Soccer Tournament Rules

(Revised 10/2021)

REMEMBER 2 THINGS:

1)     ENJOY YOURSELF

2)     NO ARGUING  

It is important that every player understands that this league is for fun.  The mission of Club Sport is to promote competition and athleticism through sportsmanship and fair play. Our leagues/events should be played with good sportsmanship. Although competition may become intense, we expect our participants to maintain good sportsmanship up to and after the final whistle.  No arguing will be tolerated. Whether it be with the umpire, the opposing team, or your own teammates, it’s unacceptable. We realize our umpires/referees/officials will make a bad call from time-to-time (bad calls happen at the highest levels, they are certainly going to happen in an adult social league).  Rest assured they are trying their absolute best to make the correct calls.   If you can’t win or lose with grace, keep it to yourself.

In all leagues we want to stress the importance of safety and fair play. It is far more important that play be safe than the team wins. We will instruct referees to make a call that enforces safety even if it costs a goal or penalizes the offended team by stopping play. Advantage should be used judiciously by the referee for the more experienced players. Red cards for fouls/abusive language (even aimed at own team members), taunting, and serious foul play will be used.

1. KEY POINTS

1. 7v7 PLAYERS ON THE FIELD
2. ALL GOALS ARE WORTH ONE POINT
3. KICK-IN'S ARE USED FOR BALLS OUT OF BOUNDS
4. TIES DURING POOL PLAY STAY AS A TIE
5. NO OFFSIDES
6. REGULATION SIZE 5 BALL WILL BE USED. THE LEAGUE DOES NOT PROVIDE THE BALLS.
7. ROBERT TAYLOR COMMUNITY COMPLEX IS A TURF FIELD.

1. ANYONE HANGING, DUNKING, SLAPPING, ETC OF THE GOAL POSTS WILL BE PUNISHED AT THE DISCRETION OF THE LEAGUE COORDINATOR. NO SUNFLOWER SEEDS OR GUM ON THE FIELD. NO SMOKING ON THE PREMISES.

2. EQUIPMENT

1. Club Sport does not issue team shirts for tournaments. Teams must bring 2 sets of their own jerseys/shirts. One shirt of any color they choose and the second one being white to avoid conflicts.
2. All players MUST wear commercially purchased shin guards.
3. No sharp or metal cleats are allowed.
4. No jewelry is allowed (wedding bands and stud earrings are ok).
5. All upper extremity braces & casts must be padded or covered to use on the field.
6. Any knee or other braces that may be an issue can be banned per the coordinator's judgment.

3. ROSTERS AND TEAM SIZE

1. A minimum of 4 players for 7V7 must be present or the team will forfeit the game. Anything less is up to the opposing captain and/or staff member as to what will be allowable.
2. There is no maximum limit to the amount of females which can be on the field.
3. Everyone must sign in on your team's roster to be eligible and players may NOT play for more than one team in each division unless approved by Club Sport Staff.
4. To be eligible player's names must be listed on a roster prior to the start of a team's 2nd game and any player not SIGNED by the start of the 3rd game is ineligible.
5. A forfeit win is counted as 5-0.
6. Players have the right to ask for a roster check of the opposing team after the start of the game and before the end of the game. These requests must be made with the coordinator during game play, and if it is found that the opposing team is playing with an “illegal player”  (i.e. not on that team’s roster or not signed) then staff reserves the right to remove the player and/or forfeit the game. Club Sport staff decisions are final and roster checks may not be made by players once the game has finished.
7. You may buy additional roster spots for $10 per player.

4. GAME PLAY/KICKOFF

1. COIN FLIP/BEGINNING OF GAME
2. The team that wins the coin toss at the start of the game will have first choice to kick-off or choose a goal to defend.
3. Consists of the ball being placed at midfield.  At the start of the game the ball does not have to travel forward.
4. Play will be divided into (2)  25-minute halves separated by a brief halftime.  There will be a running clock maintained by a referee who will advise both teams when there is one minute remaining in each half.  Any delay tactics, (kicking the ball out of bounds on purpose) will allow the referee (at his/her discretion) to stop the clock. If for any reason the game should be cancelled with more than half of the game played, the game and the score is considered final.
5. RAINOUT - If all teams have completed two pool play games at the time of a rainout, the champion will be determined by record and goal differential.  Should less than two games be completed by all teams, a makeup date may be scheduled to replay or finish the tournament

5. THE GAMES/SCORING

1. Pool play games ending in a tie score will be recorded as tie games.  
2. During playoffs & finals, a game tied after regulation will go into overtime.  Overtime will consist of (2) 5-minute sudden death periods.  If neither team scores after the overtime periods, teams will go into a shootout.

6. SHOOTOUT SPECIFICS

1. Each team selects 5 players (Coed is 3 males, 2 females) - players don’t have to have been playing at the end of regulation.  A coin toss will decide which team shoots first.  The referee will decide which goal to shoot at.  Shots will be placed and not dribbled.
2. Teams will alternate taking direct penalty shots from 12 paces off the goal line. (No guy/ girl shooting order is necessary)
3.  The 2nd round is SUDDEN DEATH i.e. 1st player from Team A scores & 1st player from Team B misses - Team A wins.        

