AYSO was established in the Los Angeles area in 1964 with nine teams. It was the dream of a group of devoted soccer enthusiasts who started the organization in a garage.  Today, AYSO is a national organization with 50,000 teams and over 500,000 players.

Please visit our National Site

AYSO works because of dedicated volunteers committed to the six AYSO Philosophies:

Everyone Plays
Our program's goal is for kids to play soccer so we mandate that every player on every team must play at least 50 percent of every game. It's no fun to spend the game on the bench...and that's no way to learn soccer!

Balanced Teams
Each year we form new teams as evenly balanced as possible because it's more fun and a better learning experience when teams of similar ability play. It allows for each player to gain the experience of a wide variety of teammates of different skill levels.

Open Registration
Our program is open to all children who want to register and play soccer. Interest and enthusiasm are the only criteria for playing. There are no elimination try-outs and nobody gets cut.

Positive Coaching
Encouragement of player effort provides for greater enjoyment for the players and leads to better-skilled and better-motivated players. A coach can be one of the most influential people in a child's life, so AYSO requires they create a positive experience for every boy and girl.

Good Sportsmanship
We strive to create a positive environment based on mutual respect rather than a win-at-all-costs attitude, and our program is designed to instill good sportsmanship in every facet of AYSO.

Player Development
We believe that all players should be able to develop their soccer skills and knowledge to the best of their abilities, both individually and as members of a team, in order to maximize their enjoyment of the game.

The basic community program is the Region and the volunteer staff members are encouraged to organize their regions to best suit the needs of their community. Each Region is headed by a Regional Commissioner (RC) who, with the help of a Regional Board, conducts the region within the framework of AYSO’s Six Philosophies, Rules and Regulations, and By-laws.  The Deerfield Region number is 1007.

Several bordering regions comprise an Area, ours is Area D, headed by an Area Director (AD) who is responsible for the performance and growth of the Area. AD’s report to Section Directors.

Several bordering areas comprise a Section, ours is Section 6, headed by a Section Director (SD) who is responsible for the general welfare and administration of a Section. A Section may cover several states, an entire state or a portion of a state. There are no such things as “state associations” in AYSO.

Governing the overall organization is the National Board of Directors (NBOD). RC’s, AD’s, SD’s and National Board Members serve as executive members with voting rights.

The AYSO National Support Center & Training Center (NSTC) in Hawthorne, California (near Los Angeles) works closely with all executive members, sections, areas and regions providing many vital services:

• Computerized registration
• Training of field and administrative staff
• Liability and accident insurance
• Organization-wide communications
• Annual section meeting support