Team Uniform Sizing and Roster Guide: How to Avoid Mistakes

A store can swap a Medium for a Large because it has more stock and can resell the returned item. A custom uniform is made to order in one team's colors, often with one player's name and number, so a garment in the wrong size has no other buyer. As a general practice, custom garments made as ordered cannot be exchanged for another size the way retail stock can. Exact terms for corrections and remakes depend on the manufacturer, so read them before you order.

A team controls two kinds of mistake. A sizing error means the garment was made as ordered but does not fit the player. A roster error means the order itself was wrong: a misspelled name, a number worn by two players, or a player left off the list.

Both begin in the information the team supplies, so the checks have to happen before production. When you order from us, nothing is produced until you approve an artwork proof, a document that shows the design and order details for sign-off, and that proof lists every player. How it works describes each stage.

A body measurement is taken on the person, for example the distance around the chest. A garment measurement is taken on the finished item, usually laid flat, for example the width of a jersey from one underarm seam to the other. For the same player in a jersey that fits, the two numbers differ.

The gap between them is called ease: the extra room built into a garment so the wearer can move and the garment hangs as its style intends. A compression top has very little ease and a loose basketball jersey has a lot. A university extension guide on fitting sewing patterns notes that ease varies from one style to another and from one pattern brand to another, so a person's usual size will not always fit.

Reference tables do not remove the difference. A standard table of women's body measurements published by ASTM International, a standards body, describes its figures as a baseline: fabric, ease for movement, styling and fit still have to be considered when a garment is designed.

You need a flexible tape measure that does not stretch, something to write on, and a second person: extension guides on clothing fit recommend having someone else take the measurements while the person stands in a normal posture.

• Wear a thin layer. Measure over a T-shirt or underwear, never over a hoodie or pads.
• Keep the tape level. Around the body, the tape stays parallel to the floor, including across the back.
• Snug, not tight. The tape should stay in place without slipping or pressing in.
• Write it down at once. Record each number with its unit and the date.

If you are unsure where the hips are fullest, measure at two levels and keep the larger number, as one extension guide advises. Shorts inseams are measured the same way as pants. Some charts, youth charts in particular, also ask for height: measure it without shoes, standing against a wall.

A size chart is a table that links measurements to size labels. Small, Medium and Large are labels, not units, and brands do not all define them the same way. An extension bulletin on buying clothes says sizing can vary among manufacturers and even within one brand. Three things decide what a label means.

• The manufacturer. Each one develops its own patterns and its own amount of ease.
• The product. A fitted jersey and a loose warm-up top can share a label and have different dimensions.
• The fit. Men's or unisex, women's and youth garments are cut on different patterns. Never assume a youth Large equals an adult Small.

How to read a chart

1. Get the chart for the exact product and fit you are ordering, from the manufacturer that will make it.
2. Check whether it lists body or garment measurements, and whether the numbers are inches or centimeters.
3. Compare the player's numbers with the chart. For tops, chest is usually the deciding measurement; for shorts and pants it is usually waist and hips, with inseam for length.
4. If the measurements point to two sizes, think about how the garment is worn: a jersey that goes over pads or a base layer needs room. If you still cannot decide, ask the manufacturer instead of guessing.

This guide contains no size chart on purpose: a generic chart would be wrong for most products. If you are planning an order with us and need sizing information for a garment, contact our team before you start collecting sizes.

The three common methods differ in how much they depend on someone reading a chart correctly.

Trying on a size run

A size run is a set of sample garments, one in each size. Have each player try the samples over whatever goes under the uniform in a game, then raise both arms, reach and squat. Write the chosen size on the roster on the spot. Whether a size run can be supplied, and on what terms, depends on the manufacturer, so ask early.

Measuring each player

Use one tape and one person, and follow the method above. Record the measurements first and choose sizes afterward with the chart in front of you.

Asking players or parents

Self-reporting is convenient and leaves the most room for error. Send the correct chart and short measuring instructions with the request, and ask for the measurements as well as the size. A reply such as "Medium in everything" describes other brands, not this garment.

