Fall 2011 Refund Policy

One number controls division eligibility - how old the player was on the prior July 31, which is his/her League or Playing Age. A soccer year is comprised of two seasons, fall and spring ... in that order. Players do not change League or Playing Age between fall and spring. If a player is U10 for the fall season, he or she will be U10 for the spring season.

The "U" in U6 (or U4 or U17) means "Under" a certain age. If Johnny is five years old at 11:59 p.m. on the July 31 prior to the registration period, he's a natural U6 player ... he's under six years old on July 31. Even if he turns six on August 1, Johnny's a U6 player for that fall and the following spring, when a large number of players will be six as well. All clubs playing under the auspices of Colorado Youth Soccer (CYS) use the same date to determine League or Playing Age.

In the unusual circumstance that Johnny (or Joanie) is significantly more advanced than the rest of the players in his/her age division, the parents may choose to place him (or her) in one age division higher than the natural choice. Johnny, if he's a real go-getter, may play in U7, because while he was under six years old on the prior August 1, he was also under seven.

BSC requests that any parent who desires to place a player more than one age division above the natural division contact them before attempting to register that player. In special circumstances, BSC will authorize playing up two age divisions. On the other hand, CYS is clear in its prohibition against placing players in age divisions below their natural division, except in the case of demonstrable medical need or disability.

Yes, yes there is. Review the documents in the "Ages, Leagues & Levels" folder on our Parents' Tools - Rec & Academy page.

Yes, yes there is. Review the documents in the "Ages, Leagues & Levels" folder on our Parent's Tools - Rec & Academy page.

Cross Quadrant and Option 1 are recreational programs administered by Colorado Youth Soccer (CYS). Most teams choose to complete in the north Denver Metro FlatIrons League, but some BSC teams choose to play in CYS's Cross Quadrant (U9 only) or Option 1 (U10-up) leagues.

In both U9 Cross Quadrant and U10 Option 1, there are usually three levels each with multiple flights.  Bronze flights are the lowest level and comparable to the "B" or "A" tiers in the FlatIrons League.  Silver flights are more challenging and Gold flights represents the strongest U9 or U10 teams in the state.  Depending on the number of teams that register for these leagues, there colors may be combined (Bronze / Silver or Silver / Gold).  There may also be just a single flight in a color or multiple flights.

For U11+ Option 1, there is usually just a single color (Gold) and no flighting because many players on U10 Option 1 teams tend to try-out and move to Competitive play for there U11 year and beyond.

In addition to the levels, these programs are state-wide leagues, so teams participating in the program could come from outside the Denver metro including Ft. Collins, Colorado Springs, Pueblo, Vail and even Grand Junction.  Teams need to be prepared for long drives and perhaps overnight trips.

These programs, though intended for more advanced players, remain recreational. Coaches of Cross Quadrant and Option 1 teams are bound by the same rules around equal playing time and prohibitions around recruiting / try-outs as any other recreational coach. In Option 1, players are required to present CYS-generated Player Cards before each match and coaches must possess a CYS-generated official roster in order to play.

Additionally, for a team to compete in Cross Quadrant or Option 1, they must meet the following key requirements:

• Roster must be intact recreational teams, formed in the usual recreational manner, without tryouts or any other selection process intended to strengthen the team
• U9 Cross Quad and U10 Option 1 teams must have and maintain a minimum of 51% of their players returning from the prior season
• U11+ Options 1 teams must maintain a minimum of 40% of their players returning from the prior season
• Each U9 Cross Quad team may have no more than 3 underage U8 players on its roster (natural U7 players are not allowed to participate)
• Each U10 Option 1 team may have no more than 3 underage U9 players on its roster (natural U8 players are not allowed to participate)

In some rare instances, players are not sufficiently challenged in the age group into which they naturally fall by birth date. Parents who face this situation have the option of placing their player in the next-older age group, hence "playing up," to provide a more satisfying soccer experience. Please note that this policy does not apply to children who were not yet three years old on the July 31 before the fall and spring season in question - those children are ineligible to play until the following fall season.

While this practice solves the near-term problem of a less than challenging age group, parents should consider that playing their child up from year-to-year may present a set of different problems. Playing up presents is the reality that children will be playing with an older group of players. There is no way to overstate the many reasons that children are better off playing with their peers ... BSC is working to empower its coaches to address a wide variety of skill and experience levels within age groups so that parents may place their gifted players in their natural age groups without penalizing them for having more experience or natural ability than some of their counterparts.

As players mature, BSC addresses this problem directly by offering a tiered system in U9 and U10, where more advanced players may select "B" or "A" programs within the proper age group. We recommend that parents carefully think through the ramifications of playing up their child before proceeding. Waiting until the stratified program begins in U9 is the best bet for all but the very most advanced players in BSC.

Registration is 1 month in length and runs from December 15 through January 15 for the spring season and June 15 through July 15 for the fall season. Register early as space is limited in many programs.

If you haven't heard from your coach by the week before the first game, email your League Manager on the Recreational Program Committee. See also the BSC Home Page for Season Dates.