own decisions as to how your team is run and build relationships with players and parents alike. In order to experience the benefits of having a traveling team you need to know how much your team is willing to travel and find a club to join that best suits your team.

Things You'll Need

  • Soccer travel team
  • Various soccer equipment
  • Birth certificate copies
  • Photos of team members
  • Signed medical waivers
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Instructions

    • 1

      Determine how much traveling your team will do. Parents and players are typically excited at the thought of being part of a traveling team until they realize how much time and money is required. A traveling team, as the name implies, requires far more time than the standard recreational teams that many parents and players are used to.

    • 2

      Find the local club or clubs in your area that you may want to join. Clubs are a compilation of traveling teams that have their own league. If you are unsure about the traveling clubs in your area contact these three national associations for youth soccer, US Youth Soccer (USYS), American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO) and US Club Soccer, and inquire about youth soccer clubs in your general area. These national organizations are all members of the U.S. Soccer Federation and they can prove to be a valuable resource.

    • 3

      Research the clubs where you are interested in potentially becoming a member. Contacting the club's director is a good place to start. You will be interested in the number of teams in the league, the number of games played and relative location of the other member teams. The club's website will probably have a list of the teams that are members of their club, and you can contact a coach or two and ask for their satisfaction with the club's organization and the level of soccer talent within the league.

    • 4

      Discuss with the team parents the information you have gathered about different clubs and make the decision as to which club your team will join.

    • 5

      Register the team with the club and submit the requisite information and member fee. Because you already have a traveling team, you probably have most of the information the club will need such as wallet-sized photos of the players, copies of birth certificates, medical forms and other items depending on the individual club. The cost to join a club can range anywhere from $100 to $200 per player on the team.

    • 6

      Supplement your regional club play with other tournaments nearby. Most of these tournaments will require your team be a member of a club. These tournaments provide a great experience but can be expensive and may require overnight stays. Besides using your team's club as a resource for potential tournaments in which to compete, you may also want to search for other tournaments yourself. A good website to use to find potential tournaments is the Soccer Tournament Directory.