Nationwide Age Group Changes for 2026-2027
What is happening?
Beginning in Fall 2026–2027, U.S. Soccer is moving from a January–December birth-year model to an August 1–July 31 seasonal-year model. This change is occurring nationwide.
This shift is intended to:
● Align soccer age groups more closely with the national school grade groupings
● Improve social continuity for players
● Create better long-term development alignment nationwide
Who is affected?
1. Players born between Jan 1st and July 31st are unaffected by this change.
2. Players born between Aug 1st and Dec 31st can choose between two options
How is East Islip SC implementing the change?
EISC Board of Directors has decided on an implementation approach that is designed to support and achieve the following objectives.
● Individual Player development
● Team stability / continuity
● Competitive balance
● Long-term program health
This approach is consistent with similar community-based clubs in our area. Some of the bigger clubs are imposing the new Age Groups at the upcoming tryouts for the 2026-2027 season.
Players on existing EISC Travel and Interleague Teams
Players on a current EISC Travel or Intertown Soccer team for the 2025-2026 season who are born between August 1 and December 31 may choose from the following two options:
● try out for their current team’s age group
OR
● try out for the applicable age group as noted in the chart below as it relates to you.
Each player must choose ONE age group to try out for before tryouts begin.
Examples
Scenario 1: David was born Dec 31, 2014 and currently plays on a U12 team. For 2026–2027:
● He may try out as a rising U13 with his current teammates
OR
● He may choose to try out as a U12
Scenario 2: Emma was born Oct 17th, 2016 and currently plays on a U10 team. For 2026-2027:
● She may try out as a rising U11 with her current teammates
OR
● She may choose to try out as a U10
Important: Players may only try out for one age group during Spring 2026 tryouts.
Rising U9 Players
Players born August 1, 2017 – July 31, 2018 may try out in May 2026 for our rising U9 teams that will begin playing in the Fall 2026 season.
Players born August 1, 2018 – December 31, 2018 may also try out for a rising U9 teams.
Questions?
For current players, with birthdates Aug 1st-Dec 31st, please speak to your team trainer for initial guidance on tryouts
For rising U9 players, please email [email protected]
Any additional questions or concerns, please email [email protected]