Style Guidelines

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A

Age Group
Always capitalize the "U or Under" whether it is spelled out or abbreviated. Always use a hyphen between the word "Under or U" and the age specified.

Correct – 16-and-Under Girls or 16U Girls
Incorrect – Under-16, U16

Never use an apostrophe when abbreviating the birth year.

Correct – SD Surf 93 Girls
Incorrect – SD Surf '93 Girls

US Youth Soccer Awards Gala
Refers to the annual event held in conjunction with the US Youth Soccer Workshops. Also see Workshop.

In any use:

First Mention – US Youth Soccer Awards Gala
Second Mention – Awards Gala or Gala

The following is the format acceptable for referencing each award.

First Mention – US Youth Soccer Male Young Referee of the Year
Second Mention – Male Young Referee of the Year

First Mention – US Youth Soccer Female Young Referee of the Year
Second Mention – Female Young Referee of the Year

First Mention – US Youth Soccer Goal of the Year
Second Mention – Goal of the Year

First Mention – US Youth Soccer Save of the Year
Second Mention – Save of the Year

First Mention – US Youth Soccer Administrator of the Year
Second Mention – Administrator of the Year

First Mention – US Youth Soccer Volunteer of the Year
Second Mention – Volunteer of the Year

First Mention – US Youth Soccer Coach of the Year Boys Competitive
Second Mention – Boys Competitive Coach of the Year

First Mention – US Youth Soccer Coach of the Year – Girls Competitive
Second Mention – Girls Competitive Coach of the Year

First Mention – US Youth Soccer Coach of the Year – Boys Recreation
Second Mention – Boys Recreation Coach of the Year

First Mention – US Youth Soccer Coach of the Year – Girls Recreation
Second Mention – Girls Recreation Coach of the Year

First Mention – US Youth Soccer Excellence in Youth Coaching Education Award, "Dr. Thomas Fleck Award"
Second Mention – Dr. Thomas Fleck Award

First Mention – US Youth Soccer Hall of Fame
Second Mention – Hall of Fame

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B

Boilerplates
All press releases from US Youth Soccer will include the following applicable boiler plates:

About the United States Youth Soccer Association (US Youth Soccer) – US Youth Soccer – "The Game for ALL Kids!^®" is the largest youth sports organization in the country and largest member of the United States Soccer Federation, the governing body of soccer in the United States. US Youth Soccer registers more than 3 million players annually, ages 5 to 19, and over 900,000 administrators, coaches and volunteers in 55 member State Associations. US Youth Soccer programs provide a fun, safe and healthy environment for players at every level of the game. For more information, visit www.USYouthSoccer.org.

Media Request: When referring to the United States Youth Soccer Association, the largest youth sports organization in the United States, please refer to the association only as US Youth Soccer, and never as USYS or USYSA. We appreciate your cooperation.

About US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program (US Youth Soccer ODP) - US Youth Soccer ODP, established in 1977, is the original Olympic development program in the United States. Formed to identify a pool of players in each age group from which a National Team could be selected for international competition, selected players are exposed to the nation's top coaches from collegiate institutions, U.S. Soccer and the professional leagues. Programs exist in each state and with competitions such as the US Youth Soccer ODP Championships, Interregional Training/Competition, Regional Camps and International play. US Youth Soccer ODP continues to lead the way in elite player identification and development. US Youth Soccer ODP is an approved program of the U.S. Soccer Federation.

Media Request: When referring to the US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program, the original elite player program in the United States, please refer to the program only as the US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program or US Youth Soccer ODP, and never as USYSODP or simply ODP. We appreciate your cooperation.

About the US Youth Soccer National Championship Series: The US Youth Soccer National Championship Series provides more than 10,000 teams from US Youth Soccer's 55 State Associations the opportunity to showcase their abilities against the best in the nation while emphasizing teamwork, discipline and fair play. The yearlong competition begins with over 185,000 players in the US Youth Soccer State Championships. These champions and selected wildcard teams, through US Youth Soccer Regional Leagues, advance to compete in one of four US Youth Soccer Regional Championships. Champions (13U through 19/20U) from each regional event advance to the US Youth Soccer National Championships. The 14U through 18U Boys and Girls age groups have four teams representing the US Youth Soccer National League. Overall, the US Youth Soccer National Championship Series provides the nation's top collegiate coaches with the premier stage to identify and scout the most coveted players in the country. For more information, visit championships.usyouthsoccer.org.

Media Request: When referring to the US Youth Soccer National Championship Series, the most prestigious event in youth sports, please refer to the event as US Youth Soccer National Championship Series on first reference and National Championship Series on anything thereafter. Never refer to as NCS or USYS NCS. We appreciate your cooperation.

