Soccer team app
Soccer team app: one place for your youth soccer team's week
This page is for youth soccer coaches and team managers, and the families who help them. The weekly routine works for any team; the product section comes after.
Starter is free for clubs with up to 10 teams.
Watch the video guide
Read the video transcript
A soccer season that runs smoothly
0:00 By the end of this video, you will know what a soccer team app should do for your team. You will also have a simple weekly routine for your team. We will follow the soccer coach's week. The calendar, who is coming, the lineup and formation, attendance, team messages and game changes.
What should a soccer team app do?
0:17 A good soccer team app does four jobs. It keeps one calendar. It collects clear answers about who is coming. It helps you set a lineup on a pitch.
0:27 And it keeps team messages in safe, separate channels. Start with the calendar. Put games, practices and events in one place that families open on web and phone. One shared calendar is easier to trust than three copies.
Who is coming on Saturday?
0:43 Ask for availability early in the week. Players and parents answer Going, Maybe or Can't go. You see the counts and the names. By Thursday, you know who you are planning for.
0:55 If a few answers are missing on Thursday, send one friendly reminder. Then call the families you still have not heard from. A short call is often quicker than another message.
Lineups and formations by format
1:06 Youth soccer plays different formats by age, such as seven, nine or eleven a side. Check your league's rules for your age group. Then build the lineup from who is coming, not from the full roster. In nine a side, one keeper and eight outfield players take the pitch.
1:22 A three-three-two shape is a simple start. Three defenders, three midfielders and two forwards make eight.
A worked example: a 9v9 Saturday
1:29 Here is a typical example. It is illustrative, not a specific club. An under-eleven team plays nine a side and has fifteen players. By Thursday, thirteen are going, one is a maybe and one is away.
1:42 The game is two halves of thirty minutes. Split it into six blocks of ten minutes. One keeper plays the full game. Twelve outfield players share eight spots on the pitch.
1:53 Eight spots times six blocks is forty-eight playing blocks. Divided by twelve players, that is four blocks each, or forty minutes. Four players rest in each block, and each player rests twice. On Friday, the maybe becomes a yes.
2:09 Now thirteen outfield players share forty-eight blocks. Nine play four blocks and four play three. Nine times four plus four times three is forty-eight. Balance it out next week.
RSVP and attendance are different
2:21 After the game, mark attendance. The RSVP is the plan. Attendance is the record of who came: present, late, absent or excused. Keeping both helps you spot patterns early and kindly.
When the game time changes
2:35 When a game time changes, change it in one place first. Then say it once, in the team's own channel. Families should find the new time in one spot, not across three threads.
How Play 2 Earn Sports helps a soccer team
2:47 Now, how Play 2 Earn Sports helps a soccer team. Coaches and club admins use the same lineup builder. Soccer gets a squad and pitch view, so you can set the lineup on the pitch. Players and parents answer Going, Maybe or Can't go, and you see counts and names.
3:06 A coach can send one manual in-app reminder per item, at most once every twenty-four hours. Coaches and club staff mark attendance separately. Each team has Team, Coaches and Parents channels. Guardians can read their child's Team channel.
3:21 When a team event, team game or club game changes, affected families get in-app, email and push notices by default. They can opt out of event email and push. Keep one calendar, ask early, plan the minutes, and mark attendance after the game. The full guide is on the page linked in the description.
3:40 Coaching one team? Start a free club account for your team. Starter is free for clubs with up to 10 teams. Thanks for watching.
What a soccer team app should do
- One calendar. Games, practices and events in one place that families open on web and phone.
- Clear answers. Going, Maybe or Can't go for each event, with counts and names for the coach.
- A pitch lineup. A lineup you set on a pitch, for seven, nine or eleven a side.
- Safe, separate channels. Team talk, coach talk and parent talk kept apart, with a guardian included in any adult-to-minor private chat.
- Attendance. A record of who came, separate from who said they would.
- Changes. When a game time changes, the families in that game hear about it from one place.
The soccer coach's week
| Day | Job |
|---|---|
| Sunday or Monday | Check the week's games and practices in the calendar. |
| Monday | Ask for availability for the weekend's game. |
| Thursday | Count answers; one friendly reminder; a quick call to anyone still missing. |
| Friday | Draft the lineup and the minutes from who is coming. |
| Saturday | Game day; mark attendance after the game. |
| Sunday | Note any minutes to balance next week. |
Step 1
Ask early, count on Thursday
Ask for availability at the start of the week. By Thursday, you know who you are planning for. If a few answers are missing, send one friendly reminder, then call the families you still have not heard from. A short call is often quicker than another message.
Step 2
Formats and formations
Youth soccer plays different formats by age, such as seven, nine or eleven a side. Check your league's rules for your age group, including substitutions. Then build the lineup from who is coming, not from the full roster.
Illustrative shapes, not rules:
| Format | On the pitch | A simple starting shape |
|---|---|---|
| 7v7 | Keeper + 6 | 2-3-1 (2 + 3 + 1 = 6) |
| 9v9 | Keeper + 8 | 3-3-2 (3 + 3 + 2 = 8) |
| 11v11 | Keeper + 10 | 4-4-2 (4 + 4 + 2 = 10) |
For the field side of small-sided formats, see small-sided soccer fields.
