Find Your Child’s 2026–27 Soccer Age Group

For 2026–27, a child in US Youth Soccer, AYSO, or US Club Soccer is grouped by an August 1–July 31 birthdate window. Find the row containing the child’s full birth date; do not use birth year alone. A league that retained calendar-year grouping will produce a different result for many August-through-December birthdays, so confirm the rule for MLS NEXT, Girls Academy, SAY Soccer, independent academies, and local recreation programs rather than assuming they follow the new cycle.

US Youth Soccer’s final decision confirms the August 1 cutoff and its adoption by US Youth Soccer, AYSO, and US Club Soccer for their respective 2026–27 seasons or registration years.

Enter the full birth date, then choose the grouping cycle used by the child’s league.

The 2026–27 Birthdate Ranges Run From August Through July

Both endpoints in each range are included.

Age group	Inclusive birthdate range
U4	August 1, 2022–July 31, 2023
U5	August 1, 2021–July 31, 2022
U6	August 1, 2020–July 31, 2021
U7	August 1, 2019–July 31, 2020
U8	August 1, 2018–July 31, 2019
U9	August 1, 2017–July 31, 2018
U10	August 1, 2016–July 31, 2017
U11	August 1, 2015–July 31, 2016
U12	August 1, 2014–July 31, 2015
U13	August 1, 2013–July 31, 2014
U14	August 1, 2012–July 31, 2013
U15	August 1, 2011–July 31, 2012
U16	August 1, 2010–July 31, 2011
U17	August 1, 2009–July 31, 2010
U18	August 1, 2008–July 31, 2009
U19	August 1, 2007–July 31, 2008

These U4–U19 ranges appear in state-association guidance for the 2026–27 seasonal year. South Texas Youth Soccer publishes the complete matrix.

US Club Soccer also lists U20 as August 1, 2006–July 31, 2007. Because U20 does not appear consistently across the other supplied organization charts, families should treat it as an organization- or competition-specific older division. US Club Soccer’s official matrix confirms the range and the switch from January–December to August–July formation.

A chart result establishes age eligibility, not the exact division a local program will offer. A league may combine age groups, run a broader tryout pool, or use a different label on its schedule.

July 31 And August 1 Fall In Different Groups

July 31 closes one eligibility range. August 1 begins the next younger U-age range. Children born one day apart can therefore receive different labels:

• July 31, 2015: U12
• August 1, 2015: U11

The same boundary explains these placements:

• July 29, 2012: U15
• August 2, 2012: U14

Birth year alone cannot resolve the group. A September 2014 birthday and a June 2015 birthday are both U12 because each falls between August 1, 2014 and July 31, 2015. An August 2015 birthday is U11.

Current age is not a substitute for the birthdate range. A player can have a birthday during the season without changing groups immediately. “U” means “Under,” but U10 or U12 functions as a seasonal eligibility label rather than a statement of the player’s age on every game day.

School grade does not override the chart either. The change was intended to align more players with school-grade peers, but school-entry cutoffs, delayed entry, retention, and advancement can prevent an exact match. Standard eligibility still comes from the full birth date.

August-Through-December Birthdays See The Main Label Change

Participating organizations generally used January 1–December 31 calendar-year groups in 2025–26 and moved to August 1–July 31 for 2026–27.

Season	General formation window for participating organizations
2025–26	January 1–December 31
2026–27	August 1–July 31

Under the former approach, children born from January through December of one year ordinarily shared an age group. Under the new cycle, August-through-December birthdays are grouped with January-through-July birthdays from the following calendar year.

For example, a child born in September 2014 is U12 under the new cycle. That child shares the range with players born through July 31, 2015. The calculator shows the old birth-year label beside the new result so parents can see whether the displayed U-number changes.

A changed label does not prove that the child will leave an existing team. Team continuity depends on the club’s roster plan, combined divisions, available places, coaching assignments, and play-up policy.

The final cutoff is August 1, not September 1. A March 27, 2025 announcement and contemporary coverage of the original proposal described a September 1–August 31 cycle. The June 10 decision replaced that proposal with the final August 1–July 31 period. A page still using September 1 should not be used to place a player for 2026–27.

