What Imports Are Available and Why You Would Use Each One

Overview

The Import Data feature lets you upload data into TeamSideline in bulk so you don't have to type it in one record at a time. Imports are commonly used to load a season's worth of registrations from an outside system, load a schedule that was built offline, create teams and rosters, populate custom fields, or add credits and debits to many accounts at once.

Go to Administration > Import Data. You will see two pages:

Start Import — the list of imports available to your site, grouped into sections. This is where you begin an import.
Import Status — the log of every import you have run, with the Queued Date, Import Name, and Status. Expand a row with the arrow to the left of the Queued Date to see how many records imported and which rows failed and why.

Important: the list of imports you see is specific to your site. Some imports only appear if your organization has the related module or package (for example, the Officials Import requires the Officials Module, the Team Import is for Advanced Scheduling customers, and the League Schedules Import is part of the Premium package). If an import you need isn't listed, contact support@teamsideline.com — support can add it to your site, and you may need to log out and back in to see the change.

Every import has an instruction PDF and a sample file

On the Start Import page, next to each import name you'll find:

a PDF icon — the instruction sheet listing the required fields, the optional fields, and field-specific notes for that import;
an Excel icon — a sample/template file you can fill in.

Support's standard advice: always read the instruction PDF first, and build your file from a fresh sample file. Most import failures are formatting problems (extra columns, stray placeholder text such as "UNK", wrong date format, wrong number of columns in a row, duplicate rows), and starting from a clean sample file is the fastest fix. Include only the required fields unless you specifically need an optional field — and when you do, make sure the column header matches so it maps correctly.

Imports in the Customer section

Use these to create or update customer accounts in Customers > Account Management, and to enroll people in programs.

Player Account Import — creates accounts for players and their parents. Matches the parent on email address: if no account with that email exists a new account is created; if one exists, the player is added to it; an existing player is not duplicated. A default password is set but not emailed, and the organization welcome email is not sent — users get in via Forgot your password?.
Adult Player Import — creates accounts for adult players. No orders or enrollments are created, and no welcome email is sent. Requires First Name, Last Name, Street Address, City, State, Zip, and Phone 1; Email, Phone 2, Phone 3, and Player Organization Id are optional. If a valid email address matches an existing entry, the address and phone fields on that entry are updated.
Enrollee Registration Import — the one to use when your registrations were collected outside TeamSideline and you need players enrolled in a specific program. It creates the primary and player accounts and a player enrollment in the program you choose during Start Import. Note: the order total is always zero — it does not use the offering's registration amount. The Offering name in your file must match the Offering on the program's 2 Configuration page character for character. Once imported, players can be assigned to teams on the Assign to Roster page. It can also create Volunteer enrollments.
Volunteer Registration Import — enrolls volunteers (e.g. coaches) into a program instead of placing each order by hand. The program must have the relevant Volunteer Type (e.g. Coach) added on its 2 Configuration tab or the enrollment won't display properly. Incoming records look for an existing Primary Account by name plus a secondary field (phone or email) before creating a new one. The resulting enrollments can then be used on the Assign to Roster page.
Player Custom Field Import — populates one Player custom field for many players (repeat for additional fields). Create the custom field first under Administration > Configurations > Custom Fields. Requires the Player Id and the Custom Field Value; get the Player Id by adding the "Player ID - TeamSideline" column to an Enrollment or Account Information report under Reports > Report Exports. Because it matches on Player Id, it updates existing player records — it does not create duplicate accounts. A typical use is bulk-loading jersey numbers.
Parent Custom Field Import — populates one Parent custom field. Requires the parent's First Name, Last Name, and Custom Field Value, and the names must match exactly. If two parents share the same first and last name, neither is updated.
Transaction Import — adds misc. credit or debit transactions to customer accounts in bulk (season fees, fines, credits a family can apply to a balance). Requires the Account ID — not the Customer ID. Pull Account ID from the Account Information Report. Records with an invalid Account ID are silently skipped, so always check Import Status afterwards.
Assigned Coupon Import — imports data to generate assigned coupons (coupons tied to specific accounts) rather than adding them one at a time.
Roster Import — imports roster members onto the rosters on the 2 Teams page. Use this only when the team is not linked to a registration program — specifically for organizations not using TeamSideline for registration, or using the "Team Registration" registration type. It does not work for Team Registration plus Youth/Adult Roster Registration. If your players registered through a program, use the Enrollee Registration Import instead (a completed Roster Import against a program-linked team is the usual cause of "the import succeeded but the roster is blank").
Parent Custom Field Import (By Id) — populates one Parent custom field, matching each parent by ID instead of by first and last name. Use it when parents share a name.
Team Manager Import (within Master) — imports team manager enrollments for a program within a master program. TeamSideline adds it for organizations that need it.

