J.D. Palatine (JDP) and Sports Connect Integration FAQs

Sports Connect (formerly Blue Sombrero), the Official League Technology provider of Little League® Baseball and Softball, and J.D. Palatine (JDP), Little League’s Official Background Check Provider, have integrated their technologies to make the volunteer registration process easier by including the ability to conduct national background checks on local and district volunteers.

These technologies allow for the process of registering volunteers and the initiation of their background checks to be done directly through Sports Connect. This eliminates the need for a volunteer to re-enter any of the information that they already provided during registration into the JDP QuickApp, thus saving time and increasing the likelihood that the background check application will be completed.

The background check requirements can be found in the Little League Rulebook under Little League Regulation 1(c) 8 & 9. They can also be found at LittleLeague.org/Background.

More information about the background check process can be found at LittleLeague.org/JDP.

Each local Little League and district can sign up with JDP for free. Information to sign up with JDP can be found at LittleLeague.org/JDP. For the registration process, the league should have its League ID number readily available.

At this time, there is not a way to transfer a background check that was already completed in JDP to Sports Connect. A league official can still approve or deny a volunteer in the Sports Connect “Report” screen if the volunteer signed up through Sports Connect.

Yes. After 125 checks, the league is fiscally responsible for the cost of each background check ($1.50 per check).

Your league will be invoiced for each background check after the first 125. Your league will have the ability to add a debit or credit card to be charged. If you do not see the option to add a debit or credit card, contact JDP to update your profile by emailing [email protected] or calling 855-940-3232.

To see how many background checks your league has completed for this season, please visit LittleLeague.org/DataCenter under “Submit Background Checks.”

On average, the background check is completed within one business day, but this depends on the county where the search is being conducted. The process can be slowed by the following factors: common names and charges on the individual’s report.

The Sports Connect and JDP integration process together will fulfill the requirements to submit an official Little League Volunteer Application per Little League Regulation 1(c)8. Leagues should also visit LittleLeague.org/StateLaws to verify that there are not any additional state background checks requirements. Leagues are reminded that a step in the process is to verify the Volunteer Application and completed background check with a government-issued photo ID for each volunteer.

Yes, approved users still will have access to the JDP Portal at JDP.com/LittleLeague.

Yes, if a district administrator has a Sports Connect account, he/she can utilize the background check integration.

Yes. Anyone using the Sports Integration/JDP does not need to use the JDP QuickApp. Leagues still have the option to use the JDP QuickApp if they choose to do so.

The league official responsible for reviewing background checks must verify that the charges/criminal offenses would not prohibit the individual from participating per Little League Regulation 1(c) 9 (specifically, any charges/criminal offenses against or a involving a minor or anyone listed on the National Sex Offender Registry). If any charges fall outside the list of offenses that will automatically disqualify a person from holding a role with the local league, it is the local Little League’s Board of Directors decision to decide to permit the individual to volunteer and to which position that individual shall assume for the current season.

A league can determine if it still chooses to move forward with the background check process with that individual. If the answer is “Yes” to the question: “Have you ever been charged with, convicted of, plead no contest, or guilty to any crime(s) involving or against a minor, or of a sexual nature?” the league must contact the Security Manager at Little League International.

If a league exceeds the 125 background checks that are provided by Little League International, it will be charged $1.50 per check. The league will have to verify that its bank or credit card information is listed in the JDP Platform. For more information please visit jdp.com/littleleague-backgroundcheck.

If your league/district expects to exceed the allocated 125 background checks, it is recommended to have a credit card listed on the JDP platform.

If you do not have the ability to add a credit card, contact JDP to update your user profile at [email protected] or 855-940-3232.

Starting in 2025, background checks for all volunteers are required to be conducted through J.D. Palatine (JDP), as other providers will not be accepted.

Reminder: The use of Sports Connect (required as part of Central Registration) will continue to provide leagues with the advantage of the integrated technologies available to ease this process.

A league official that is listed as a user on the JDP platform can contact JDP for an update on the individual’s background check and a timeframe for the results at [email protected] or 855-940-3232.

