How to Organise a Squash League for Beginners

Step 1: Confirm the player count

Confirm the player count 24 hours out. People drop out — adjust the format if you need to. Don't adjust on the day; players who turn up to a different format than they signed up for get cranky.

Step 2: Lock down the venue

Book the venue early. The longer the lead time, the more flexibility you get with court count and time slots. If you're using a public facility, confirm your booking the week before — overbookings happen.

Step 3: Run the day

Have a single named time-keeper. One person, with a watch, who calls the next round. Don't let it become a committee decision — that's how tournaments fall behind.

Step 4: Print everything you need

Print three things: the schedule, the scoresheets, and the standings template. Have spares of all three. Even if you're running everything from a phone, paper backup saves the day when battery dies.

Step 5: Pick the format up front

The format is the single most important decision. Match it to your time, court count, and player count. Don't pick round robin if you only have 3 hours and 12 players — you'll run out of time. Don't pick single elimination for 6 friends — they'll feel cheated.

Tips for beginners

Pair experienced players with beginners where you can. Give a 5-minute walkthrough of the format before you start. Print scoresheets in big text — beginners get nervous about scoring.

Format guidance: league

A league plays out across multiple weeks, usually as a round robin where each player or team plays every other once or twice. Generate the fixture list once at the start so everyone knows when they're on.

Use the linked free generator at the end of this guide to produce a printable schedule in seconds.

Common mistakes

Trying to run the whole thing on one court when you could use two. Two courts more than doubles your throughput because you cut transition idle time.