Fall Soccer FAQs

• Each team in the Boys 1 and Girls 1 and older divisions will start with 2 weekday (M-F) practices.
• The PreK/Kindergarten division will hold 1 weekday practice.
• Weekday practices start at 6pm for most divisions. Middle school and older divisions who practice at Freedom Park may start practices at 7:30pm.
• And the Clinic 3 and Clinic 4 divisions do not have weekday practices; they meet only on Saturdays and will not start until the regular season begins.

• Games are held on Saturdays.
• PreK/Kindergarten and 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grade divisions play at Eldersburg Elementary.
• Games at Eldersburg Elementary can run from 8:30am to the afternoon.
• Older divisions and Clinic 3 sessions are held at Freedom Park.
• Games at Freedom Park can run from 8:30am into the evening.

• Games start the first weekend after Labor Day.
• The last week of games at Eldersburg Elementary is normally the 3rd weekend of November.
• The last week of the regular season at Freedom Park is normally the 1st weekend of November.
• Middle School and older division have playoffs the last two weeks at Freedom Park following the regular season.

Requests are only allowed in Clinic and Kindergarten Divisions (and are not guaranteed to be be honored). No other player requests will be accepted. We will attempt to group together coaches who wish to coach together. But please remember that any requests are not guaranteed.

For kindergarten age players and older, register the player for the grade they will be in when the season starts in September. For younger players not yet in Kindergarten, register for the Clinic division for their age when the season starts in September.

A few days after the coaches meeting in August the teams will be released and you will receive an email from the registration site with information about your assigned team and coach. Soon after the coach will send you and email with more details about practice days and times and other team information. Clinic 3 and Clinic 4 teams may not be released until later, so those players may not receive their email until the week before the season starts.

No. Players actively competing with, or rostered with any travel soccer team, are not permitted to play in the recreational league program.

Sign up for Travel Soccer evaluations and do not sign up for the Rec program. If your child does not make travel, when you receive that notice, then complete a Late Registration form indicating, in the comments area, that your child had tried out for Travel. You will not have to pay the late fee. Refunds are not offered if a player registers and then withdraws to play with a travel team.

Yes, if the player is on the High School JV team.
No, if the player is on the High School Varsity team.

Register your child for Rec soccer during our Registration dates and indicate, in the comments area, that your child is trying out for High School. If your child makes the JV team and wishes to play Rec also they can. If your child makes Varsity or makes JV and does not wish to play Rec advise the Division Coordinator.

With so many players in the league, registering early allows time to find the necessary amount of coaches and fields needed. And if not enough coaches or fields are available, team assignments will be completed first come/first served.

Yes, the refund requests need to be e-mailed to sgchaney@freedomoptsoccer.com.

If the request is received on or before 15 July (Fall Season) you receive the entire fee refunded.

Any refund request received after 15 July (Fall Season) will be less a $20.00 administrative fee, unless the request is due to an injury which would not allow the player to participate during the season, the player evaluates onto a High School team, or possibly an extenuating family circumstance. Refunds are not offered if a player withdraws to play with a travel team.

Yes, if they have the physical and mental ability we will consider allowing a player to play up into a division ahead of their grade. Please make the request to the Age Division Coordinator of the division you wish your child to play in and the League Commissioner. We ask that the parents in requesting this remember most kids enjoy playing in the same division as their friends from school or home though.

The league will provide your child with a uniform which will consist of a uniform shirt, shorts and matching socks that we require the players wear at each game. You will need to purchase shin guards, which must be worn under the soccer socks for each game. Your child should have a water bottle for practices and games to keep them hydrated. Your child can play in sneakers, but if you wish to purchase soccer shoes/cleats you need to make sure you purchase soccer shoes that do not have a cleat located in the front toe area (no football shoes).

If you wish to purchase a soccer ball for your child the following is a list of the soccer ball sizes for the divisions they play in:

• Size 3 Clinic, PreK-Kindergarten, Boys and Girls 1 & 2 and Coed 1-2 (Spring)
• Size 4 Boys 3, Boys 4, Boys 5, Girls 3-5 and Coed 3-5 (Spring)
• Size 5 Boys 7-8, Girls 6-8, High School and Coed 6-8 (Spring)

Players cannot wear any non-medically necessary accessories during a game, including but not limited to earrings, bracelets, necklaces, watches, wrist worn devices, air-pods, etc. This is a safety issue to prevent serious accidents from hooking or tangling.

If a device is medically necessary, inform your coach so they can inform the referee(s) before the game during the equipment check.

Any dangling or hoop-like earrings must be removed. Stud earrings can have a small bandage (e.g. Band-Aid) placed over it and the earring back, so they don’t have to be removed. Most coaches have bandages in first aid kits, and they are always available at the equipment area or shed at each field on game days. Glasses must be secured to prevent falling off. This does not apply to hats or gloves unless they have dangling components that cannot be secured.

We appreciate everyone who would like to sponsor a team. Just visit How to be a Freedom Optimist Soccer Sponsor for more information.

As per U.S. SOCCER’S PLAYER SAFETY CAMPAIGN: CONCUSSION INITIATIVES & HEADING FOR YOUTH PLAYERS, players 11 and under shall not engage in heading, either in practice or in games.

Therefore, during a game, whenever the ball strikes a player in the head, play is stopped. The proper restart depends upon whether the player deliberately played the ball with his or her head. If deliberate, the proper restart is an indirect free kick to the opposing team. If this occurs within the goal area, the indirect free kick should be taken on the goal area line parallel to the goal line at the point nearest to where the infringement occurred. If the play by the head is deemed inadvertent, then the proper restart is a dropped ball.