Rockridge Soccer League

Archived Q&A and Reviews

Sept 2007

Re: We live in Berkeley - which soccer league?
Most people in South Berkeley go with the Rockridge Soccer Club (RSC). There are actually four RSC teams at LeConte at the moment: Boys U8 (Tiburones), Boys U10 (Magnets), Girls U8 (Mighty Cheetahs), and Girls U8 (Sharks). It is certainly worth checking with those teams to see if there are any openings in the Spring.

RSC is a huge club with many teams in the U8 and U10 age groups. They are part of the Jack London Youth Soccer League and the U10 and older teams play against teams from Montclair, Piedmont, Alameda, and Oakland. Practices are usually at different fields in Oakland and the games can be in Oakland or as far away as Alameda.

The Albany-Berkeley Soccer Club is much smaller. It is part of the Alameda-Contra Costa Youth Soccer League. They play against teams from El Cerrito, Richmond, and San Pablo. Practices can be in Berkeley and Albany, with games in any of the participating cities.

So, part of your decision may depend on which direction you want to drive to get to practices and games.

I have a child in each club and volunteer extensively for RSC, so feel free to contact me for more information. Lucy

April 2003

Re: Soccer camp for 7-year-old girl
Depending on where you live and where your daughter goes to school, you might also consider the Rockridge Soccer Club, which has a lot of Berkeley players as well. Their website is http://rockridgesoccer.org/ and registration for new players for the fall is on 4/29, 5/6 and 5/8 at Chabot School in north Oakland. Details on the web page. Have fun! Norm

My son, age 10, just finished his fifth Fall season with the Rockridge Soccer League. He loves it. The kids in that league are mostly from North Oakland and South Berkeley. He was in second grade when he started playing in the league. Before that he took some soccer classes at Golden Bears, the UCB recreational program for kids. He has always been quite passionate about soccer and had a strong desire to play from an early age.

How competitive league soccer is really depends on the coach and the parents. Some kids play on select teams for which they have try-outs. Otherwise, it is called recreational soccer and there is usually one practice during the week (and hour or two in the afternoon)and then a game on Saturdays. The Fall season goes from the beinning of September to mid-November. There is also a Spring season beginning in April, when the fields get dry. The spring season is more informal.It does tend to eat up your Saturday, especially when games are scheduled in the middle of the day. But it has been fun and the camaraderie among the parents is something else.

My son plays with kids who are not from his school, which is really an advantage because he has a much wider group of friends this way and, I think, it helps to give him a greater sense of community. Most of the kids on his team are in public school in Oakland, and a few go to private schools.The coaches volunteer their time and parents are asked/expected to help out in some way ( eg. uniform coordinator, picture day coordinator, snack coordinator, end-of-season pizza party organizer) and each family has to bring snack once during the season. The sign-up deadline for the Fall season is in May. Rockridge Soccer can be reached by leaving a message at 548-5019. There is also a Berkeley-Albany Soccer League, another one in Berkeley called Mersey Soccer. But I don't have their numbers.