This is the minimum expectation of member organizations in Canada. It is expected that all member organizations provide a developmentally appropriate, safe, enjoyable, accessible, inclusive, and welcoming playing environment for their participants. Please click here for more information. 

The MA1 license builds on the characteristics and behaviours of Quality Soccer Providers with a higher expectation across the governance, administration, infrastructure, and technical pillars. MA1 is designed to recognize high-quality grassroots, community, and competitive organizations that have developed their governance and operations. Please click here for more information. 

Targets organizations with aspirations of moving into the Development/Performance Stream. MA2 license holders are making an enhanced commitment across each of the pillars, which requires significant resources to achieve. Please click here for more information. 

Organizations achieving this licence display characteristics and demonstrate behaviours aligned with the highest expectations of governance, administration, infrastructure, and technical, support their Member Association and Canada Soccer Pathways and participate in the highest level of competition in Canada. Please click here for more information. 

The Development Grants Program is available for licensed clubs only and aims to expand the capacity for organizations to create a more inclusive and welcoming environment for participants in line with Canada Soccer’s Guide to Accessibility & Inclusion and to assist in removing potential barriers for clubs to meet, or exceed, the Canada Soccer Club Licensing Standards. For more information on the Grants Program, please click here.

BC Soccer and its generous donors have been proud to support graduating students within BC Soccer’s membership eager to continue their studies in post-secondary institutions. BC Soccer Scholarships are awarded to successful applicants who, for three or more years, have played in a club licensed by BC Soccer and/or participated in some other capacity in soccer (referee, coach, or administrator). For more information on BC Soccer Scholarships, please click here. 

BC Soccer provides insurance coverage to licensed Youth Clubs that are full member associations their teams and the registered players/participants within them via our SBC Insurance (broker) and Gameday (underwriter). For more information about the Insurance Coverage Program, please click here. 

The Coach Certification Standards have two main components it: creating a safer and welcoming environment for children and improving the knowledge of coaches to ultimately increase the quality of programming our kids have access to across BC. While these certifications may take more initiative from coaches and clubs, they will equip those running sessions with the necessary information to confidently teach soccer. 

As per BC Soccer’s Coach Requirement Policy, as of January 1st, 2024: 

All Youth Team Assistant Coaches must have: 

• A valid Criminal Record Check with a Vulnerable Sector Check 
• A valid Respect in Sport for Activity Leaders Course 
• Completed the Coaching Soccer in Canada Online Module 

All Youth Team Head Coaches must have: 

• A valid Criminal Record Check with a Vulnerable Sector Check 
• A valid Respect in Sport for Activity Leaders Course 
• NCCP Make Ethical Decisions Training module and/or online evaluation 
• NCCP Making Headway in Soccer Online Concussion Module 
• NCCP Emergency Action Plan online module 
• NCCP Rule of Two Online Module 
• Completed the Canada Soccer Grassroots online theory module (Part 1) for the age group(s) they are coaching before the respective season start date 
• Completed the Canada Soccer Grassroots on-field practical workshop (Part 2) for the age group(s) they are coaching within six (6) months of the respective season start date 

The age groups for the Canada Soccer online theory (Part 1) and on-field practical workshop (Part 2) components shall be defined as follows:  

• U6 - Active Start 
• U7-U9 – Fundamentals 
• U10-U13 - Learn to Train 
• U14-U18 - Soccer for Life 

You may provide your coach with the Coach Certification Checklist to make it easier for coaches to keep track of their requirements. Click here to download the Minimal Coach Certification Checklist.

The license application process is done through the Club Licensing Software (CLS). This is an online portal where all the necessary information will be uploaded/answered by the clubs and then reviewed by BC Soccer/Canada Soccer. 

To access CLS, clubs need to assign at least one individual who will have a login created by BC Soccer. If required, more logins can be created under the same club so different individuals within the organization can have access to the license application. 

• Step One (1): Request a login to be created by BC Soccer and provide names, positions and email addresses. Clubs can have multiple user logins. 
• Step Two (2): Once the login has been created by BC Soccer, access the CLS by clicking here and use your email address to create a password.

• My Organization: General information about the user, the club and the license status.
• Club Licensing: This is where you will be able to see each tab for different areas of questions: Organization Info, Safety, Accessibility and Inclusion, Technical, Governance and MA Specific (questions specific to BC Soccer clubs). 
• Review: This is where you will be able to see an overview of the answer already graded/reviewed by BC Soccer.
• Resources: Several templates, policies and sources of information relevant to the application process are provided by Canada Soccer under the appropriate tab within the CLS. 