Transition timing can vary by event. Cal South, for example, asked affiliated clubs to begin using the school-year option as the standard when preparing teams in Spring 2026, while its 2026 State Cup and National Cup retained their existing requirements because those competitions began earlier. Cal South’s transition FAQ distinguishes team preparation from those cup rules. That regional example is not a universal Spring 2026 rule.

US Youth Soccer, AYSO, And US Club Soccer Adopted The New Cycle

The confirmed national adopters are:

• US Youth Soccer
• American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO)
• US Club Soccer

US Youth Soccer applies the cycle to its leagues and Cup competitions, including the National Championships, Presidents Cup, and National League. U.S. Soccer policy permits Federation members to set registration rules for the leagues and competitions they operate or sanction.

The August 1 cutoff is therefore not universal across every youth soccer setting. A club’s name does not necessarily identify the rule for every team or event it enters. Verify the sanctioning organization for the regular league, tournament, showcase, cup, ODP program, or independent academy separately.

The supplied evidence does not establish one universal 2026–27 rule for MLS NEXT, Girls Academy, SAY Soccer, or every independent and recreational league. If one of those programs retained January 1–December 31 grouping, use the calculator’s birth-year setting. If its published rules specify August 1–July 31, use the new-cycle setting.

ODP can also require a separate lookup. State-association guidance shows that some Olympic Development Programs continue using January 1–December 31 birth-year groups while regular US Youth Soccer league and cup play moves to August–July. The same player can consequently have one grouping for league soccer and another for ODP.

Older divisions are not uniform. South Texas guidance says its US Youth Soccer leagues and cups combine U18 and U19 eligibility into a U19 division, even though the eligibility chart contains separate U18 and U19 ranges. US Club Soccer publishes a separate U20 range. Neither detail guarantees that a particular local league offers those exact divisions.

Eligibility Does Not Guarantee A Particular Team Placement

Four different labels can appear during registration:

1. Official U-age eligibility: the category produced by the applicable birthdate rule.
2. Tryout group: the pool in which a club evaluates the player.
3. Combined division: a local program containing more than one official U-age.
4. Final roster assignment: the team selected after registration and evaluation.

A U11 result does not guarantee a U11-only team, a roster place, a particular coach, or the same teammates as the previous season. Clubs may consider evaluations, developmental needs, roster space, and coaching recommendations without changing the child’s underlying age eligibility.

Recreation programs sometimes combine adjacent categories. Virginia Rush, for example, publishes pairings of U5/U6, U7/U8, U9/U10, U11/U12, and U13/U14. Its 2026–27 calculator presents those as local recreation structures, not national pairings. A U9 player in a U9/U10 division remains U9-eligible.

Playing up is another placement decision. A competition may permit a player to join an older group, while the club may limit that option to players selected through an evaluation, invitation, or coaching recommendation. Permission at the competition level does not require a club to approve a parent’s request.

Playing down is different. The covered US Youth Soccer-run competitions do not grant age variances merely to place a player in a younger official category. Grade, size, experience, or developmental preference does not independently authorize a play-down.

Registration Must Match The Correct Season And Competition

Before paying a fee or attending a tryout, confirm that the registration page is for 2026–27, not 2025–26 or an unspecified calendar year. Then identify the organization sanctioning that particular team or event and ask whether it uses August 1–July 31 or January 1–December 31.

If the club combines divisions, ask which ages practice together and which label appears on the schedule. For older players, ask whether U18 and U19 are combined and whether U20 is actually offered.

A play-up request should be checked at two levels: whether the competition permits it and whether the club will approve it. If anyone proposes a younger group based on grade, size, or experience, request the governing rule in writing because the standard chart does not authorize that placement.

Conflicting calculators often reflect different seasons or formation cycles. Recheck the full birth date, selected season, and cutoff before asking the registrar for written clarification. The chart determines standard eligibility; the local administrator controls registration corrections, tryout logistics, combined divisions, and final roster assignments.