The Minnesota Women's Soccer League (MWSL) is a non-profit organization that provides competitive and recreational soccer to women ages 16+ in Minnesota. Formed in 1978, we started with just a few teams, but now we are over 60 teams strong and have grown to be one of the largest women soccer leagues in the Midwest!

Our league offers five divisions of play during the summer, as well as fall and winter leagues, to accomidate all skill levels. In addition to division and game coordination, the MWSL helps players find teams, and provides game schedules, fields, referees, resources, and statistics for each division in the league. We also provide educational outreach opportunities for skills development.

The MWSL is proud to represent women from all walks of life and all skill levels who want to play on women-only soccer teams. Maybe you've played since before you can remember or maybe you've watched your kids play for years, or maybe you are just looking for a healthy way to hang out with your friends; regardless of the reason, the MWSL is the place for you! We're excited to offer opportunities for women to improve all aspects of their health, including physical through recreation and exercise, mental health through fair play and teamwork, and social health through communication and comradery.

As of the summer of 2019, the MWSL announced a change to our policy regarding minors in the league. In the wake of the abuse scandals with USA Gymnastics and several universities, Congress passed legislation commonly called “Safe Sport.” That legislation has a number of requirements of adults who have regular contact with youth players in the context of sports organizations. This includes adult leagues who allow players under age 18, which historically has been the case in the MWSL.

Because of recent updates to this legislation, the US Adult Soccer Association (USASA), which is the national governing body for the Minnesota Soccer Association and the MWSL, has implemented requirements of its member adult organizations that allow youth players. Those requirements state that all Board members of the league and all members of any team that includes a player under age 18 must a) take the Safe Sport Training and b) pass a background check. The Safe Sport Training is a three-hour online training offered at no charge to member organizations. The background check would cost each player approximately $35 to complete and requires the sharing of personal information, including Social Security numbers. In addition, the risk to the league and individual players/managers/Board members is significant because criminal penalties apply to violations of the Safe Sport legislation.

The burden on the league to implement and monitor these requirements is substantial. It’s also a huge burden for teams/players who would have to take the training and pay for the background check. As a result, the Board has made the very difficult decision to require all players to be 18 years of age or older to play in the MWSL.  While we are disappointed to end a long-time tradition in the league of allowing teen-age players who may have no other place to play, the costs and risks are too significant for that accommodation to continue.

Please feel free to contact Karissa at fields@mwsl.org with any additional questions on this change. We appreciate your cooperation!

MWSL May Board Meeting 
TBD

Summer Team Registration
Saturday, March 9th - Monday April 22nd

Summer Player Registration
~Monday April 22nd - Sunday, June 30th

2024 Charity Tournament
Saturday, May 18th