Our 2026-2027 tryouts will be held May 2 & 3, 2026. Players are encouraged to attend both sessions if possible. The 2026-2027 season will follow the new school year format (August 1-July 31) that is being implemented by US Soccer and all leagues that Girls Unite participates in. Girls Unite will move to a school year calendar age grouping method for all competitive programs (SFYS recreational programs are already grouped this way).

Starting with the 2026–27 season, competitive soccer age groups will use an August 1 – July 31 cut-off instead of January 1 – December 31. In order to be eligible to participate in NPL and NorCal Premier, Girls Unite must be compliant with this change.

These players are more likely than not to shift age groups.

The school year model better aligns with academic calendars, supports social development among peers, and improves player retention by allowing teammates to progress together through both school and soccer. It also reduces the number of “trapped players” (kids caught between age and school-year cohorts).

The change will go into effect for the Fall 2026 – Spring 2027 season.

The decision on player placement is made by coaching staff and technical leadership with several factors in mind – player skill level, soccer maturity, current development level, predicted future development level, and player commitment. A player who is selected to play up for one season may continue to play up during additional seasons or be placed back with their appropriate peer group at some point.

While Girls Unite allows flexibility in certain cases, playing up is the exception rather than the rule. Each situation is carefully evaluated by the technical staff to ensure it is in the best interest of both the individual player and the team.

Player movement will very likely occur. Players will be placed on the team that will best enable their development.

Our club leadership and coaching staff are:

• Reviewing all current rosters and birthdates to project how the shift will affect teams at each level
• Designing a process for new school year group trainings, tryouts and evaluations for the 2026-27 season
• Communicating clearly so all families know the timeline for decisioning after tryouts and the rationale
• Providing support tools and resources, including a birth range calculator, FAQs and information sessions to answer parent questions and walk through the changes (to be scheduled).

Scroll to the bottom of the page and reference the 2026-27 Age Group Matrix

Our SFYS and Weee Kicking It recreation programs will remain aligned with the school-year calendar, using grade level and date of birth to determine player placement for each season.

All of our current competitive programs will be affected. Because this is a systemic change, some players will experience a shift into a different “age group” than they would under the old model. This new parameter will influence how we form our teams. We are working diligently to ensure a smooth transition for next season and will take all player development needs into consideration.

School grade will be considered as part of the evaluation, but the decision to allow a player to play up is ultimately based on technical criteria including the player’s skill, maturity, and readiness for the older age group. Grade alone does not guarantee that a player will play up.

No, players are not allowed by the league to play down an age group. Players who were held back a grade in school will play with their appropriate age group based on their birth date.

Tryouts for the 2026-2027 season will follow the new age groupings, based on a player’s date of birth.

No it is still based on your date of birth to determine the age group you will play.  A child held back a year in school, will not be impacted.

• For current Girls Unite families: Zoom info night regarding age group changes mid-March in the evening – timing TBD.
• For families new to Girls Unite: See Tryouts link for zoom details (in confirmation message of tryout registration).

The goal is to announce the slate prior to tryouts. Typically, coaching assignments for the highest level of competitive teams are announced first, while assignments for the remaining travel teams are announced as soon as we are able to confirm roster formation based on tryout acceptances.