Registration for football will open on 3/1/2026

While we encourage all players to attend the offseason camps, it is not mandatory to play for the Fall tackle season. However, it will give your athlete an opportunity to connect with their teams, coaches and get into shape. We will not have any tackling during these camps but we will be practicing football skills.

Please have your player wear comfortable clothes they can run in. They will also need lots of water. The nearest water fountain is not close to the practice field so please have them come prepared. We will be playing on grass and cleats are preferred.

The camp will be held from April to early June. Exact dates, times and locations to be announced soon.

It is the official start of our season for East County Lions Football & Cheer. Attendance is mandatory as it is the day when the participants and parents will meet coaches, as well as the board.

Don’t forget your checkbook as deposits are required for the football gear and volunteer hours. The checks will be filed and returned to you at the end of the season once the equipment is returned and the volunteer hours have been fulfilled. These checks will not be cashed prior to the end of the season.

We will offer Football refunds based on the following timeline:

Cancellations prior to 06/07/2026 will receive a full refund minus a 10% processing fee

Cancellations between 06/08/2026 and 07/13/2026 will receive a full refund minus a 25% processing and equipment return fee

On or After 07/13/2026 – $0 refund unless the athlete is released(not quit).

We will offer Cheer refunds based on the following timeline:

Cancellations prior to 07/13/2026 will receive a full refund minus a 10% processing fee

On or After 07/13/2026 – $0 refund unless the athlete is released(not quit).

New in 2026, the East Bay Youth Football & Cheer (EBYFC) league will now operate with (2) divisions: D1 and S2. Premier will now represent the division formerly known as ‘Competitive’. Champion will now include both former ‘Competitive’ teams and also all secondary (formerly Development) teams fielded by each organization.

Similar to every season, the East County organization will field both D1 and D2 division teams based on the number of available athletes and coaches. All EBYFC organizations can field D2 division teams if they have enough players and coaches

We are proud to offer East County D2 teams in the EBYFC’s league. D2 is designed for newer players to the game of football. It teaches the basics and fundamentals of the game, this program provides each player more time on the field. Our D2 teams will have the same practice schedule and number of games as our D1 teams. We have many leagues that participate in this program and due to the high demand of field space in our area, most of our developmental games (if not all) will be played at away locations.

Yes. Unlike previous Development program minimum play rules in 2024 (X plays on Offense; X plays on defense), D2 teams will have the same minimum play rules as D1 (X number of plays total). This allows league teams to fill more D2 team rosters because fulfilling a flat number of total plays per game makes it easier for each D2 coach to balance player rotations.

• Sideline Cheer: Girls attend weekday evening practices, and cheer sideline for football every Saturday(both Home and Away) games.
• Competition Cheer: Competition cheerleaders also cheer sideline(August-November) while competing. Competitions are in October, November, December, and January/February. Additional weekend practices are included with weekday practices.

Season begins on Try Out Week(3/31-4/5) – February(approx) Cheer clinics are mandatory for all girls that make the competition teams(these dates are TBD). Competitions officially begin in October, and have one each month until Nationals in approx end of January/beginning of February.

The season begins & ends alongside football(generally July 28th- 1st/2nd Week in November). **Note this is Sideline ONLY** Please see Competition Cheer for more details.

We will offer Football refunds based on the following timeline:

Cancellations prior to 06/07/2026 will receive a full refund minus a 10% processing fee

Cancellations between 06/08/2026 and 07/13/2026 will receive a full refund minus a 25% processing and equipment return fee

On or After 07/13/2026 – $0 refund unless the athlete is released(not quit).

We will offer Cheer refunds based on the following timeline:

Cancellations prior to 07/13/2026 will receive a full refund minus a 10% processing fee

On or After 07/13/2026 – $0 refund unless the athlete is released(not quit).

We have our Lions Day TBD. Football practices will begin on Monday, July 13th, 2026 from 6:00pm – 8:00pm at a location TBD.

Starting July 13th, 2026 – practices will be held five days a week (Monday to Friday) from 6:00pm – 8:00pm.

While we understand that this is in the summer and might conflict with some of your plans, please do your best to have your athlete attend every practice for the first three weeks. We are mandated to have 10 hours of conditioning for each player before they are allowed to wear pads and this is the time period for coaches to evaluate and identify who will play on which teams. If a player misses practice(s) in the first week they will be required to practice the following week with no pads until the 10 hour requirement is met.

After our Jamboree, currently scheduled for mid-August, practices will be held on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 6:00pm – 8:00 pm and games on Saturdays until the end of the season (there may also be Sundays depending on field availability).

Parents are required to purchase Integrated practice pants with full hip, tail, bone, thigh & knee pads (available online or at most sporting goods stores), mouthpieces (you will want to purchase several. Mouthpieces must include a tether, attached to their helmets), and football cleats (no screw-in cleats allowed, must be molded cleats).

East County will provide each participant with the following equipment: Practice jersey, protective gear (including helmet, and shoulder pads) and jerseys for home & away games.

Games will be played on Saturdays or Sundays. Times and locations will be announced as the season gets closer. Typically Jr. Pee Wee will play at 9:00am, Pee Wee will play at 11:00am, Jr. Varsity will play at 1:00pm and Varsity will play at 3:00pm. Coaches & Team Parents will announce each week.

As a nonprofit organization, we rely on volunteers! No job is too small and we need all hands on deck to make this a great season for our athletes. Please reach out to info@eastcountylions.com and let us know what you would like to help with.