The Melrose Park Gaels Football Association is part of the Chicagoland American Youth Football Conference. The conference is made up of different teams with varying levels of talent and competition from throughout the Chicagoland area. Each association in the Chicagoland conference is certified and plays with teams of comparable talent.

Visit the official Chicagoland American Youth Football Conference website @ www.chicagolandayf.com for details.

Our program is categorized as a traveling full-equipment tackle football program offering each young participant, ranging in ages from 6 to 14, the opportunity to visit and play against different towns.
Our Home games are played in the Ralph "Babe" Serpico Memorial Park located at 1000 N. 25th Ave in Melrose Park, IL. All Board members, coaches and parents work very hard to make the participant's experience enjoyable and rewarding.

Come out to the games and support the football and cheerleading teams as they strive to achieve the most from their athletic and academic adventure.

Participants are considered eligible for the season when he/she meets the basic four criteria for participation:

• Proof of Age by means of a certified birth certificate
• Parental consent, signed at registration
• Medical examination
• Academic achievement

A participant must maintain a 2.0 grade point average/70 percent in school to participate during the season. If a participant fails to maintain a 2.0 grade point average, then a Scholastic Eligibility form must be filled out by the school to determine if the student can benefit from the football program.

Our preseason-training program starts each year on August 1st. Advanced registration starts in early spring. Four to five scheduled practices are held during the week. Practice schedules vary by coaching staff. Games are played on Saturday or Sunday. The regular season begins during the last week in August or first week in September. Visit our Schedule page for dates and times.

All participants are grouped according to the official American Youth Football age/weight requirements. These requirements are strictly enforced before every game to reduce the risk of injury. All participants are trained by certified coaches on basic blocking and tackling football techniques.

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