Please check your junk/clutter email folder to ensure the email from JDP didn’t end up there. If the email is still missing, verify with your league official that your email was entered correctly and ask your league to resend the invitation to complete a background check.

The Sports Connect/JDP integration makes it easier on league personnel to conduct background checks per the Little League Rules, Regulations and Operating Policies. However, you may conduct background checks directly in JDP in addition to using the Sports Connect/JDP integration. The league volunteer overseeing the tracking of background checks should ensure that all league volunteers have been processed for the required background check screenings.

Contact JDP Client Services at [email protected] or 855-940-3232.

After logging into your Sports Connect account as a Club Administrator, please visit the Teams > Team Personnel > Verifications tab to utilize the new functionality.

A full overview of the process in Sports Connect can be found HERE.

In the Teams > Team Personnel > Verifications menu, please review the list of volunteers you would like to receive an email invitation to conduct a background check. Select those individual by checking the box at the left and choose the menu at the bottom “Send Background Check”.

Once the process has been completed, each individual record will receive a “Pending” status.

When the background check has been completed, the individual record will display a “Ready to View Report” status. You can view each individual background check report and mark “Pass” in the system by checking the box on the left next to the individual and noting the “Pass” on the bottom of the screen. An individual should only be marked “Pass” after the individual has been deemed to fulfill all mandated Little League requirements.

A full overview of the process in Sports Connect can be found HERE.

If you receive an “Error!” message, please contact JDP to determine if the league is registered correctly in the JDP system. [email protected] or call 855-799-8753

Pending background checks are canceled after 14 days in the Sports Connect system. You can resend the request for check to the individual after 14 days.

After February 27, 2020, a report will appear on the Verifications page allowing you to quickly access a report for all your registered volunteers in the Sports Connect platform. The report will contain a listing of the Volunteer Application information including the required questions.

You can also access the report in the Reports navigation or create a custom report by editing the Volunteer Details Report (Reports > Manage Reports > Volunteer Details) and adding the Volunteer Application questions under the Volunteer Info menu.

As noted above, a report will appear on the Verifications page allowing you to quickly access a report for all your registered volunteers in the Sports Connect platform. The report will contain a listing of the Volunteer Application information including the required questions.

If a league volunteer isn’t showing on the Volunteer Details report, please verify that they registered as a volunteer in the Sports Connect system. To view this, please visit the Search and Manage Users function and search by the volunteer name under Accounts.

If you have found an account, you can verify in the account if the person is registered to volunteer. You can instruct the individual to sign into their account and select “Volunteer” from the navigation menu to select the volunteer role of choice. This will prompt them to choose a volunteer role and enter the required information for the Volunteer Application to be completed.

If you have not found an account, please instruct the individual to create an account and choose “Volunteer” from the navigation menu in order to select the volunteer role of choice.

The league admin should review the four prescreening background check questions to verify that they wish to move forward with a background check for the potential volunteer. After the background check is completed by the potential volunteer, the league admin must refer to the Volunteer Verification Report, government issued photo ID and the background check to verify that all the information is identical (Full legal name, DOB and address).

If the information is not correct (for example, the individual wrote his name as Chris and not his legal name Christopher), the background check must be rerun with the individuals full legal name for an adequate background check report.

All volunteers choose a role when volunteering. They may not be in that capacity, but all volunteers are placed in an unallocated pool and can be located within the system’s program.

A league official can use this area to provide additional information about the individual’s background check, including tracking of individual state background check requirements or other requirements that the league imposes, such as CPR training.

Club Administrators and Team Administrators have access to the Teams Page where a league or district have access to the background check report screen. The league should determine the most appropriate individuals to have access to these functions given the sensitivity of the information.

If viewing the report from the Reports navigation, the Club Administrators role or any users with Reports access will be able to view the association Volunteer Verification Report.  Administrators who have Team Admin access will be able to view the Volunteer Verification Report from the Teams > Team Personnel page only.

As noted above, an individual can log into their Sports Connect account at any time and choose Volunteer in the navigation. This will prompt them to choose a volunteer role and enter the required information for the Volunteer Application to be completed.