7. SLIDE TACKLING

1. There is NO slide tackling in any division at Robert Taylor Community Complex.  The only time sliding is permitted is to save or stop the ball but only when another player is not (in the eyes of the referee) in “harm's way” of the slide. Club Sport defines a slide as going down with one or both legs to the ground to get the ball - it does not have to be a slide “tackle” and the ball does not have to be in possession of an opponent. If a slide is near a player, intentional or not, a foul will be called. The result will be an indirect kick if outside the penalty area, and a penalty kick inside the area. If the referee calls you for a slide "tackle" you may receive a 2 minute yellow card. The goalie in goal at the time of the foul must face the kick. The ball is to be placed at the point of the infraction and to be put in play by any player on the affected team. Slide tackles do apply to Goalkeepers. Goalies must lead with the hands or body when going for the ball near another player.  

8. SUBSTITUTIONS

1. Substitutions may occur at ANY TIME (on the fly)… They must be made near mid field and cannot result in an advantageous play on the ball. If it results in an advantage the play can be whistled dead and a free kick will be called for the other team.

9. FREE KICKS

1. All free kicks are INDIRECT unless it’s a penalty kick.

1. No opposing player is allowed to be within 8 paces of ball prior to kick if the attacking team asks the official for yards.
2. PENALTY KICKS

1. PK's will be awarded at the referee's discretion on whether the foul stopped a goal or a scoring chance. Due to the small field sizes and possible congestion of players, the goal box may have no bearing on whether the foul warrants a penalty kick. Anyone can take the penalty kick. The goalie in goal at the time of the foul must face the kick.

10. GOAL KICKS

1. GOAL KICKS are taken from within the penalty area. The ball is in play as soon as the ball is touched by the possessing team and can be played inside the goal box.
2. The opposing players do not have to give any room off the ball as long as they are outside of the box - it is up to the goalie to back the ball off any required distance.

11. GOALKEEPERS        

1. GOALKEEPERS MAY NOT DIRECTLY CATCH A THROW-IN or KICK-IN FROM THEIR OWN TEAM…  
2. GOALKEEPERS MAY NOT PUNT OR DROP KICK THE BALL… Keepers must throw the ball or play it to the ground.
3. GOALKEEPERS MAY NOT HOLD THE BALL FOR LONGER THAN 6 SECONDS.

12. OFFSIDES

1. There are no offsides rules in this competition.

13. OUT OF BOUNDS

1. Re-starts should be from the field of play within 1 yard of the point where the ball left the field.
2. A goal cannot be scored directly from a kick-in.
3. If the ball never makes it in play or hits out of bounds before landing in play the throw in is taken again.

1. There should be a five yard buffer from where the ball is to the opposing team on a kick in.
2. On small size goals, If the ball never comes into play, it is a kick from the same spot going the opposite direction.

14. NCAA

1. Normal rules and penalties of the NCAA apply unless exceptions have been made herein.

15. REFEREES

1. Referees enforce the rules and maintain safety. They will have the last word along with the league coordinator.
2. Excessive arguing will result in a yellow card being issued. Cursing at or disparaging the official can result in a red card.

16. PLAYER CONDUCT

1. Club Sport issues yellow cards as a warning and "cooling" off for players. If a yellow card is issued, the player (even the keeper) is sent off and cannot return for 2 minutes.  The team must play a man down, no matter if a goal is scored during the 2 minutes. 

1. Should a player off the field receive a yellow, the team must play down a player for 2 minutes.

2. If the referee deems a player's repeated misconduct to warrant a red card, it will be issued. If a red card is issued the team has to play a man down for the remainder of the game (in coed the team must play down a player of the same gender that was red carded).

1. Should a player off the field receive a red card, the team will have to play down a player of that sex for the remainder of the game.

3. DURING THE TOURNAMENT, Any player or fan is encouraged to rout for their own team but routing against teams or use of disparaging language is discouraged and could result in penalties of players or dismissals of fans. Any fans of teams may be asked to leave by Club Sport staff. Refusal to leave could result in forfeiture of games.
4. A RED CARDED PLAYER WILL NOT BE ELIGIBLE TO PLAY FOR THE FOLLOWING GAME (or longer based on staff review. Red cards resulting in fighting, extreme abuse, or rough play will result in dismissal from the tournament).

17. PLAYOFFS & FINALS: 

1. The top 2 teams from coed recreational division will advance to a one game final. The top 4 teams for coed competitive will advance to single elimination semifinals and finals.
2. Tournament seeding is based on the following criteria:

1. 1) most total points (with 3 for win and 1 for tie)
2. 2) highest goal differential (The maximum goal differential for a single game will be capped at +5)  
3. 3) head-to-head play (if any)
4. 4) fewest goals allowed
5. 5) most goals scored
6. 6) coin toss