Soccer standout Mia Hamm played with boys from the age of 5 onward and led a boys' team of 11-year-olds in scoring --- when she herself was only 10. She credited much of her adult skill as a U.S. national women's team star to playing against boys at a young age. Even if you don't plan on being the next Mia Hamm, coed soccer also allows you to sharpen your skills by playing with men, typically in recreational leagues.
Youth
Smaller youth leagues may combine boys and girls on the same team, particularly for players under 8 years old. The teams typically consist of boys with a girl or two on each team. Larger leagues separate the two. Girls seems to prefer to play on all-girls teams, and league participation zooms upward when separate teams are provided, Joe Provey and Michelle Akers write in "The Parent's Complete Guide to Soccer." The differences in boys' and girls' play up until puberty is not great, they observe, and girls are competitive against boys through elementary school and into early middle school. Typically, girls more quickly understand teamwork, and boys focus on getting the ball and scoring goals.
Adult
The United States Adult Soccer Association promotes adult soccer in the U.S. Since 1999, it has sponsored a Coed Cup for adult coed teams. Separate divisions match up competitive, very competitive, recreational, over-30 and over-40 teams. As of 2011, teams from the Maryland-Virginia-Washington, D.C., area, Texas and Colorado have dominated Coed Cup competition.
Coed Rules
In the Coed Cup, each team can have a roster of up to 25 players and must have at least seven players take the field, up to a maximum of 11. Each team must always have at least two men and two women playing and may play with a maximum of six men. The goalkeeper counts toward the maximum number of male players. Slide tackles are permitted. At the city or county recreational-league level, league directors can set rules to require varying numbers of women on the field for outdoor coed soccer. Indoor coed leagues may, for example, require that two of the six players taking the field for each team be female.
Considerations
Women curious about playing with men on coed teams need to weigh the pros and cons. "Women who play coed say they prefer to play with men, because the passing by men is more crisp and relaxed," observes Wes Harvey, former men's coach at Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland. On the other hand, women may often feel they have to run harder and kick as hard as they can, rather than relax and perform basic plays. "The biggest, most obvious problem is guys not passing to women, and you have to wonder why they're playing with women," Harvey adds. "But the team that doesn't pass to women won't win."
References
- "Go for the Goal"; Mia Hamm; 2000
- "The Parent's Complete Guide to Soccer"; Joe Provey, Michelle Akers; 2005
- United States Adult Soccer Association: Coed Cup Playing Rules
- United States Adult Soccer Association: Coed Cup
- "Sports Competitions for Adults Over 40: A Participant's Guide to 27 Sports"; Thomas A. Jones; 2009
- "The Baltimore Sun"; Coed Soccer League keeps Players' Skills Sharp; Jeff Seidel; July 19, 2006
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