📝 Overview

There are two ways to schedule league games. You can manually add games directly to the calendar, or you can use the League Scheduler to build out a complete schedule once your teams, resources, and season details are ready. Many organizations use both methods. For example, you may schedule the first one or two games manually so teams can continue registering before you close registration. You may also manually assign early games to teams that register and pay deposits first so they receive preferred time slots.

Both options are available, and each method supports different needs depending on where you are in the season setup process.

🧩 Method 1: Adding Games Directly to the Calendar

This method is helpful for first-game scheduling, early registrants, make-up games, friendlies, and situations where you want full control of the timing and placement of individual games.

📍 How to Get There

Click the arrow to learn how to add a game from the calendar

Open the Calendar.
Click the date you want to schedule the game.
Click the resource and time where the game will take place.
In the Create an Event window, choose Game as the event type.

The next screen opens the full game setup page where you select season, level, and teams.

📅 Steps to Add a Game

Click the arrow to see how to manually add a game to the calendar

After selecting Game, review the event details at the top of the page.
Confirm the Location and Resource (or select a Sub-Resource if applicable).
Confirm the Date.
Enter the Start time and either an End time or a Duration.
Select the Season and Level (if applicable).
Choose the home team and away team from the level’s team list, or if no season or level is selected, manually enter the Home Team ID and Away Team ID.
Choose the Game Event Type:
- Regular — counts toward season standings
- Friendly — does not count toward standings
- Playoff — counts toward standings
Choose whether to Publish Online. If unchecked, players/customers will not see this game on their customer portal or subscribed calendar.
When finished, choose one of the save options:
- Save to create this single event
- Save & Create New Event to start a fresh event form
- Save & Create Similar Event to duplicate most of the current event’s settings

💡 When to Use Manual Scheduling

Click the arrow to learn when manual scheduling is especially useful

When scheduling the first one or two games before closing registration.
When early registrants should receive preferred time slots.
When creating playoff games, make-up games, or friendlies.
When scheduling games on specific dates or times outside standard league patterns.
When needing to schedule a one-off game for teams.

⚙️ Method 2: Using the League Scheduler

The League Scheduler helps you build a full-season schedule once teams are registered and your weekly structure, resources, and time slots are set.

📍 How to Get There

Click the arrow to learn how to access the League Scheduler

Go to Programs > League Scheduler.
Or use the global search bar to search for League Scheduler.

🛠️ League Scheduler Setup Steps

Click the arrow to learn how to set up your league in the scheduler

Select the Location, Season, and League
- Choose the location first.
- Select the season containing the league you want to schedule.
- Select the specific league you plan to build the schedule for.
- Click Next Step.
Handle Odd Team Counts
If the league has an odd number of teams, you will be asked whether you want to allow:
- Double headers
- Byes
  Checking the box enables the scheduler to automatically create byes or double headers as needed to balance gameplay across the season.
Select the Resource where games will be placed.
- Choose the resource (field, court, rink) where games will be played.
- If the league uses more than one resource, click Add Resource to include additional fields.
- Each resource will have its own time slot structure.
- Click Next Step when finished.
Select the Days of the Week when the league plays.
Enter the First Game Date.
Enter the Default Game Length.
If you use fixed time blocks, you can set a pause time between games.
Enter the Default Start Time for each resource.
Review the number of Game Slots based on teams and resources. The system will calculate the number of available game slots per day based on these settings.
Review Slot Availability Logic. The scheduler calculates game slots by dividing total time by game length.
- Each matchup uses one game slot.
- If the league has an odd number of teams, the system rounds up to ensure equal scheduling across teams.
- If you select multiple resources, each resource creates additional slots.
Choose whether to Scan for Conflicts.
You have two options:
- Scan for conflicts
- Move games to the next open slot
  If you choose to move games to the next slot, make sure you have enough extra slots to avoid lost matchups.
Click Next Step to view the proposed schedule.

This reveals a week-by-week schedule preview where you can review matchups before posting.