Organization Logo

• Please provide a high-quality image file of your club’s logo. We ask you to submit it using either a common format such as jpeg and png, or a vector format that can be opened on both Windows and MacOS computers.

Streams of Participation

• Grassroots relates everything up to the U13 age groups
• Community relates to 13+ recreational programs, house leagues and similar activities
• Competitive relates to higher level programming for 13+ players that are often called REP teams and usually play against other clubs, and join external competitions that are NOT the BCSPL or League1
• Development relates to teams that play in the BCSPL
• Performance relates to adult teams that play Leage1

Stages of Participation

• Active Start (U4-U6 programming)
• FUNdamentals (U6-U9 programming)
• Learn to Train (U9-U12 programming)
• Soccer for Life (U13+ programming in the Community or Competitive streams)
• Train to Train (U13-U16 programming in the Development stream)
• Train to Compete (U16-U18 programming in the Development stream and U19+ programming in the Performance stream)

Club Email Addresses

• As a best practice, it is recommended that clubs create email addresses specific for club purposes and avoid using the personal contact email addresses for staff and board

Coach and Team Personnel

• (Please click here to download the template): Simply upload the file with the required information for every coach in your club.

Facilities List

• (Please click here to download the template): Simply upload the file with the required information. The fields are mandatory, but there is no right or wrong answers

Clubs are required to provide links to the pages where these policies are posted on their website. For these policies to have any legal merit, Clubs need to create customized policies – with their organization's letterhead and details – Do not simply post ones used by either BC Soccer or Canada Soccer.

Code of Conduct to Protect Children

• This Code of Conduct can be used to answer questions 2, 4 and 5.

Guidelines for Adults Interacting with Children in Sport

• Simply have this form available on your club’s website as a resource for your club members and provide the link to the page where it is posted to answer question 3.

Anti-Bullying Policy

• This Anti-Bullying policy template can be used to answer question 6.

Rule of Two Policy

• This Rule of Two policy template can be used to answer question 8.

Responsible Coaching Movement (RCM) Pledge

• Clubs need to take an online pledge to adhere to the movement by clicking here. To answer question 7, simply upload the confirmation email if your club’s name has not yet appeared on the RCM’s portal.

Accessibility and Inclusion Policy

• For questions four (4) and five (5), it is not mandatory to answer “Yes”. If your club does not have such programs in place at the moment, let BC Socer know. If your club does run accessible programs or has initiatives to reduce barriers to participation, please briefly describe them or provide a link to where we can learn more about them.

On questions 1 and 2 of this tab, clubs must provide proof that their programming considers the Long-Term Player Development standards and follows the Canada Soccer Grassroots Standards. Simply provide a link to your website where technical information about your program is available, or submit similar documentation (e.g. Coaches’ Handbook)

Standard questions to ensure that the Affiliated Club is in good standing and adheres to the regulations of its governing bodies.

MA Specific questions are specific to BC Soccer Clubs – and do not apply to all MA1 and MA2 license levels. All applicants must answer the questions in this tab. To note: 

BC Soccer Technical Resources

• To facilitate standardization of Grassroots programming delivery and provide technical guidance across the province, BC Soccer asks that clubs adopt the available curriculums and consider the Player, Coach and Team profiles developed by our Soccer Development Department.

To answer question one (1), simply make the following documents available on your website: 

• Coach Profile
• Player Profile
• Team Profile
• Curriculum: The Ball
• Curriculum: The Player
• Curriculum: The Team

Coach Code of Conduct forms aligned with BC Soccer

• If your club has used the “Code of Conduct to Protect Children” to answer the previous Safety questions, simply select 'yes' to this answer.

Organizations Legal Entity

• Not-for-profit organizations must submit a Letter of Incorporation or other proof of legal status. Private organizations must provide a legally valid declaration outlining the business status, ownership structure and control mechanism. 

Constitution & Bylaws and Rules & Regulations

• Both not-for-profit and for-profit clubs need to answer this question with private organizations submitting a Notice of Articles. 

Bi-Annual Coach Certification Report

• BC Soccer will request this once the license is granted. Clubs in the renewal process will need to upload their last available bi-annual report. 

Club Licensing Guidelines