Weather Cancellation Policy

JPYS Guidelines for Cancelling Practice or Games

We place top priority on the safety of our players and volunteers when making decisions regarding the weather. We generally follow these principles:

  • If the weather is clearly dangerous (lightning, high winds, torrential rains), JPYS will make a program-wide decision to cancel soccer activities.

  • If it’s in-between weather (light to moderate rain without lightning, or light snow, for example):

  • For travel teams, we generally leave that decision up to the individual coaches for practices, and to the coaches and referees for games.

  • Once a travel game starts, the decision is normally up to the referee (though if a coach disagrees with a referee's decision to continue a game due to safety reasons, they may notify the referee that they are abandoning the match, and the consequences of that can be discussed through the league afterward).

  • Academy and Campeones cancellations will be made by the Directors of those programs, and will always be program-wide.

  • Even if practice goes forward, families ultimately need to make the call whether to bring their children to play.

  • Unless it is really obvious what the weather’s going to be, we usually we try to wait until about 30 minutes or so before the game/practice to make a final decision. We will make the call a little earlier for travel games, to give teams that are traveling sufficient time to plan.

  • Even if the bad weather stops, field conditions may also cause us to cancel. English and Pagel Fields (turf) drain well, so even after a heavy rain, they are usually playable pretty quickly. Murphy (grass) is more apt to be sloppy. Again, it's up to coaches to make this call for the travel teams, and program directors for Academy and Campeones.

Massachusetts Youth Soccer Weather Guidelines

We also refer to the Mass Youth Soccer weather policy for guidance: https://www.mayouthsoccer.org/about/weather-policy/

That policy in a nutshell:

  • For severe storms (high winds, heavy rain, hail, lightning, tornado) suspend or cancel soccer activities

  • Recommend canceling or suspending soccer activities at a heat index above 105°F, and take appropriate measures (extra breaks, extra water) between 85-105°F

  • Recommend canceling or suspending soccer activities at temps below 35°F, and take appropriate measures (additional clothing, shorten exposure) between 35-45°F

Cancelling for severe storms should be common sense, and is basically mandatory. The temperature guidelines are not absolute, but if we're playing in very hot or very cold temperatures, we will be extra vigilant about taking precautions.

Generally, for travel teams, if it’s a light snow or rain without lightning or thunder, we’ll usually continue to practice. (When it rains at practice, and the players complain, just tell them to pretend like they're playing in England.) The travel teams are generally more inclined to hold practice than the Academy, which usually has a slightly lower threshold for weather cancellation, so a cancellation of Academy activities does not necessarily drive a cancellation of Campeones or travel activities.