📅 Reviewing and Editing the Proposed Schedule

Click the arrow to learn how to adjust matchups, times, and weeks

League Matrix Overview
The League Matrix displays a week-by-week view of all games created by the scheduler.
You can reorder matchups within the same week.
If you move a game to a different week, be careful not to unintentionally create:
- double headers
- triple headers
- unbalanced bye distributions
Any game slot marked with a green “OK” icon indicates that the game does not conflict with another scheduled event in the calendar.

Editing Games
You can edit any scheduled matchup by adjusting:
- date
- start time
- home team
- away team
- location or resource
After making edits, click Update so the system recognizes your changes.

Control Buttons
- Delete
  Removes all selected games that have their checkbox marked.
- Switch
  If exactly two games are selected, this swaps their positions in the matrix.
- Update
  Applies all changes you’ve made, including changes to team matchups, date, time, and resource.
- Reset
  Reverts any unsaved edits and returns the schedule to its previous state.

Additional Tools
- Highlight Team
  Allows you to highlight a specific team within the scheduler.
  
  This is helpful when:
  - a team has special time requests
  - you want to ensure certain teams do not play each other too often
  - you want to quickly review a team’s full schedule
- Add Custom Games
  Creates additional games beyond what is set on the Level page.
Sanity Checking (Highly Recommended)
Before posting your schedule, scroll to the bottom of the page and review the additional matrices. These help ensure your schedule is balanced and correct.
Check for:
- correct game counts for each team
- no team receiving excessive double headers
- unusual bye patterns
- teams receiving too many off-night assignments
- teams repeatedly scheduled at undesirable times (unless requested)
These matrices help identify patterns such as:
- too many early morning games for one team
- too many late games for another
- mismatched weekday distribution
Reviewing these details helps prevent scheduling issues before players see the schedule.

Schedule Persistence (Session Saving)
- If you leave the scheduler after starting work, your session is automatically saved.
  You will see a note on the League Scheduler homepage indicating that work is in progress.
  - This saved session remains available for two weeks.
  - Opening the session resets the timer.

📤 Posting and Publishing the Schedule

Click the arrow to learn how to finalize and publish your schedule

Post to Calendar

Saves all games to the calendar but the schedule is not visible to players.

Publish Online

Shows the schedule to rostered players.

Tip:

Publish Online is selected by default.
If you are still adjusting schedules across multiple leagues, uncheck it.
Post all leagues first, then publish once everything is finalized.

Full Season Schedule

After posting, you can view the full-season schedule and publish the entire league at once.

🔎 Important Notes

Click the arrow to review helpful details

Moving games between weeks can unintentionally create double or triple headers.
Always review the matrices before posting.
If conflict checking is turned off, manually review each game slot.
Use the highlight feature frequently for teams with special requests.

💡 Additional League Scheduler Considerations:

League Scheduler can be used an additional time, if necessary, to add more games. This can be an option for scheduling playoffs or for extending a season.
If you are adding teams to a current schedule, deleting current schedule and creating a new league schedule through the League Scheduler is necessary.

💡 Pro Tips

⚠️ Verify season dates and resources
Make sure availability is correct before building schedules.
🧠 Start with manual games
This allows registration to stay open longer.
📌 Reward early teams
Assign preferred time slots manually to early registrants.
⛔ Review conflict settings
If conflict checking is off, carefully audit the schedule.
📅 Use the matrices
They help you catch issues before posting.
🔁 Post first, publish later
Post all schedules, then publish once everything is finalized.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Find answers to common questions or additional details that may not be covered in the main instructions.

Click the arrow to view frequently asked questions

How do I schedule double headers or multiple games occurring on the same day?

Click the arrow to see the answer

You can adjust the dates in the League Scheduler to move game matchups into the same week or the same day. This helps you keep the total number of scheduled games aligned with the number of games set at the level.

The League Scheduler also includes an option to add custom games. This allows you to add extra game events beyond what was originally defined. Note that adding custom games increases the total number of games played by the teams in that league.

If you prefer, you can manually schedule additional games directly on the calendar. This is another way to add games on the same day, but it will also increase the total number of games played for the season.

If you are scheduling a true back-to-back double header, make sure both games are placed on the same field or court. This helps avoid teams needing to switch locations between games. If you prefer to give teams a break between games, you can select a later time or a different field as needed.