What's a Really Good Canon Outdoor Sports Lens?

If your son is playing U12 it will mostly likely be a couple of years before he is playing at night. Until then you can save a lot of money using an inexpensive 70-300 for day soccer. It shot with a 70-300 for several years with a Rebel and achieved results I was happy with. Night soccer is an entirely different story. You will need f2.8 to freeze action without going to very high ISOs. I purchase the 70-200 f2.8 L IS USM and the extender, and found it very good for high school soccer at night. I agree with Arlynd you will not need the IS if you are shooting with a monopod, but you might want it for all of the other things this lens does well - portraits, wildlife, etc.

JAH