Registration/First Day of Practice Information
FOX CHAPEL AREA ATHLETICS DEPARTMENT
REGISTRATION/FIRST DAY OF PRACTICE INFORMATION
| Fall | Winter | Spring | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st Day of Official PIAA Practice | August 10, 2026 (Varsity football/golf) August 17, 2026 (All other HS/DMS sports) |
November 20, 2026 | March 8, 2027 |
| Registration Opens | April 8, 2026 | September 14, 2026 | January 12, 2027 |
| Free Physicals | May 11, 2026 | October 19, 2026 | February 8, 2027 |
| Registration Deadline | August 5, 2026 | November 16, 2026 | March 1, 2027 |
| First Day of Practice Dates/Times/Locations | First Day Info | First Day Info | First Day Info |
Athletics Registration
The Fox Chapel Area athletics department uses ArbiterSports for registrations and form submissions for participation in interscholastic athletics. This online registration platform allows students and families in grades 7-12 to register for interscholastic sports and complete all required athletics department forms and registration requirements prior to a student’s participation in a fall, winter, and/or spring sport.
All student-athletes must register for each season in which they wish to participate. Please see the table above for the registration opening dates for each season and the corresponding deadlines. To create an account and/or register for the upcoming sports season, please go to Fox Chapel Area's Arbiter portal.
If needed, please reference this help guide for registering on the ArbiterSports platform.
Physicals
Students must have a physical to participate in interscholastic sports. All prior physicals and registrations expire on May 31 of the previous school year. As a result, all students who participated in Fox Chapel Area athletics programs during the 2025-2026 school year will need a new physical for the 2026-2027 school year.
Physicals for high school and middle school students will be given free of charge in the high school athletics training room prior to the start of each season, beginning at 5:15 p.m. and ending upon completion of the last student-athlete. Please see the chart above for all physical dates for the 2026-2027 school year. All registration information must be completed within the ArbiterSports platform before receiving a physical at the school. Students must bring printed copies of a completed Section 5: Health History form and the top two lines completed of the Section 6: Comprehensive Initial Pre-Participation Physical Evaluation form when receiving a physical.
Using your own physician: A student may also receive a physical from their own physician. All physicals completed by a student’s physician should be uploaded directly to the student's ArbiterSports account and dated May 1 or later for the next school year.
Athletes who participated in a fall sports must submit Section 7: Re-Certification by Parent/Guardian when registering for a winter sport.
Students participating in winter and spring sports will be shown from Section 7: Re-Certification by Parent/Guardian (Winter) as a new requirement. When students submit the Section 7 form, if any questions are answered "YES," they will be presented with form requirement: Section 8: Re-Certification by Licensed Physician (Winter). If all questions on Section 7 are answered "NO" then no further action will be needed after both student and parent sign the form.
Baseline ImPACT Concussion Testing Information
Students entering grades 7, 9, and 11, or students new to a contact sport (football, field hockey, soccer, volleyball, diving, gymnastics, basketball, wrestling, baseball, softball, lacrosse, and pole vaulting) can take the test at home by visiting www.impacttestonline.com/schools and entering customer code 89798BDA2C in the box at the center of the screen.
No Student Will Be Permitted to Participate in Practices/Tryouts Without the Following:
- A physical completed and uploaded to the Big Teams Student Central registration platform
- A completed Big Teams Student Central registration
- A completed ImPACT baseline concussion test
Questions/Communications
Anyone having difficulties using the ArbiterSports platform may contact the athletics office, and the athletics department staff will work with you to ensure you can properly upload forms. Please contact Missy Whitfield, the secretary to the director of athletics, at melissa_whitfield@fcasd.edu with questions or for assistance.
Please direct all questions to the athletics office or to the individual head coach for more information on physicals and the first day of practice. Tryout/practice schedules for the remainder of the first week of practice and beyond will be communicated directly to the students at the first practice. Parents/guardians and student-athletes should not expect any additional emails from individual coaches or the athletics department prior to the first day of practice/tryouts.
Game schedules can be found on the athletics department website at www.fcasdathletics.org by following the schedule link for each team.