About US Youth Soccer National League - Formed in 2007, the US Youth Soccer National League was developed as a path of advancement for the top teams from the US Youth Soccer Regional Leagues. In addition to meaningful matches, development and identification, the league created a direct path to the annual US Youth Soccer National Championships. League play features the 14U through 18U age groups for boys and girls who are seeking to advance their college, professional and U.S. National Team aspirations. Learn more at USYouthSoccer.org/National_League/.

About the US Youth Soccer Presidents Cup - The US Youth Soccer Presidents Cup provides a progressive, competitive experience to US Youth Soccer teams from the state to regional to national level. The Presidents Cup gives players an additional opportunity to compete against teams from across the country at a high level for the joy and the challenge of the game. It provides the chance to experience a unique US Youth Soccer event with camaraderie, community and competition through sport. .

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Datelines
Should contain a city name, entirely capitalized, followed in most cases by the name of the state, county or territory where the city is located. Always bold the dateline.

Cities that can stand alone without a state:

ATLANTA	MILWAUKEE
BALTIMORE	MINNEAPOLIS
BOSTON	NEW ORLEANS
CHICAGO	NEW YORK
CINCINNATI	OKLAHOMA CITY
CLEVELAND	PHILADELPHIA
DALLAS	PHOENIX
DENVER	PITTSBURGH
DETROIT	ST. LOUIS
HONOLULU	SALT LAKE CITY
HOUSTON	SAN ANTONIO
INDIANAPOLIS	SAN DIEGO
LAS VEGAS	SAN FRANCISCO
LOS ANGELES	SEATTLE
MIAMI	WASHINGTON

Example: MIAMI (January 1, 2009) –

Stories for all other U.S. cities should have both the city and the state name in the dateline. Spell out Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Ohio, Texas and Utah. Use the following abbreviations for each state; ZIP code abbreviations are in parenthesis:

Ala.	(AL)	Kan.	(KS)	Nev.	(NV)	S.C.	(SC)
Ariz.	(AZ)	Ky.	(KY)	N.H.	(NH)	S.D.	(SD)
Ark.	(AR)	La.	(LA)	N.J.	(NJ)	Tenn.	(TN)
Calif.	(CA)	Md.	(MD)	N.M.	(NM)	Vt.	(VT)
Colo.	(CO)	Mass.	(MA)	N.Y.	(NY)	Va.	(VA)
Conn.	(CT)	Mich.	(MI)	N.C.	(NC)	Wash.	(WA)
Del.	(DE)	Minn.	(MN)	N.D.	(ND)	W.Va.	(WV)
Fla.	(FL)	Miss.	(MS)	Okla.	(OK)	Wis.	(WI)
Ga.	(GA)	Mo.	(MO)	Ore.	(OR)	Wyo.	(WY)
Ill.	(IL)	Mont.	(MT)	Pa.	(PA)
Ind.	(IN)	Neb.	(NE)	R.I.	(RI)

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FIFA
Federation International de Football Association, FIFA acceptable as first reference, refer to as the international soccer football governing body rather than spelling out the French acronym.

Gender
Always capitalize Boys and Girls when referring to a specific gender-age group or when mentioning a gender associated with a US Youth Soccer program.

Correct – 16-and-Under Girls or US Youth Soccer National League Boys and Girls
Incorrect – 16-and-Under girls or US Youth Soccer National boys and girls

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Logos
For use of any US Youth Soccer logos, contact [email protected].

MLS
Major League Soccer – MLS is acceptable on first reference. Also see sponsor.

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US Youth Soccer National League
Always capitalize US Youth Soccer National League as it is a proper name.

In any use:

First Mention – US Youth Soccer National League
Second Mention – National League or the league

US Youth Soccer National Championship Series
Always capitalize US Youth Soccer National Championship Series. Never abbreviate National Championship Series.

In any use:

First mention – US Youth Soccer National Championship Series
Second mention – National Championship Series or Series

US Youth Soccer National Champions
The US Youth Soccer National Championships are the final leg of the US Youth Soccer National Championship Series. For information on each specific trophy, see Trophy.

In any use:
First Mention – (Age) (Gender) US Youth Soccer National Champion
Example: 16-and-Under Girls US Youth Soccer National Champion

Second Mention – (Age) (Gender) National Champion
Example: 16U Girls National Champion or national champions

US Youth Soccer Regional Championships
The US Youth Soccer Regional Championships are the second leg of the US Youth Soccer National Championship Series.

Always capitalize the word region when referring to a specific US Youth Soccer Region, East Region, Midwest Region, South Region or West Region. For more information about each specific region, see Region.

