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Staff Registration

Pursuant to U.S. Soccer rules, current US Club Soccer staff registration is required of all individuals coaching, managing or working with US Club Soccer-registered youth players. This includes, but is not necessarily limited to, all coaches, assistant coaches, and team managers assigned to a team with youth players, regardless of whether they are volunteers or paid staff, or registered with another U.S. Soccer member organization.

Individuals that are not currently registered with US Club Soccer are not allowed to participate with US Club Soccer-registered youth players, nor are they covered by US Club Soccer insurance. Clubs/organizations whose members are not in compliance with this requirement are subject to disciplinary action.

STEPS TO COMPLETE STAFF REGISTRATION – OVERVIEW:

Player Health and Safety Initiatives: As part of its Players First philosophy and in order to promote a safe environment, US Club Soccer requires completion of the following Player Health and Safety Initiatives by all staff members registering with US Club Soccer.

  1. Become “SafeSport Trained.” [Instructions in following section] – effective as of the 2018-19 registration year
    The U.S. Center for SafeSport online training covers the following subjects: sexual abuse, hazing, bullying, emotional misconduct, physical misconduct, harassment (non-sexual) as well as reporting obligations. There are three modules required to become “SafeSport Trained”: a) Mandatory Reporting: Understanding Your Responsibilities; b) Sexual Misconduct Awareness Education; and c) Emotional and Physical Misconduct.
  2. Complete Sideline Sports Doc (SSD) online course. [usclubsoccer.sidelinesportsdoc.com/]
    This training program includes a six-chapter online course, as well as downloadable .pdf/e-book and .mp3 products, designed to improve on-field triage of key injury situations. The course incorporates U.S. Soccer’s “Concussions in Soccer” video and other Recognize to Recover content. The chapters are: 1) The SAFE Method – initial evaluation of an on-field injury, 2) Ankle and foot injuries, 3) Concussion, 4) Fractures, 5) Heat illness, and 6) Knee injuries.
  3. Complete background screening. [US Club Soccer Background Screening Application]
    Beyond a variety of national sources, our level of screening generally includes a direct county/state of residence criminal record search for all counties in which an individual has lived within the past seven years, regardless of whether any “hits” appear on the national database searches.

    Registration: Registration is not complete until the staff passcard/rec registration request (#4 below) has been approved by US Club Soccer.
  4. Submit staff passcard or rec registration request. In most cases, this step is completed by the club/organization’s registrar on behalf of the individual coach or staff member. This step may be completed before the Player Health and Safety Initiatives listed above. Background screening results and an eligibility determination for “flagged” applicants will not be considered until a passcard/registration request is made for that person.

1. SAFESPORT ONLINE TRAINING:

This requirement takes effect with the 2018-19 registration year. Please click here to read CEO Kevin Payne’s letter. Completion takes approximately 90 minutes, but it does not need to be done at once. You may save your progress and pick up where you left off at a later time.

Instructions: Please send an email to SafeSport@usclubsoccer.org in order to receive an auto-reply with the link, U.S. Soccer access code, and instructions to take the course. (The U.S. Center for SafeSport and U.S. Soccer will not allow the code to be posted publicly.)

Once all three modules are completed, you will be able to download a master “SafeSport Trained” certificate from your SafeSport dashboard. Save this certificate. You will be required to upload it into your next US Club Soccer background screening application beginning with the 2018-19 registration year, as a condition of US Club Soccer staff registration. 

Important distinction: While you will receive a certificate after each of the three modules, uploading one of those does not suffice. US Club Soccer requires uploading the master “SafeSport Trained” certificate. Click here for visual instructions to access, download and properly save your SafeSport Trained certificate.

 

Timeframe:  As soon as possible, but no later than in conjunction with your next background screening application. Those who become SafeSport Trained will not be required to take the course again for 2018-19 or 2019-20 registration. We also recommend others in your club/organization who may not be required to register with US Club Soccer become SafeSport Trained.

Cost / Payment:  Free.

Technical support:  Contact the U.S. Center for SafeSport Technical Support Help Desk at (720) 676-6417 or complete the contact form on this web page.

2. SIDELINE SPORTS DOC:

You will receive a certificate number when the course is complete, which must then be entered into the corresponding background screening application (#3 below). Completion takes approximately one hour, but it does not need to be done at once. Users may save their progress and pick-up where they left off at a later time.

Link / instructions:  usclubsoccer.sidelinesportsdoc.com/

Timeframe:  Every other registration year. For competitive staff, that means the course must be completed each time you register with US Club Soccer. More specifically, the course must be completed within the 120 days preceding submission of one’s background screening application.

Cost and payment:  $5 per person, which is payable 1) by the person taking the course, or 2) clubs/leagues may cover the cost for some or all of their staff members by purchasing access in bulk.

Purchasing bulk access (for registrars or club officials):  To make a first-time bulk purchase, please visit this web page. From that page, you’ll be able to immediately make a purchase and create a coupon code that can be used by your staff to access the course at zero cost to them. If you have an existing code, you may view the status of your club licenses and add to them immediately if you wish by visiting this web page.

Other:  The course takes approximately one hour to view the videos, but it does not need to be done at once. You may save your progress and pick up where you left off at a later time.

3. BACKGROUND SCREENING:

You are required to upload both your “SafeSport Trained” master certificate, and the Sideline Sports Doc-US Club Soccer online course completion certificate, into your background screening application. If you uploaded the incorrect “SafeSport Trained” or Sideline Sports Doc online course certificate to your background screening application, click here for instructions to replace those initial certificates with the correct versions.

Links:  Background Screening Application / Background Screening web page

Timeframe: Every other registration year. For competitive staff, that means the background screening application must be completed each time you register with US Club Soccer. The background screening application must be submitted within the three months prior to one’s registration request.

Cost and payment: $18 per application, which is payable 1) by the person completing the application via a credit card or bank draft transaction (default), or 2) clubs/leagues may cover the cost for some or all of their staff members by purchasing one-time use, prepaid codes.

Purchasing prepaid codes (for registrars or club officials ONLY): Submit the US Club Soccer Background Screening Prepaid Code Request Form. From that page, you may purchase your desired quantity of one-time use, prepaid codes and then distribute these unique codes to some or all of your coaches/staff members for use during the background screening application payment process at zero cost to them. All applicants will have the opportunity to enter a prepaid code during the background screening application process.

4. SUBMIT STAFF PASSCARD OR REC REGISTRATION REQUEST:

Links:  US Club Soccer’s registration platform, powered by SportsEngine (formerly known as KYCK Play) (for competitive staff) / Rec Registration Form #R003-R (for rec staff)

Timeframe:  Competitive staff: In accordance with the Competitive Staff Registration-Passcard Validity Dates [.pdf]. Rec staff: Each registration year.

Cost / Payment:  A staff passcard costs $25 and is paid at the time of the passcard request. Rec staff registration costs $5 and will be invoiced after submission of the Rec Registration Form.

GENERAL / FAQ:

If you uploaded the incorrect “SafeSport Trained” or Sideline Sports Doc online course certificate to your background screening application, click here for instructions to replace those initial certificates with the correct versions.

Currently registered staff members whose background screening or registration is already valid through the 2018-19 registration year do not need to complete the Sideline Sports Doc online course or another background screening until the following (2019-20) registration year.

Questions? Please contact your respective US Club Soccer regional administrator: