Youth Sports Administration 101: Youth-Sports Supervision

Nov 7

Be the eyes and ears for safety

By By Jason Schaitz

Proper supervision is of the utmost importance to ensure the safety of league participants; it should be taken seriously. It only takes a few seconds of complacency for an incident or accident to occur. Here are several tips to provide the best supervision possible:

Monitor the safety of the players before, during, and after all games. Ensure that rules, policies, and procedures are being followed.

Check equipment before every game, both on the players and any in use during the game.

Monitor the conduct of coaches, parents, and referees. Watch the adults’ actions on and around the field constantly to prevent any incidents from occurring—especially if things get heated during a game.

Whether an organization is staffed or volunteer-run, always have a monitor on each field and a supervisor on-site. This ensures that game rules and a code of conduct are being followed, both of which will limit the possibility of an incident occurring.

Monitor staff members or volunteers who are scoring the games. Those people are not only score-keepers when at the desk, but also field or court monitors. They are an extra set of eyes when you cannot watch the entire game.

Keep an eye on playing conditions during the day. Look for heavy turf wear, potholes, rocks, irrigation heads, etc., that may pose a safety hazard. If indoors, make sure the court is swept and there is no debris around.

For outdoor events, watch the weather constantly to ensure safe playing conditions.

Make rounds throughout the day to check high-traffic areas in a facility such as spectator areas, concessions, and park entrances.

Keep up with trash and other items on team benches and in spectator areas. Each team is responsible for cleaning up trash after every game so it doesn’t build up.

The more supervision, the better game days will go, and the lesser chance an incident will occur. Take supervision seriously, and you will have a safe and incident-free season.

Jason Schaitz is a Parks and Recreation Director with 15 years’ experience managing youth sports and recreation programs. He also created and manages www.leaguesource.com, with the goal of providing free resources for any type of youth-sports program. Take your league to the next level by visiting League Source to check out our League Management App, League Resources, Youth Sports News, and Youth Sports Administration 101 educational series.