Many have noticed the higher than usual increase in team fees for this upcoming indoor season. We, of course, have reasons for the increase but we assure you, as a non-profit organization, we are charging what is required to operate, and nothing more.
It should also be clarified that the different leagues will see a different increase due to adjustments to team fees overall.
For instance, playoffs and division championship prizes were not included in team fees as they should have been, and this was rectified this year. As such, for leagues like coed and legends who don’t have playoffs, this correction did not affect their fees.
Everyone is experiencing an increase in fields costs, referee fees and administration expenses due to general inflation. The field fees are directly related to the field size resulting in turf fees being more because turf uses double the field size than every other league.
The referee fees have also been rectified this year. Previously, the referee fees were averaged throughout the leagues despite the varying cost per league and division. The Coed league, as an example, is no longer compensating for the Men’s league.
The administration expenses are set as a per game amount and are the same from league to league. If some leagues have more games, their administrative total cost is higher but not higher per game.
New this season as well is PST. (It was implemented October 1, 2022, but team registration was prior to this date so PST was not included last indoor.) PST is hundreds of dollars per team and accounts for a large portion of the increase. We, as you can imagine, are also not thrilled with the higher expenditures, but we must pay our taxes and any other fees associated with running the league.
As a non-profit, we charge the minimum amount of fees we can manage while budgeting to remain competitive, fair to the members, AND without a deficit.
Even with our best intentions, and reluctance to increase fees, in 2022 we ran a deficit. We are also expecting a deficit for 2023. We cannot continue to operate this way. The number of teams that returned since COVID has been less than we projected. We were too optimistic, and this has affected the bottom line.
Despite the increase in fees, we believe we are extremely competitive with other sports and programming.
Based on 15 players to a team, and 25 players to a team, the fees are:
Player Fees Per Season
League
Fee Total
15 players
25 players
Boarded
$4,860.00
$324.00
$194.40
Turf
$6,650.00
$443.33
$266.00
Legends
$3,745.00
$249.67
$149.80
Coed
$2,755.00
$183.67
$110.20
Player Fees per Game
League
# Games
15 players
25 players
Boarded
24
$13.50
$8.10
Turf
20
$22.17
$13.30
Legends
20
$12.48
$7.49
Coed
14
$13.12
$7.87
We investigated team fees for other sports for both adult and youth participants, and we can assure you, our fees are in line (and more affordable!) than most.
Just going to your neighbourhood leisure center is $10.25 per session, and this doesn’t include the comradery, competitiveness, game play, and fun you receive from the soccer field. Quite frankly, soccer games are much more enjoyable than hitting the elliptical or weights. Or so we think!
As indicated above, some of the cost is determined by what you choose for your teams. If you choose to fill up your roster with 25 players, player fees are very good. Under $10/game for three of our leagues is quite amazing.
Even if you choose to only maintain 15 players on your roster, that’s less than $15/game for those same three leagues. Turf, as previously mentioned, is more because the field size is twice as big. There’s no escaping that fact or getting away from that fee.
To further help you understand, the fees for each league are broken down into their associated costs:
We understand the concern and the dislike of the continuously increasing fees - we feel the same! We even removed the indoor practice time/fee to soften the increase. Why charge something that isn’t being used? This could open the door to other benefits being removed. Perhaps we should no longer offer Playoffs? Or Division Championship prizes? Overall, we believe the teams/players want these additions to league play thanks to our membership surveys. However, this could always change, and we are happy to hear from the membership. Tell us what you think. (And answer the surveys when you see them!)
Alternatively, our annual general meeting (AGM) is held every December. (Watch for emails in October!) We review our financial statements, and the floor is always open to address concerns. Engage with the staff and directors to understand the decisions made for the league. They are players, soccer parents, and/or officials; they get it. Of course, you can also call/email the Executive Director with your present concerns pertaining to fees, or otherwise, if they have not been addressed here.
