5 Things to Consider When Scheduling for Your Next Season

Youth sports organizations face a variety of challenges when it comes to scheduling for the upcoming season. Whether it's coordinating with coaches, finding available facilities, or juggling the schedules of dozens of players, the process can be overwhelming. 

Streamline the process for next season with these five tips:

1. Player Availability  

Ensuring that your organization has enough participants is the first step when planning for your upcoming season. To encourage youth athletes to participate you need to make signing up as easy as possible. Utilizing helpful registration tools can boost your organization's participation and help you better keep track of your target numbers before the start of your season.  

Learn How Season Management Can Simplify Your Registration Process 

2. Ensuring Your Organization Has Access to the Necessary Facilities 

One of the most crucial aspects to consider when scheduling for your next season is facility availability. Ensure that the facilities required for your sport are available on the dates you have planned. Try to reserve facilities well in advance to avoid conflicts. You also need to ensure that the facilities are sufficient for your organization's needs, including seating capacity, parking, and access to restrooms.  

3. League Scheduling  

If your organization is part of a league, you need to coordinate with the league when scheduling activities. The league may have set dates for games and tournaments that you need to work around. Furthermore, you need to ensure that you are meeting the league's requirements for scheduling, such as minimum and maximum games per season, and the length of the season. Using auto-scheduling tools can help expedite this process while ensuring all league regulations are accounted for. 

READ MORE: How to Save Time This Season with an Auto-Scheduling Tool 

4. Volunteer Availability  

Youth sports organizations heavily rely on volunteers to help with various activities, such as coaching, managing, and organizing events. As such, it is crucial to consider volunteer availability when scheduling activities for the next season. Communicate with your volunteers and find out their availability to ensure that you have enough support for your activities. It is also important to set an expectation you have for your volunteers for example if parents must complete a minimum amount of volunteer hours for the organization that must be communicated well in advance to give parents time to schedule their shifts. 

READ MORE: Tips For Managing Youth Sports Volunteers 

5. Create Contingency Plans for Weather-Related Issues. 

Weather conditions can significantly impact sports activities. Implementing a plan to address any weather-related concerns and rescheduling games, practices, and other activities is extremely important. You are likely scheduling your games, practices, and events too far out to check the forecast for those days, but in the case that bad weather arises, make sure your organization has a strong communication plan that can provide players and parents with timely information on the status of their events. 

LEARN MORE: Connect with your members through mobile app activity feed. 

Get Started Today

When you're ready to get started with your next season, take advantage of the features SportsEngine HQ provides. We offer an integrated set of tools and services that make managing every aspect of your season easy, from scheduling to communication to volunteer management. Learn more >