Since water polo is not played
professionally in the United States,
the best bet for attending a game
is at the college, national, high
school, youth, or masters levels.
Below are some suggestions for how
to support your athletes by taking
them to watch the game played at
a highest levels.
Events & tickets
• National
& Olympic
• College
• High School
• Youth
• Masters
• Other
National
& Olympic
The highest level of play in the
United States is at the national
and olympic levels. Unfortunetly,
there is only one national team,
so games are infrequent. Check the
USA
Water Polo website to see when
the national team might be in your
area. College games occur much more
frequently, but sometimes the national
team will visit for tournaments.
At the youth and high school level,
an important event is Junior Olympics.
College
The top high school players in the
country go on to play water polo
at the college level. The level
of play is high for NCAA college
water polo teams and even many college
club teams are very competitive.
The top water polo colleges are
all in California and recent winners
of the NCAA tourney include UCLA,
Cal, Stanford, USC, and Pepperdine
for both the men's and women's teams.
Attending a game or tournament with
a player is a great gift idea. Men's
games are held throughout the fall.
Women's games are in the late fall
and early spring. There are also
opportunities to see some college
clips and games on CSTV as streaming
video over the internet.
High
School
In California, the top games occur
at the end of the fall for boys
and winter for girls. Try to attend
league playoff or championship games.
Youth
Junior Olympics occurs once a year
in California for several different
youth age levels. Try to attend
this event as a gift to a water
polo athlete.
Masters
Masters Clubs are for older water
polo players (20+), and is a great
opportunity to see experienced players
play the game. There are opportunities
to see the clubs play in regular
games or at major tournaments such
as the Masters Championship and
the Masters Open where you can see
the men compete in many age groups:
20+, 25+, 30+, 35+, 40+, 45+, 50+,
55+ and the women compete in 20+,
30+ and 40+. Visit USA
Water Polo to learn more about
Masters clubs and tournaments. Click
on the "Masters" link
on the homepage.
Other
• Clinics-
There are also oppotunities to attend
informational water polo clinics
such as the P.A.C.E. clinics. Visit
the USA Water Polo website to find
out more about clinics.
• Club
games & championships- There
are club water polo teams and games
all over. You may be able to find
some high level games (ex-college
water polo players & coaches)
in your area.
