TRYOUT DATES: 2025/2026 SEASON
NOTICE: Regarding Kick-Arounds, ID Camps, Academy Sessions or whatever other crazy names that people make up for any session held prior to your District’s official tryout date. As of August 1st, 2017 the MYSA Board adopted a change that allowed participation in organized activities within other clubs. This allows advertising of these sessions to the general public and for a player to attend and be given general information about the club and its programming. This isdone without the need of a signed Permission To Participate document.
AT NO TIME can a coach or club specifically target a player or team with its advertising or sales pitch and absolutely no offer of a roster spot can be offered, or monies collected, prior to the first day of tryouts. Targeting specific individuals or groups is recruiting and the rules against such still apply.
Parents & Players should carefully review all documentation that are to be signed as you may be held financially responsible for certain payments to clubs once signed regardless of your participation. A player that wishes to move to another club prior to tryouts, or outside of the tryout period, will be required to pay the appropriate transfer fee prior to such a move.
No competitive club or team can require payments be made to them from a current player prior to tryouts to “save a spot” nor is a player held to any commitment made before the date or without the proper execution of club documents or MYSA Registration (including payment) for the new seasonal year.
These rules only apply to Competitive players & teams. Recreational teams cannot limit their players in any way from attending or participating in any events or activities that they should choose. All rules and notices for these matters can be found on the “Forms & Downloads” page that is accessed through the Player & Team Admin tab at the top of the website.
TRYOUT DATES BY DISTRICT
CENTRAL DISTRICT
Open Tryouts begin on Sunday, June 8th
EASTERN DISTRICT
Beginning May 25th teams/clubs may offer roster spots to players outside of their club.
Open Tryouts begin on Sunday, June 8th
On June 15th all signed player agreements become fully enforceable, a player would need written permission from the departing club to change clubs after this date.
SOUTHERN DISTRIC
Open Tryouts begin on Sunday, June 8th
WESTERN DISTRICT
ID camps, Kick Arounds, etc can be held anytime beginning 2/3 but must be advertised to the public and require a registration / sign-up to attend (no target marketing).
May 15, 2025: Registration opens for next year and returning players can be offered spots and register at that time (first date payment for 25-26 season can be taken).
May 27-June 5: Pre-tryout camps can be held and spots can be offered to returning players as well as new players during pre-tryout camps.
June 6, 2025-June 8, 2025: Official Tryout Dates
Each club should have a refund policy in place for their club and once a player registers for the upcoming season the terms of that refund policy are in place. (The state will not be involved in the contract between player and club as far as enforcing a dollar amount). So if your club has a refund policy that says the first payment is non-refundable, then that payment is non-refundable no matter the amount. If you club says registration is $x.xx and is non-refundable then it is non-refundable no matter the amount. If your club says once you register for the season, all fall fees are non-refundable, then they are non-refundable. So the bottom line is your club should establish a Refund Policy that is advertised clearly during the registration process and then you follow that policy regarding all refunds.
THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND DURING THIS TIME:
- You cannot have a tryout and be considered recreational, teams that are selected based on ability are by definition “competitive”.
- You cannot make offers of a roster spot to a player or parent nor can you collect a fee prior to the start of tryouts in your district. (this includes monies to “hold a spot” on a roster).
- The parent or legal guardian must sign a player agreement for them to be held responsible for their debts to a club or team.
RECRUITING
Recruiting/attempted recruiting is considered a significant offense by this Association and any league, Club, or individual found to have committed a recruiting violation shall be subject to significant sanction(s) as determined by the Missouri Youth Soccer Association (MYSA) hearing panel.
Such sanctions may include a financial penalty of $2,000 or more, loss of coaching privileges for a specified amount of time, and ineligibility to participate in MYSA authorized events including MYSA’s State Cup Tournament, MYSA’s President Cup, the Midwest Regional League, National League or any other appropriate sanction.
Any club, team, or league which through its responsible officers or representatives.
For purposes of this rule, attempts shall mean any effort made in regard to accomplishing a purpose stated below.
Attempts at any time prior to the approved tryout start date of any seasonal year to induce a registered player (or their parent or their guardian) of any team, or any team as a whole or club, under the jurisdiction of this Association to leave their current affiliation before the end of the current seasonal year will be considered a Recruiting violation.
Attempts at any time prior to the approved tryout start date of any seasonal year to induce a registered player (or their parent or their guardian) of any team, or any team as a whole or club, under the jurisdiction of this Association to leave their current affiliation for the following seasonal year will be considered a Recruiting violation.
Teams or clubs requesting to change MYSA clubs during the seasonal year must obtain written permission of the president of their present club before that move is permitted.
In those instances, in which a coach moves from one club to another separate and distinct club/team during the seasonal year, the coach may not coach any rostered players from teams of the former club he/she was identified as a primary or assistant coach (excluding the coach’s son or daughter) during that seasonal year.
This rule does not apply under the following:
- The coach’s club dissolves.
- The coach moves 100 miles making the commute to the coach’s existing club impractical.
- The appropriate prior club representative, the club president or DOC, agrees in writing to the coach’s move to a different club.
- For purposes of this rule, contact is not limited to personal contact, but will include contact by phone, text, emails, Facebook and all other social media.
- A coach leaving a club for the next seasonal year cannot recruit the team they coach prior to the district tryout date and must notify their current club of the decision before announcing to their team or the public.
Responsible representatives include but are not limited to parents of team members, trainers, all employees of clubs, team managers, club or league board members, and club or league directors of coaching. The appropriate response by the responsible representative to player-initiated contact is to provide requested information. Any recommendation for the player to attend training, tryouts or any other team, club or league soccer event by the representative would be inappropriate and considered an attempt to induce a player to leave their present soccer organization. A club or league advertising on their own website is not considered Recruiting. Attendance by the player at such events when initiated by the player or player’s parents will not be considered Recruiting.
TARGETED RECRUITMENT
TARGETED RECRUITING: means contact which is made with specifically-targeted registered individual competitive players (or their parents or guardians) or specifically-targeted registered competitive teams (as opposed to the public generally or soccer players (including competitive soccer players) generally which contact attempts to cause the targeted specific players (or their parents or guardians)or Teams to leave their current affiliation for the current seasonal year or the following seasonal year. For purposes of this definition, contact is not limited to personal contact, but will include contact by phone, text, e-mails and social media messages. Targeted Recruiting specifically excludes (i) parent initiated contact and (ii) advertising, marketing, information sessions and promotions of camps or other sessions made to the public generally, or to soccer players (including competitive soccer players) generally and contact which results from responses thereto.