Imports in the Schedule section

Division Schedule Import — imports a regular season or 2nd-half schedule for a single division, including games against teams from outside your league. Create the League, Division, and Schedule Type first, and set Day of First Game on the division's 1 Configuration > Scheduling page; all imported game dates must fall on or after that date. Requires Date, Time, Schedule Name, Home Team Name, and Away Team Name. The Schedule Name must match the Location's "Schedule Name" under Schedules > Locations > Manage Locations exactly or the import fails; team names must match the names on the 2 Teams page exactly or new teams will be created.
League Schedules Import — imports an entire league's schedule at once and creates the divisions, defaulting to the sport's division default settings. Day of First Game is set from the earliest game date in the file. To reload, delete the schedule(s) (or the league) and import again. Premium package feature.
Practice Schedule Import — imports a practice schedule for a single division. Check the Practice checkbox on the division's 1 Configuration screen first. Requires Date, Start Time, End Time, Schedule Name, and Team Name (Comments optional); Team Name and Schedule Name must match exactly.
Location Availability Import — loads availability records (one-time and recurring) for your fields and gyms. Create the Locations first under Schedules > Locations > Manage Locations; the Location Schedule Name in the file must match, or the import fails.
Team Import — creates teams and assigns them to divisions. If the division exists but the team name doesn't, the team is created; if the team/division combination already exists, the team information is updated. Advanced Scheduling customers only.
Coach Data Import — loads coach data for Returning Contact selection on the 2 Teams edit page. Requires Team Name, Coach Last Name, Coach First Name; coach phones and emails are optional. Select the Sport Type, and it must match the Sport Type of your League & Division. Tip: include cell numbers so coaches who opt into text messaging can be reached through your League/Division/Team communication lists.
Officials Import — loads your game officials. Requires each official's Last Name and First Name; phones and emails are optional. Select the Sport Type, matching your League & Division. Requires the Officials Module.
Schedule Conflict Import — creates team schedule conflicts for many teams at once, instead of adding them one at a time on each division's 2 Teams page. You import one league at a time: choose the League when you start the import. Your role needs the Schedule Conflict Import permission.

Every row needs Division Name, Team Name, and Conflict Type. Fill in the other columns for the type you're importing:

Specific Day/Time: Conflict Date, Conflict Start Time, and Conflict End Time.

Recurring Day/Time: Conflict Day, Conflict Start Time, and Conflict End Time.

Team/Player: Conflict Team Name and Conflict Travel Time, in minutes. A blank travel time counts as 0. The conflict team must be in the same division.

For Conflict Type, enter Specific, Recurring, or Team/Player, or the numbers 2, 3, or 1. Avoid Team conflicts can't be imported, so add them on the 2 Teams page. Rows that match an existing conflict are skipped with "Schedule Conflict is a duplicate."

Imports in the Communications section

Contact Import — imports names, email addresses, and phone numbers into your Custom Contact Lists, so you can build communication lists for people who aren't otherwise in the system. Duplicate or invalid email addresses are identified during the load and reported on the Import Status page.

Imports in the Content section

Calendar Import — adds multiple dates/events to your public-facing site calendar in one pass. No import parameters are required and a default calendar image is applied to all events. If both Event Start Time and Event End Time are blank, the event is treated as an All Day Event.
Content Table Import — uploads information into a content table for display on your public site. It's in the Content section, and it only appears if your role has the Content Table Import permission.

Imports in the USA Softball Section

Imports in the USA Softball section — USA Softball Enrollee Registration Import and USA Softball Volunteer Registration Import. They import accounts and enrollments for USA Softball organizations and appear only for them.

What imports cannot do

There is no standard import to bulk update addresses on existing customer/parent accounts. The Parent Custom Field Import only handles a single custom field, not standard address fields. Addresses must be updated individually under Customers > Account Management > Search, or you can ask your customers to update their own address via Login > My Profile. (The Adult Player Import will refresh address and phone fields on an adult player entry when it matches on a valid email address.)
A failed import cannot be reverted by an admin. If an import fails or loads bad data, contact support with the exact timestamp from the Import Status log and ask whether it can be reverted.
Imports don't send the organization welcome email or the new password. Direct users to Forgot your password? to get in the first time.

How to run any import

Go to Administration > Import Data > Start Import.
Find the import you need and open its instruction PDF and sample file (Excel icon). Do any prerequisite setup first (create the custom field, program/offering, league/division, or location).
Fill in the sample file and save it as a .csv.
Click the blue import name, click Select to choose your file, check or uncheck Include Headers to match your file, choose the Sport Type / Program / League & Division if the import asks for it, then click Next Step.
On the mapping step, map each TeamSideline field on the left to the matching column in your file. For columns in your file with no data, choose "Blank, Do Not Map". Click Next.
Review the results. Open Import Status, expand the row, and confirm the record counts and any row-level errors. Fix the file and re-import if needed.

If you're running an import for the first time, support can schedule a Zoom screen share to walk through it, or review your file before you import it. Email support@teamsideline.com.

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