Worked example
A 9v9 Saturday with fair minutes
Illustrative example, not a specific club. Check your league's substitution rules before you plan blocks.
An under-eleven team plays nine a side and has fifteen players. By Thursday, thirteen are going, one is a maybe and one is away (13 + 1 + 1 = 15).
The plan. The game is two halves of thirty minutes. The coach splits it into six blocks of ten minutes. One keeper plays the full game; the keeper role rotates across the season. That leaves twelve outfield players for eight spots.
| Check | Sum |
|---|---|
| Outfield playing blocks | 8 spots × 6 blocks = 48 |
| Blocks per player | 48 ÷ 12 = 4 blocks (40 minutes) |
| Players resting each block | 12 − 8 = 4 |
| Rest blocks in total | 4 × 6 = 24 = 12 players × 2 rests |
The maybe says yes. On Friday, the maybe becomes a yes, so thirteen outfield players share the same forty-eight blocks:
| Players | Blocks each | Blocks |
|---|---|---|
| 9 | 4 | 36 |
| 4 | 3 | 12 |
| 13 | 48 |
Five players rest each block (13 − 8 = 5; 5 × 6 = 30 rest blocks = 9 × 2 + 4 × 3). The four who play three blocks this week go first on the list next week.
Step 3
RSVP and attendance are different
The RSVP is the plan. Attendance is the record of who came: present, late, absent or excused. Keeping both helps you spot patterns early and kindly, such as a player who often says yes but arrives late, and start a friendly conversation with the family.
Step 4
When the game time changes
Change it in one place first, then say it once in the team's own channel. Families should find the new time in one spot, not across three threads. For clubs juggling league games, tournaments and practice, see the travel soccer schedule.
A game-week checklist
Checklist: a soccer game week
- Game, arrival time and field in the calendar by Monday.
- Availability asked on Monday; answers counted on Thursday.
- One reminder, then a call to anyone still missing.
- Format and substitution rules checked for your age group.
- Lineup and minutes drafted from who is coming.
- Keeper plan for the game, and a rotation for the season.
- Attendance marked after the game.
- Minutes to balance next week written down.
How Play 2 Earn Sports supports a soccer team
Play 2 Earn Sports is one team app for the whole team, inside the club. For soccer:
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One calendar
The team and club calendar shows games, practices and events on web and phone.
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A squad and pitch view
Coaches and club admins use the same lineup builder, and soccer gets a squad and pitch view.
-
Who is coming
Players and parents answer Going, Maybe or Can't go, and coaches see counts and names. A coach can send one manual in-app reminder per item, at most once every 24 hours.
-
Attendance
Coaches and club staff mark attendance (present, late, absent, excused), separately from RSVPs.
-
Channels
Each team has Team, Coaches and Parents channels. Players, coaches and chat-enabled staff post in Team; coaches post in Coaches; coaches and guardians post in Parents. Guardians can read their child's Team channel. A private adult-to-minor chat brings a parent or guardian into the conversation until the player turns 18, and players under 14 can only DM teammates.
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Changes
When a team event, team game or club game changes, affected families get in-app, email and push notices by default. Families can opt out of event email and push.
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Practices
Practices can be created with a location. Repeating practices are set up through the club's event tools.
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On the phone
The app installs from the website on iPhone and Android. Tap Turn on notifications to get notices on the phone; on iPhone, add it to the Home Screen first.
For the league's side of the season, see soccer league scheduling software.
Coaching one team? Start a free club account for your team.
Questions
Frequentlyasked questions
Look for one calendar, clear Going, Maybe or Can't go answers with counts and names, a lineup you set on a pitch for your format, separate team, coach and parent channels with youth-safety rules, and attendance. Try it with your own team for a few weeks before the season.
Coaches can join their club through the coach sign-up, and the club approves them. Coaching one team on your own? Start a free club account for your team at /club-starter. Starter is free for clubs with up to 10 teams, and every organization feature is on every plan.
Check your league's format for the age group, count who is coming, then pick a simple shape, such as three-three-two for nine a side. In Play 2 Earn Sports, the lineup builder gives soccer a squad and pitch view.
Split the game into equal blocks, multiply spots by blocks, and divide by the outfield players. In the example above, eight spots times six blocks is forty-eight, so twelve players get four blocks each. Check your league's substitution rules first.
Ask early in the week. Players and parents answer Going, Maybe or Can't go, and you see the counts and names. A coach can send one manual in-app reminder per item, at most once every 24 hours.
The RSVP is the plan; attendance is the record of who came. Coaches and club staff mark attendance as present, late, absent or excused, separately from RSVPs.
Starter is free for clubs with up to 10 teams. Pro is $49.67 USD a month for 11 to 25 teams. Unlimited is $99.67 USD a month for 26 or more teams. Every organization feature is on every plan. See pricing.
