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How to schedule games against teams outside your league (External Teams)

  • Updated

To schedule games against teams from outside your league, add those teams to the division on its 2 Teams page with External Team checked, then build the schedule as usual. External Teams play on the schedule, but they aren't listed in the standings and never get byes. For a few one-off games, a Single Games division can be simpler.

Applies to: Admins and schedulers · All plans (Single Games divisions: Enhanced, Elite and Enterprise) · Standard league divisions

Where: Schedules > Leagues & Divisions > (division) > More Options > 2 Teams > Add Team

Step 1: Set up the division

  1. Go to Schedules > Leagues & Divisions, open the division's More Options menu and choose 1 Configuration > Scheduling.
  2. Set Games per Week/Team, Games Played/Team, the Day of First Game and the Game Spacing.
  3. Click Save and Next Step.

Step 2: Add your own teams

  1. On 2 Teams, click Add Team.
  2. Enter the Team Name and click Add.
  3. Repeat for each of your teams.

Step 3: Add the outside teams

  1. Click Add Team.
  2. Enter the outside team's name in Team Name.
  3. Check External Team ("For teams you do not want to appear in Standings and other site features.").
  4. Click Add.
  5. Repeat for each outside team.

What you'll see: on 2 Teams, "*External Team" appears under each outside team's name. To mark a team you already added, click its Edit icon (pencil), check External Team and click Save ("The Team Information has been updated successfully.").

Step 4: Build the schedule

Use whichever way fits your games:

  • Create. Add time slots on 3 Time Slots, then click Create on 4 Create Schedule. Create pairs every team with every other team, External Teams included. If your teams should play only the outside teams, open each game between two External Teams, choose Delete Game from its menu, and click Calc & Save when you're done.
  • Manual. On 4 Create Schedule, click Manual and set each game's week, time slot, home team and away team yourself. This suits a team that plays only outside teams. Like Create, Manual appears only once 3 Time Slots has the minimum number of time slots for the division's teams.
  • Import. If the games are already in a spreadsheet, use the Division Schedule Import on Administration > Import Data. An opponent name that matches no team becomes a new team that isn't external, so check External Team on those teams afterward.

When the schedule is ready, click the division's eye icon on Schedules > Leagues & Divisions so families can see it.

What External Team changes

  • Standings: the team has no row, but the teams it plays keep their results against it.
  • Byes: it never gets one. When 4 Create Schedule calculates the schedule, it removes any bye the team has and shows a message for each.
  • Schedule checks: it isn't flagged when its number of games differs from Games Played/Team.
  • Your website: its games show, but the team isn't offered in the schedule's team list or under the division in the left-sidebar schedule menu.
  • Rosters and stats: 2 Teams has no View Roster button for it, Assign To Roster doesn't list it, and its side of a game has no stat entry.

For more on the standings side, see the article on hiding a team from the standings below.

External Teams or a Single Games division?

  • Single Games division (Enhanced, Elite and Enterprise plans): you add each game with Add Game on 4 Create Schedule, choosing the Home Team, Away Team, Location, Date and Time (or TBD), with no time slots. A new team name typed in Add Game is created as an External Team. It suits scrimmages, one-off games or a travel team's games. To make one, choose Single Games as the Division Type when you click Add Division.
  • Standard division with External Teams: suits a season schedule built with Create or Manual, with time slots, byes and the other scheduling tools.

If it doesn't work

  • "Team Name is required." Enter the team's name.
  • "This Team name is in use. Please use a different Team name." Each team in a division needs its own name.
  • Add Team is grayed out. The page says: "Add Team" and "Add Placeholders" are disabled due to the registration type Team. Teams are added during the enrollment process. The league comes from a team registration program, so you can't add teams to it. Schedule the outside games in a separate league you create on Schedules > Leagues & Divisions, for example in a Single Games division; team staff can then add those games to their Team Site with Manage Linked Schedules.
  • The schedule has games between two outside teams. Create pairs every team. Delete those games and click Calc & Save, or build the schedule with Manual instead.
  • An External Team still shows in the standings. Open the division's Standings page and click Edit Scores, then Standings Update Only.
  • Single Games is grayed out in Division Type. The list notes "Disabled options are part of an upgraded package." Single Games needs the Enhanced plan or higher.

Good to know

  • External Team belongs to the team, so it applies to both halves of a division with a 2nd Half. Schedules > Team Assignments > Mid-Season doesn't carry External Teams into the 2nd Half; see the 2nd Half article below.
  • To undo, edit the team, clear External Team and click Save.
  • A team that already has games can't be deleted on 2 Teams. If it dropped out, mark it as an External Team instead.

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