NorCal Announces Pre-NPL in U12-U13 Age Groups

NorCal Premier Soccer is excited to announce a modification to our competition structure in the U12-U13 age groups for the 2019/20 season, with the introduction of the Pre-NPL league for boys & girls. The Pre-NPL is intended to bridge the gap between regionally-based leagues in younger age groups, and statewide competition in U14-U19 age groups (NPL and State Premier).

Our aim is to continue to provide the merit-based competition we believe so necessary for an enjoyable soccer environment while attempting to also recognize and reward clubs who invest in the long term development of the players, coaches, and clubs. By providing Pre-NPL in the U12-U13 age groups, we hope to promote parity of competition & maintain a merit-based competition structure where clubs earn places in the top divisions through on-field performance, while also ensuring that we reduce unnecessary travel and maintain the high on & off the field standards expected of clubs/teams in the U14-U19 NPL divisions, as part of a healthy developmental process.

The competition structure & qualification process of the existing NorCal NPL (U14-U19) will not be impacted.

Pre-NPL Competition Structure
Competition structure will be similar to the existing Fall/Spring NPL competition structure.
Fall Competition – Regionally-based divisions (Example: Pre-NPL North, South, etc.)
Spring Competition – Teams seeded based on performance in Fall. Combined-regional competition (Example: Pre-NPL West 1, Pre-NPL East 1, etc.)

Pre-NPL Qualification
Current NPL member clubs will have guaranteed acceptance into the Pre-NPL divisions in the respective gender of their NPL status (Example: Boys NPL clubs will be accepted into boys Pre-NPL divisions). Non-NPL club teams can earn a place in the Pre-NPL divisions by both performing to a high standard on the field in NorCal competitions in the previous year, and adhering to the required club standards set by the NorCal league office. Specific qualification criteria will be announced when applications open.

Further Pre-NPL Information & Registration
The NorCal competitions staff will contact all clubs in May regarding the details for their teams to either register (NPL Clubs) or apply (non-NPL Clubs) to play in the Pre-NPL leagues for the 2019/20 season.