Club sports sit between intramurals and the varsity teams. They are run by students under UCLA Recreation, most compete against other universities in their own leagues, and they are separate from UCLA's NCAA teams: the club baseball and men's club soccer teams both say so on their pages. UCLA has 60 of them: 37 co-ed, 11 men's and 11 women's teams, plus Esports.
Some teams hold tryouts. Most do not mention one, and many take anyone willing to come to practice.
Teams that hold tryouts
These 11 teams mention tryouts in their joining notes. Tryouts fall in the first weeks of fall, and most ask you to register on a form first, so the form is the deadline to watch:
Badminton (Co-ed Club Sport)Beach Volleyball (Co-ed Club Sport)Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (Co-ed Club Sport)Cricket (Men's Club Sport)Field Hockey (Women's Club Sport)Lacrosse (Women's Club Sport)Olympic Weightlifting (Co-ed Club Sport)Soccer (Men's Club Sport)Soccer (Women's Club Sport)Table Tennis (Co-ed Club Sport)Volleyball (Men's Club Sport)
A few others choose members another way. Equestrian and Ski and Snowboard take applications, and Esports runs player applications for each game while its community Discord is open to anyone.
Teams you can just join
Many teams want numbers more than résumés. As of fall 2026:
- Running meets weekdays at 5 pm at the top of Drake Stadium, for first-time joggers and former cross-country runners alike.
- Quadball welcomes new players year-round, with practices on Friday evenings and Sunday afternoons on the IM Fields.
- Men's Ultimate asks for no experience; you fill out an interest form and join the preseason group chat.
- Table Tennis welcomes all levels and runs a mailing list for everyone; joining the team itself takes a tryout.
- Men's Rowing, the 2023 ACRA national champion, takes walk-on rowers.
For most of these, joining means filling out an interest form and joining a GroupMe, Slack or Discord, which is where practice times and changes are posted. The links are on each team's page.
Where teams practice
The John Wooden Center hosts most of the combat sports: boxing, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, fencing, kendo, kickboxing and wrestling all list practices in its Gold Room, Blue Room or studios. Track and Field and Running use Drake Stadium, Quadball plays on the IM Fields, Swim trains at the Student Activities Center and Table Tennis at Pardee Gym. Practice times are on each team's page where the team has published them.
Before your first practice
- Register where the team asks. Most teams use their own interest or tryout form; some, like Tennis and Field Hockey, also ask you to register on Ideal Logic, an online sign-up site. Several ask for a signed waiver before your first practice.
- Ask about dues and travel costs before you commit. They differ from team to team.
- Watch the season. Not every team plays in fall. Softball, lacrosse and rowing, for example, compete mostly in spring, so fall is when they build the roster.
- General questions about club sports go to the Club Sports office at clubhouse@recreation.ucla.edu.
All 60 teams are in the club sports list, with contacts and how to join each one.