Los Alamos Youth Soccer League announces tryouts for U9-U14 teams

Los Alamos Youth Soccer League has set competitive tryouts for boys and girls ages U9 through U14 for the 2026-2027 season, putting early pressure on families trying to secure a spot for both the fall and spring schedules. Girls tryouts were set for 5 to 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 13, at the North Mesa soccer fields, while boys tryouts were scheduled throughout May at fields across Los Alamos County, including North Mesa, Dara Jones, Community Field, Western Park, Rover Park and Barranca Elementary.

The tryout window covers both Fall 2026 and Spring 2027, which makes this more than a one-night roster exercise. For parents, the practical takeaway is that the league wants players to plan ahead for the full soccer year, not just one season. LAYSL also says players should attend both scheduled tryout dates whenever possible, a detail that matters in a county where competitive roster spots are limited by age group and team structure.

The biggest change in the background is the new age-group calendar. Starting with the 2026-27 season, US Youth Soccer, AYSO and US Club Soccer shifted from birth-year grouping to a school-year cycle that runs from Aug. 1 to July 31. Under the new matrix, U9 now runs from Aug. 1, 2017, through July 31, 2018, and U14 runs from Aug. 1, 2012, through July 31, 2013. That reset can move a child into a different tryout pool than families may have expected under the old system, making age verification a key step before showing up at the field.

The league’s own structure shows how embedded youth soccer is in Los Alamos. LAYSL says its bylaws date to 1982 and that it is affiliated with the New Mexico Youth Soccer Association and the United States Youth Soccer Association. Its programs include recreational, pre-competitive and competitive soccer on fields in Los Alamos and White Rock. Competitive teams play in the Duke City Soccer League, while pre-competitive teams are designed as a bridge into competitive play and usually begin at U11 or U12.

This spring’s tryout cycle also follows a pattern LAYSL used last year, when it held mid-May tryouts for the Fall 2025 and Spring 2026 seasons. For local families, the message is clear: the 2026-27 soccer year is already taking shape, and the first real decisions will be made on Los Alamos fields before summer begins.