Your role, as parents or guardians, has a tremendous impact on your child’s experiences as he or she participates in sports.

Parent Code of Conduct

• Do not force an unwilling child to participate in sports.
• Remember children are involved in organized sports for their enjoyment, not yours. Teach your child to always play by the rules.
• Teach your child that hard work and honest effort are often more important than a victory.
• Help your child work toward skill improvement and good sportsmanship in every game. Your child will then be a winner even in defeat.
• Do not ridicule or yell at your child for making a mistake or for losing a game. Set a good example. Children learn best by example.
• Applaud good plays by your team and by members of the opposing team.
• Do not publicly question the referee’s judgment and never their honesty.
• Recognize the value and importance of volunteer coaches, referees and officials and give them their due respect. Without them, there would be no AYSO soccer.
• Support all efforts to remove verbal and physical abuse from youth sporting activities.

Conversations before the games

Tell your child you love him/her regardless of the outcome. Tell him or her “Go for it, give it your best shot and have fun!”

During the game

Understand that kids are over-stimulated during games. The Coach may be giving instructions, opponents and teammates are talking, the crowd is cheering, and the Referee is blowing the whistle. To a youth sports participant, the atmosphere is much like that of a fighter pilot with enemy jets racing all around. Do not yell instructions to your child during the game because it only adds to the confusion.

Sometimes the best thing you can do as a parent is to be quiet. Cheer and acknowledge good plays by both teams.

After the game

• Thank the officials for doing a difficult job.
• Thank the coaches for their efforts.
• Thank your opponents for a good game.
• Congratulate your child and his or her teammates for their efforts.
• Compliment individual players on good plays they made in the game.

During the car ride home

• Point out a good play your child made during the game.
• Avoid criticizing or correcting mistakes.
• Ask open-ended questions about how the game was played rather than how many points were scored. Here are examples of open-ended questions that might apply:
  • Did you have fun?
  • Did you give it your best effort?
  • What did you learn from the game?
  • What was the best play you made and how did it feel?

Remember: Coaches Coach. Referees Ref. Parents Cheer.

No Pets at Region 41 Events

We know your pet is a valued member of your family. But because others may have allergies or be sacred of animals, Region 41 does not allow pets at practices, game day venues, tournaments, or other Region 41 team events. This Policy is endorsed at the National level, is endorsed at the Section level, is endorsed at the Area level, is consistent with neighboring Regions, and is in keeping with our Insurance Policy which does not cover animal bites or related injuries.

Region 41 Respects The Whistle

Is it okay to challenge or harass the referee?

NO. NOT EVER.

Being vocally critical of the Referee is not allowed at AYSO games -it's not ok for coaches, spectators or players - for any reason - at any time. Referees are VOLUNTEERS who are doing their best to provide a fun and fair experience for our children, and they really don't need spectator assistance. Being a Referee means you are constantly making judgement calls - and it's 100% their call to make.

It is reasonable to want your child/team to have a great experience. It is not reasonable or helpful for you to 'assist' by shouting at the Referee during a game. It's upsetting to the players, other parents, the volunteer referee, and it DOES NOT HELP. Solution: the Referee Administrator welcomes a discussion of your concerns AFTER the game, in a private setting. Your concerns will be listened to and addressed.

ZERO-TOLERANCE POLICY

In the past years, Region 41 has witnessed incidents where coaches and/or spectators questioned the calls of referees requiring referees to stop matches to deal with the situation. There have also unfortunately been incidents where after a game has ended, coaches and/or spectators confront referees or other volunteers over decisions made during the game. This is not acceptable and we must remind everyone that Region 41 has a long standing, zero-tolerance policy prohibiting such behavior.

Our zero-tolerance policy applies to all referees and AYSO volunteers and will be enforced as follows:

Before you decide to yell at a referee, check out this document with some information that might be helpful.