The standard for youth leagues
The 2017 Inter-Association Task Force (NATA, the Korey Stringer Institute and partners) set the standard for youth leagues Sourced:
- A venue-specific emergency action plan for each site, reviewed annually.
- Moving toward an AED on site at every organized event, or a plan to cut the time to AED use.
- Coaches trained in first aid, CPR and AED use, with sudden cardiac arrest education at least twice a year.
- Access to an athletic trainer at sponsored events where possible.
- Written medical management plans for concussion, heat stroke and lightning.
Our recommendation on top of the annual review: walk through each site's plan before the season, so every role holder has found the AED, the gate and the shelter at least once before they need them Estimate.
What goes in a venue EAP
Write one plan per site. Each one covers:
- Location: site name, street address, GPS coordinates, gate or entry instructions for an ambulance, and the nearest hospital with trauma capability and its drive time.
- Roles by name for each game day: who calls 911, who meets EMS at the gate, who retrieves the AED, who manages the crowd, who contacts parents, and who is the weather watcher.
- Equipment locations: the AED (and walk time to each field), first aid kit, ice, immersion tub or tarp, and the lightning shelter with its walk time.
- Emergency contacts: league safety officer, parks on-call number, athletic trainer or medical provider, league owner.
- Communication: who has radios or confirmed cell coverage, and the 911 script (address first, then what happened, then age and condition).
- Weather plan summary: thunder means stop, the 30-minute reset, the WBGT zones and actions, and the field closure hotline.
- After an incident: where the incident reports are kept, and the post-incident debrief.
- Review date, signed by the safety officer.
A fill-in version is the emergency action plan template. The weather pieces come from your lightning and weather policy and heat policy.
AEDs: a shock within three minutes
The widely cited target is a shock within three minutes of collapse, which means the AED needs to be within about a 90-second walk of every field Sourced.
An AED costs roughly $1,200 to $2,000 per unit, plus pads and battery replacement every two to five years. Many parks already have fixed AEDs in restroom or concession buildings; map them, and time the walk from each field Estimate.
Ready to launch? Flag50 runs registration, your league website and live scoring for independent and affiliated leagues.
Book a 20-minute call →First aid and athletic trainer coverage
| Item | What to plan |
|---|---|
| First aid kit | One per field or per two fields: gloves, gauze, bandages, wound wash, plenty of instant cold packs, elastic wraps, tape, splint, CPR mask, emergency blanket, tweezers, scissors, eye wash, incident forms and the medical release binder |
| Weekly rec games | Trained coaches plus EMS Estimate |
| Tournaments and jamborees | Book athletic trainers. Per diem event coverage is typically billed around $40 to $75 per hour or $300 to $600 per game day through hospital outreach programs or staffing agencies; some orthopedic practices offer it as community outreach at reduced cost Estimate |
The medical release at registration
Collect these fields from every family at registration:
- Two emergency contacts
- Insurance carrier and policy number
- Physician
- Allergies, with EpiPen status
- Asthma, with inhaler status
- Diabetes, seizure history and prior concussions
- Medications
- Signed consent to emergency treatment
Keep a printed or offline copy at every game, because cell coverage fails. Make sure each coach knows which players carry an inhaler or EpiPen and where it is on the sideline.
Emergency readiness checklist
- Venue EAP for every site, reviewed annually, walked through before the season
- AED within 3 minutes of every field; coaches CPR and AED certified
- Medical releases accessible offline at every game
- Athletic trainer coverage booked for tournaments
- First aid kit per field or per two fields
Head injuries follow their own protocol: see the concussion protocol.