US Youth Soccer Eastern Regional Championships

In any use:
First Mention – US Youth Soccer Eastern Regional Championships
Second Mention – Eastern Championships

US Youth Soccer Midwest Regional Championships

In any use:
First Mention – US Youth Soccer Midwest Regional Championships
Second Mention – Midwest Championships

US Youth Soccer Southern Regional Championships

In any use:
First Mention – US Youth Soccer Southern Regional Championships
Second Mention – Southern Championships

US Youth Soccer Far West Regional Championships

In any use:
First Mention – US Youth Soccer Far West Regional Championships
Second Mention – Far West Championships

US Youth Soccer Regional Champions

In any use:
First Mention – US Youth Soccer (Age) (Gender) Region (insert region name) Regional Champions
Example: US Youth Soccer 14-and-Under Girls Eastern Regional Champions

Second Mention – Region (region name) Champions
Example: Eastern Champions

US Youth Soccer State Championships

The US Youth Soccer State Championships are the first leg of the US Youth Soccer National Championship Series.

In any use:

First Mention – US Youth Soccer (State Association) State Championships
Example: US Youth Soccer Florida State Championships

Second Mention – (State Association) State Championships
Example: Florida Youth Soccer Association State Championships or Florida State Championships

US Youth Soccer State Champions

In any use:

First Mention – (Age) (Gender) US Youth Soccer (State Association) State Champions
Example: 14-and-Under Girls US Youth Soccer Florida State Champions

Second Mention – (State Association) State Champions
Example: Florida State Champions or state champions
If the specific state is not mentioned, lowercase state champions

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US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program

In any use:

First Mention – US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program (US Youth Soccer ODP)
Second Mention – US Youth Soccer ODP

Regional Level US Youth Soccer ODP

In any use:

First Mention – US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program (US Youth Soccer ODP) (Gender) (Age) (Region)
Example: US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program (US Youth Soccer ODP) Girls 1993 East

Second Mention – US Youth Soccer ODP (Gender) (Age) (Region)
Example: US Youth Soccer ODP Girls 1993 East

Gender Specific:

In any use:
First Mention – US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program (US Youth Soccer ODP) (Gender)
Example: US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program (US Youth Soccer ODP) Girls

Second Mention – US Youth Soccer ODP (Gender)
Example: US Youth Soccer ODP Girls

State Level US Youth Soccer ODP

In any use:

First Mention – (State) US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program ("State" US Youth Soccer ODP) (Gender) (Age)
Example: Florida US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program (US Youth Soccer ODP) Girls 1993

Second Mention – (State) US Youth Soccer ODP (Gender) (Age)
Example: Florida US Youth Soccer ODP Girls 1993

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US Youth Soccer Presidents Cup

Never use an apostrophe ('). Never refer to as a national championship; the culminating event will be referred to as Finals.

In any use:

First Mention – US Youth Soccer Presidents Cup
Second Mention – Presidents Cup

Culmination of the event should be referred to as the US Youth Soccer National Presidents Cup.

US Youth Soccer Eastern Presidents Cup
In any use:
First Mention - US Youth Soccer Eastern Presidents Cup
Second Mention – Eastern Presidents Cup

US Youth Soccer Midwest Presidents Cup
In any use:
First Mention - US Youth Soccer Midwest Presidents Cup
Second Mention – Midwest Presidents Cup

US Youth Soccer Southern Presidents Cup
In any use:
First Mention - US Youth Soccer Southern Presidents Cup
Second Mention – Southern Presidents Cup

US Youth Soccer Far West Presidents Cup
In any use:
First Mention - US Youth Soccer Far West Presidents Cup
Second Mention – Far West Presidents Cup

US Youth Soccer (State Association) State (Presidents Cup)

In any use:

First Mention – US Youth Soccer (State Association) State Presidents Cup
Example: US Youth Soccer Florida Youth Soccer State Presidents Cup or US Youth Soccer Florida Presidents Cup

Second Mention – (State Association) Presidents Cup
Example: Florida Presidents Cup

US Youth Soccer Programs
See individual program listing for more information.

US Youth Soccer Target United Cup, US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program, US Youth Soccer National Championship Series, US Youth Soccer National League, US Youth Soccer Presidents Cup, US Youth Soccer Soccer Across America, US Youth Soccer TOPSoccer and Youth Soccer Month.

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US Youth Soccer Regions

US Youth Soccer is comprised of four regions, which are composed of the 55 US Youth Soccer State Associations. Always capitalize each specific region. See State Association for breakdown and listing of each state.

In any use:

First Mention – US Youth Soccer (East, Midwest, South, West) Region
Second Mention – (East, Midwest, South, West) Region

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Soccer Across America
Formerly known as Soccer Start, the program name should always be capitalized and never be shortened or abbreviated.

In any use:
Correct: Soccer Across America
Incorrect: Soccer America, SAA, S.A.A., etc…

Sponsors

View all US Youth Soccer sponsors: [link]

US Youth Soccer State Associations

In any use:
First Mention – US Youth Soccer State Association(s)
Second Mention – State Association(s)

The following format should be followed when referencing any of the following US Youth Soccer State Associations. The abbreviation in parenthesis is to be used when identifying the State Association a club, team or player belongs to.

