Knowing when your next soccer season will start is crucial to ensure you are fully prepared. If you know the date, you can plan for any training, conditioning, registrations, or necessary preparations you must complete.
You can be sure to complete all necessary preparations and get all your gear in time for the season!
This article will cover regular start dates for youth soccer, high school soccer, Major League Soccer (MLS), and European leagues.
By the way, if you can't wait for soccer season, check out the Open Goaaal 3-in-1 Goal and Rebounder. It's the perfect way to bring the excitement of the game into your own backyard!
When Is Soccer Season?
Soccer season officially starts in the Fall of every year for most leagues. This includes youth leagues through schools or local organizations like the YMCA.
While the specific start dates will vary, practices and conditioning will usually begin in September, and regularly scheduled games in October. It is important to note that many registrations have deadlines in Summer, so make sure you know the exact date you must register by.
The season typically continues until the Spring of next year. However, for many youth divisions and school-sponsored leagues, the regular season may end as early as November, when district tournaments will be held.
These dates can also vary depending on the league and the geographical location. In Europe, many soccer leagues begin earlier in the Fall or the Summer, such as the English Premier League, which begins its matches in August.
You can play soccer indoors and outdoors and enjoy it year-round. During the pre-season, the original game has many indoor variations, such as futsal, to keep your skills sharp.
Many recreation centers offer indoor soccer leagues so you can stay on your game during the spring and summer months.
Soccer Season Months for Youth Soccer
For youth soccer, the season will typically take place in September-November. The season lasts two months on average, not including any training or conditioning that is held during the preseason.
The specific season schedule varies greatly depending on the particular league you are interested in. Still, you can count on soccer season to start being close to late August or Early September for a large majority of leagues.
While most leagues end in the Fall season, some continue throughout Winter and into the Spring of the next year. These leagues may last until February of the following year.
Given the long off-season for outdoor soccer, staying in touch with the beautiful game at home may be hard.
However, there are great ways to bring the game to you and remain trained during the off-season. This DIY backyard soccer field is a great place to start!
That being said, many registration deadlines for these leagues, such as YMCA youth leagues, are in the Summer. Some even as early as June, so you want to know the deadline date for registration and the start date of the season to be fully prepared!
How Long Is the MLS Season?
Major League Soccer (MLS) is the American professional league that hosts teams from over 29 cities. See a complete list of teams here! The MLS season, however, follows a unique schedule compared to the typical soccer league.
While soccer seasons are generally known to end in February at the latest, February is the starting month for the MLS season. The season begins at the end of February and officially ends in December of the same year. This means that the MLS season lasts for a total of around nine months.
The MLS season is split into two parts, the first being the MLS regular season, and after, the playoffs begin for the MLS cup at the end of the year.
When Is Soccer Season in Europe?
The typical soccer season in Europe is from early August to as late as May of next year. Since soccer is such a hugely popular sport in Europe, the season starts earlier than most leagues in America and continues well into the following year.
European soccer is popular worldwide, and many fans will want to keep up with the start dates of the many professional European leagues.
The most popular professional leagues in Europe are the English Premier League, La Liga in Spain, Bundesliga in Germany, Ligue 1 in France, and Serie A in Italy.
As with most European leagues, these will all start in Early August and run through the Spring or Summer of the following year.
Special tournaments such as the FIFA world cup, UEFA champions league, and UEFA Europa League have their own schedules.
Here you can see professional soccer players from different teams compete across leagues. Spanish teams can compete head-to-head with French teams or, in the case of the world cup, national teams from all over the world.
This competition is why these special leagues and tournaments are so exciting and popular worldwide!
Does Soccer Have an Off Season?
With the many indoor applications and easy accessibility of soccer, technically, there is no off-season! While the regular soccer season only lasts a few months, that is only limited to outdoor settings and leagues.
Indoor fields and leagues are growing more and more popular. You can still enjoy the beautiful gamer by moving indoors during the Spring season!
While playing indoors, you will likely be playing in a smaller space, meaning it is a great time to work on your close ball control and passing abilities.
Using equipment like soccer rebounder walls while training indoors is a great way to prepare for your regular season!
Variations of soccer specifically designed indoors, such as futsal, will allow you to stay in practice outside of your regular season.
FAQs
Can soccer season be year-round?
While many American and European leagues have seasons centered around the Fall and Winter seasons, the truth is that you can enjoy soccer year-round! If you want to avoid harsh weather, many indoor fields and leagues are available for you to enjoy all year long.
Is soccer a summer or winter sport?
Typically, for youth and high school leagues, soccer season will begin during fall and end during winter. However, some leagues in Europe and even the United States last as long as the following year's Spring.
What is the difference between soccer season in Europe vs. the United States?
Soccer season in Europe starts earlier on average, usually beginning as early as the first few weeks of August. Soccer season in the United States will start around September.
The soccer season in Europe will also run longer than the U.S. European seasons can last until the Spring of next year as opposed to ending in the Winter.
Final Thoughts
Whether you are a player looking to prepare for your next season or a parent looking to sign your child up for youth soccer leagues, it is crucial to know when soccer season begins.
To complete all necessary preparations, you want to know the exact dates and plan to get the best out of the next season.
Since you can play soccer indoors and outdoors, there is no off-season! However, you want to stay sharp for your regular season outside your league play. Using equipment like the Open Goaaal 3-in-1 Trainer is a great way to hone your skills and perfect your technique to play your best next season!