Youth players and growth

Size youth players from a current measurement or try-on, not from age, grade or last season's size. According to MedlinePlus, the health reference of the U.S. National Library of Medicine, the adolescent growth spurt peaks at about age 11 and a half in girls and 13 and a half in boys, and slows at around 16 and 18. A player in those years can change size within a season, so collect youth sizes as close to the order date as you can.

Whether to order a size up is a judgment call: a garment with room to grow lasts longer, but one that is clearly too big can be uncomfortable in play. Ask the parent, and consider whether the uniform has to last one season or several.

The roster is the list that tells the manufacturer what to make for each player. Build it as a spreadsheet with one row per player and one column per fact, so it can be sorted, counted and checked.

• Name as it should be printed, typed exactly, character for character.
• Number, one per player.
• Size, written with its fit, such as Youth L or Women's M, not just L. If jerseys and shorts are sized separately, give each its own column.

Keep the sheet plain: one header row, no merged cells, and never two players in one row. Send it to our team as a CSV file (a plain-text export any spreadsheet program can produce) or a spreadsheet, and we check every row, flagging missing sizes and duplicate numbers.

Names: spelling, capitals, hyphens and suffixes

A manufacturer prints what the roster says, so agree on one convention and apply it to every row.

• Spelling. Have each player or parent confirm the name in writing. Do not type names from memory or handwriting.
• Capitals. Choose all capitals or mixed case. In mixed case, names such as McAllister or DeSoto need a decision about the inner capital.
• Hyphens, apostrophes and accents. Type them exactly as they should appear, and check on the proof that the lettering style shows them correctly.
• Suffixes. Decide whether Jr., Sr., II or III is printed, and with what punctuation.
• Long names. A long or double-barreled surname has to fit across the back, so it may be printed smaller or narrower. Handling varies by manufacturer and lettering style, so look at the longest name on the proof.

Spare garments

A spare is an extra garment ordered with the main order for a player who joins late or a jersey that is lost or damaged. Give each spare its own row so it is counted, sized and proofed like every other garment. Leave the name blank, match the most common sizes on the roster, and use a legal number that no rostered player wears.

How many spares to order is a team decision. It depends on how often your roster changes and on how the manufacturer handles small reorders, which varies, so ask before you finalize the order. Dealers ordering for several teams should keep one roster per team; our trade page is written for businesses that order regularly.

Every number has to pass two tests. It must be unique within the team, because officials and scorers identify players by number. The volleyball rules of the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS), for instance, require that a player's number not duplicate a teammate's. It must also be a number your governing body allows, which is easier to overlook.

Duplicates tend to come from two players asking for the same favorite number, or from a spare that repeats a rostered number. Have one person assign numbers, and sort the sheet by number to see repeats.

Some governing bodies also restrict which numbers may be worn. The NFHS, which publishes playing rules for U.S. high school sport, is a clear example.

These are high school examples only. Colleges, clubs, youth leagues and adult leagues set their own rules, so a number that is fine in one competition can be illegal in another.

A roster is personal data, and on a youth team it is data about children. Collect only what the order needs: the name as printed, the number and the size. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission's guidance on protecting personal information gives businesses the same advice: keep only what you need, and dispose of what you no longer need.

• Leave out everything else. Birth dates, home addresses, phone numbers, photos and medical notes do not belong in a roster file.
• Drop measurements once the size is chosen. The manufacturer needs the size, not the player's chest or waist measurement.
• Limit who can open the file. Share it with the people placing the order, not through a public link or a team-wide chat.
• Go through parents or guardians for minors, and follow your school's, club's or league's policy on children's information. Laws on children's data differ from place to place.
• Treat the name on the back as a choice. Some youth teams print surnames only, or numbers without names.
• Clean up afterward. Keep the final roster while you may need it for reorders, then delete old drafts and form responses.

Run through this list once the sheet looks finished, ideally with a second person reading it aloud against the team list.

Two more checks follow once you send it. Review the rows we flag and clear every one. Then read the artwork proof line by line against your sheet: it lists every player, and approving it is the last step before production. More guides are in our guide library.