US Youth Soccer West Region
Connecticut Junior Soccer Association	(CT)
Delaware Youth Soccer Association	(DE)
Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association	(E-NY)
Eastern Pennsylvania Youth Soccer Association	(E-PA)
Soccer Maine	(ME)
Maryland State Youth Soccer Association	(MD)
Massachusetts Youth Soccer Association (or Mass Youth Soccer)	(MA)
New Hampshire Soccer Association	(NH)
New Jersey State Youth Soccer Association	(NJ)
New York State West Youth Soccer Association	(NY-W)
Pennsylvania West State Soccer Association (or PA West)	(PA-W)
Soccer Rhode Island	(RI)
Vermont Soccer Association	(VT)
Virginia Youth Soccer Association	(VA)
West Virginia Youth Soccer Association	(WV)

US Youth Soccer Midwest Region
Illinois Youth Soccer	(IL)
Indiana Youth Soccer Association	(IN)
Iowa Soccer Association	(IA)
Kansas State Youth Soccer Association	(KS)
Kentucky Youth Soccer Association	(KY)
Michigan State Youth Soccer Association	(MI)
Minnesota Youth Soccer Association	(MN)
Missouri Youth Soccer Association	(MO)
Nebraska State Soccer Association	(NE)
North Dakota Youth Soccer Association	(ND)
Ohio South Youth Soccer Association	(OH-S)
Ohio Youth Soccer Association – North	(OH-N)
South Dakota State Youth Soccer Association	(SD)
Wisconsin Youth Soccer Association	(WI)

US Youth Soccer South Region
Alabama Youth Soccer Association (or Alabama Youth Soccer)	(AL)
Arkansas State Soccer Association	(AR)
Florida Youth Soccer Association	(FL)
Georgia Soccer	(GA)
Louisiana Soccer Association	(LA)
Mississippi Youth Soccer Association	(MS)
North Carolina Youth Soccer Association	(NC)
North Texas State Soccer Association	(N-TX)
Oklahoma Soccer Association	(OK)
South Carolina Youth Soccer Association	(SC)
South Texas Youth Soccer Association	(S-TX)
Tennessee State Soccer Association	(TN)

US Youth Soccer West Region
Alaska State Youth Soccer Association	(AK)
Arizona Youth Soccer Association	(AZ)
California Youth Soccer Association – North	(CA-N)
California Youth Soccer Association – South (or Cal South)	(CA-S)
Colorado State Youth Soccer Association	(CO)
Hawaii Youth Soccer Association	(HI)
Idaho Youth Soccer Association	(ID)
Montana Youth Soccer Association	(MT)
US Youth Soccer Nevada (or United States Youth Soccer Nevada)	(NV)
New Mexico Youth Soccer Association	(NM)
Oregon Youth Soccer Association	(OR)
Utah Youth Soccer Association	(UT)
Washington Youth Soccer	(WA)
Wyoming State Soccer Association	(WY)

Stickley
Always capitalize as it is the name of US Youth Soccer's mascot.

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The Game for All Kids! ®

US Youth Soccer Target United Cup
Target is the title sponsor of Target United Cup; therefore, the program should never be referred to as the United Cup.

In any use:

First Mention – US Youth Soccer Target United Cup
Second Mention – Target United Cup

When referring to a specific Target United Cup:

In any use:
First Mention – (Host Location) US Youth Soccer Target United Cup
Example: Portland US Youth Soccer Target United Cup

Second Mention – (Host Location) Target United Cup
Example: Portland Target United Cup

TOPSoccer
"The Outreach Program for Soccer" Soccer is the only word that is spelled out.

In any use:
First Mention – US Youth Soccer TOPSoccer, The Outreach Program for Soccer
Second Mention - TOPSoccer

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US Youth Soccer
Never use periods to separate "U" and "S". "United States Youth Soccer Association" or "U.S. Youth Soccer Association" is only used in documents that directly affect the organization's nonprofit status.

In any use:
Correct – US Youth Soccer
Incorrect – U.S. Youth Soccer, United States Youth Soccer Association, USYS or USYSA

USYouthSoccer.org
Always capitalize where stressed.

In any use:
Correct – USYouthSoccer.org or www.USYouthSoccer.org
Incorrect – usyouthsoccer.org or USYOUTHSOCCER.ORG

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US Youth Soccer Workshop
Should never be referred to as the US Youth Soccer Workshop and Coaches Convention.

In any use:
First Mention – US Youth Soccer Workshop
Second Mention – The Workshop

Youth Soccer Month
The national Youth Soccer Month campaign is held annually each September, with US Youth Soccer leading the initiative.

In any use:

First Mention – national Youth Soccer Month
Second Mention – Youth Soccer Month

* The US Youth Soccer Style Guidelines are subject to change.

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