Please note: JAM Sports will contact you by email if we are notified during business hours that a venue is closed, causing games to be cancelled. Some regional differences may occur with our guidelines. Those differences will be noted in the league notes when you register for your league.
OUTDOOR LEAGUES – FOUL WEATHER GUIDELINES
Outdoor leagues operate rain or shine. A game will be cancelled by JAM only if:
A facility partner informs JAM of a closure
JAM receives notification of, or determines that a space is unplayable
For any other reason at JAM’s discretion, a cancellation may be warranted
During periods of active weather, we are doing our best to monitor local forecasts and field conditions. If you have not heard from JAM, the assumption should always be that the games are going ahead and decisions should be made at your game location.
If it is determined that significant forecasted weather may impact the games, JAM may send an initial email alert to teams the morning of the games and an update later in the day before the scheduled games. Because conditions can vary widely within a region, you may experience weather at the venue that differs from the forecast. JAM will share all available information.
Decision-Making at the Venue:
If JAM has not cancelled a game, we recommend that any decision to stop or not begin play due to weather—such as heavy rain, lightning, strong winds, or poor air quality—should be made at the field at the scheduled start time. Conditions frequently improve or worsen rapidly, so on-site decisions are often more accurate than forecasts.
Lightning and Unsafe Weather:
If lightning, thunder, or other dangerous conditions occur during the game:
Play must stop immediately.
All players must take cover away from open areas.
If conditions improve and both captains agree that it is safe to continue, the game may resume. If either captain chooses not to continue for safety reasons, the game ends. For the result to stand, refer to your sport-specific guidelines as it relates to what will constitute an official game. If only one captain wants to continue, the game is still considered over.
Weather professionals recommend remaining under cover for 30 minutes after the last thunder, and teams should use this guidance in their decision-making.
After-Hours Field Closures:
Some facilities make last-minute closure decisions after regular business hours. These decisions are outside JAM’s control and must be respected. If a venue is closed by a supervisor, custodian, or facility manager, do not play in that space, even if your team is already present. JAM will communicate these closures when information is available.
INDOOR LEAGUES – FOUL WEATHER GUIDELINES
Indoor leagues operate differently because weather primarily affects access to the venue rather than playing conditions.
If an indoor venue remains open, games proceed as scheduled. Team captains are expected to notify their opponents if their team is unable to attend or will have insufficient attendance.
If a venue chooses to close, the game is cancelled. JAM will notify captains and players whenever we receive advance notice, though some venues make last-minute decisions without warning. When possible, we will attempt to reschedule your game.
CAPTAIN’S COMMUNICATION & FOUL WEATHER
Participation is always a choice. If a team will not attend, the captain must contact the opponent to inform them.
As a best practice, team captains should communicate with opposing captains, especially when unsettled weather is anticipated. Captains should use the Game Chat feature within the schedule or an opposing captain’s visible phone number to do so. We strongly encourage captains to make their phone numbers visible to opponents so that communication is timely and clear. If captains agree to default or cancel a game, it is their responsibility to agree on the score, typically a 0-0 tie. If captains are unable to do so and JAM needs to step in, the result may be a default loss for both teams.
RESCHEDULING, CREDITS, AND EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS:
Rescheduling:
If a facility closure occurs or a game is halted before the 20-minute mark, JAM will attempt to reschedule when possible. Facility partner relationships differ greatly. The ability to reschedule games varies greatly from one league/sport/season to the next. Some leagues have dedicated rainout dates while others do not. We may also attempt to reschedule games on alternate days and times, but availability and team consensus can make this rescheduling difficult.
Credits:
Some facility partners provide credits for cancelled dates; when this occurs, and JAM is unable to reschedule the games, JAM will pass credits along to teams. However, if no credit is provided by the facility partner, there will be no credits, and JAM does not refund players for weather-related cancellations.
Extreme Weather Events:
An Extreme Weather Event is declared only in very rare, unexpected or extreme conditions, where most teams in a league did not play their games. JAM will assess available information and announce this status retroactively to the impacted leagues.
When an Extreme Weather Event is in effect, and venues remain open, standings are recorded as follows:
If both teams attended and played:
The result is recorded as usual.
If one team does not wish to play, regardless of the other team’s preference:
The game is scored as a 0–0 tie, ensuring no team is penalized for prioritizing safety.
If an Extreme Weather Event forces the closure of venues, our standard rescheduling and credits guidelines are applied. The Extreme Weather designation is made at the sole discretion of the JAM Admin Team.