Birth Dates & Division Age Boundaries - 2026 Edition

Starting with the 2026 fall season, the US Youth Soccer (USYS) and AYSO organizations have more closely aligned player division boundaries with school grade groupings, making it more likely your child will play with their classmates. Previously, divisions were strictly based on birth year, so the mix of players in your child's soccer age division may now vary from past seasons. The new USYS/AYSO national policy determines division placement by a child's age as of August 1st — but note that California school grades use September 1st as their cutoff.  So the new national policy doesn't perfectly align with California school grades, but soccer players will be aligned with their school classmates far better than before.

Here are the new age divisions and their birth date ranges for the fall 2026 through spring 2027 seasons:

Division	Birthday Range	Approximate (!) CA Fall Grade
4U	Players born between August 1st, 2022 and September 12th, 2023	preschool
5U	Players born between August 1st, 2021 and July 31st, 2022	pre-K
6U	Players born between August 1st, 2020 and July 31st, 2021	K
7U	Players born between August 1st, 2019 and July 31st, 2020	1st grade
8U	Players born between August 1st, 2018 and July 31st, 2019	2nd grade
10U	Players born between August 1st, 2016 and July 31st, 2018	3rd + 4th grades
12U	Players born between August 1st, 2014 and July 31st, 2016	5th + 6th grades
14U	Players born between August 1st, 2012 and July 31st, 2014	7th + 8th grades
16U	Players born between August 1st, 2010 and July 31st, 2012	HS freshmen + sophmores
19U	Players born between August 1st, 2007 and July 31st, 2010	HS juniors + seniors

Original press release announcing the change: https://www.usyouthsoccer.org/news/2025/06/10/updated-decision-on-age-group-formation/
The AYSO national team has a document explaining the change here: https://ayso.org/age-determination/

A couple of quick notes:
• Please note that play up requests (eg: player aged for 10U, wants to play in 12U) are approved only in exceptional circumstances, when the AYSO board has demonstrated first-hand evidence of a player's strength (physical and soccer ability) and likelihood of excelling in the faster and more physical challenge of an older age group.  Requests are never approved based on convenience factors like the ability to carpool, or preference factors like players wanting to play with friends or classmates.  Please email [email protected] if you believe you have a justified play-up request.
• Please note that play down requests (eg: aged for 8U, wants to play in 7U) are never approved.

Further player registration questions are addressed on our FAQ page.