This begs the question - what would you do if you and your son are unsatisfied with the program. We've been told that we should stick it out then not come back the next year. That approach seems rather of fatalistic. Do you go to the coach and tell them your concerns? What topics are and are not acceptable to discuss with the coach/owner: Unequal playing time, poor training, poor/lack of plays, loosing record, too large a roster, poor communication/logistics. Just how much do you as a parent push back in these situations? Hasn't happened to me yet. I am just curious. Are you just supposed to stick it out and say goodbye at the end of the season? In the end we are customers with a right to expect a satisfactory product/service.
You first have to decide whether you've paid too much for him to leave, and if that outweighs the time commitment for tournaments and your son's unhappiness with the situation. If so, then he should just stick it out and get whatever benefit he can out of practice and try to have fun.
But, if you think the time considerations and cost weigh in favor of leaving, then BEFORE you do that, politely tell the coach your concerns, and gauge his reaction.
If he acknowledges the issue, and agrees to try and make a change, then you stay to see if things improve.
If he does not seem agreeable to making a change, or if he agreed to make a change and things really don't improve, then you have to decide whether or not to leave or stick it out for the rest of the season. Your decision should be based primarily on whether your son wants to stick it out. You should also consider if his leaving puts the other boys in a bad position (i.e., if he quits, does that leave the team short).
At this point, you've done what you can: you've given the coach a chance to address the issue, and you've involved your son in the process.
I know, because we went through this process recently, and after giving the organization a chance to make a change (which they promised but didn't execute), he wanted to move on. So we did. Never regretted it, although my wallet was worse for the experience.
