RULES OF PLAY Except as otherwise provided herein are in line with the rules of US CLUB and FIFA “Laws of the Game”.
Age: The age groups for this tournament shall be in accordance with the USSF age groups for the current seasonal year.
Registration: All players must be currently registered with their respective USSF National Affiliate. Travel forms may be required based on your national affiliation requirements.
Tournament Participants: All teams must abide by the US Club Soccer policies, rules, and regulations and are subject to their disciplinary actions.
Team Rosters:
Proof of Age: All players and coaches must have current USSF National affiliation (i.e. US Club or USYS) Player ID cards (can be physical or digital). No ID cards will mean the player is not eligible to play.
Division/Bracketing Process: The primary objective of bracketing is to place teams in brackets such that the resulting bracket becomes the most competitive bracket possible for all teams in all brackets. After applications are received, the tournament committee will review all division requests and establish the most competitive brackets. Any additional changes will be subject to approval by the tournament committee. Once a division is scheduled, there will be no bracket changes.
Division/Bracketing Criteria:
Formats For Various Bracket Sizes:
Bracket of Four: Played as a single group of four teams in a round-robin format, with the two teams accumulating the most points advancing to the final.
Bracket of Five: Played as a single group of five teams in a round-robin format, with the team accumulating the most points will be the champion and the team accumulating the second most points will be the runner-up.
Bracket of Six: Played as two groups of three teams. Each team will crossover and play the opposite bracket's 3 teams so that all teams are playing the same competition. The top 2 teams accumulating the most points will advance to the finals to determine which team is the champion. It is possible that the finalists could have played each other already.
Bracket of Seven: Played as a single group of seven teams with all teams playing four (4) matches. The team accumulating the most points will be announced as the Champion. The team accumulating the second most amounts of points will be the Finalist.
Bracket of Eight: Played as two groups of four. The winner of each round-robin group will play a final game to determine the Champion and Finalist.
Team Acceptances: In the event the tournament is a sell out, teams will be accepted using the following criteria listed below in no certain order:
CREDENTIALS/TEAM CHECK-IN:
DURATION OF THE GAME:
The length of games for each age group shall be as follows:
Age Bracket | Game Times | Format |
U7-U8 | 20 Minute Halves | 4v4 |
U9-U10 | 25 Minute Halves | 7v7 |
U11-U12 | 30 Minute Halves | 9v9 |
U13-U15 | 35 Minute Halves | 11v11 |
U16-U19 | 40 Minute Halves | 11v11 |
Halftime periods shall be a maximum of five (5) minutes.
Tie Breaker Information: The following criteria used for a team to advance:
**** In the event there is a tie of 3 teams or more, using the tiebreaker criteria above, the 1st step is to determine the top team of the 3 or more teams tied. Once a top team has been determined, the 2nd step is the tiebreaker criteria will start all over again from the top with the remaining 2 or more teams that are tied, and continue this same process until all teams and their placement have been decided as necessary.
Semi-Finals and Finals: In the case of a draw at the end of regulation time in a Semi-Final or Final, the winner will be determined as follows:
Unfinished or Abandoned Games: If the referee or tournament official terminates a game for any reason at any time during the game, the game shall be considered a completed game and the score at the time of the game ending shall be conisdered final and posted as such.
Game Clock: The game clock will not be stopped because of injury to any player unless, at the discretion of the referee, if the injured player must be removed from the field by medical personnel.
Inclement Weather/Field Conditions: In the event of inclement weather, the tournament committee reserves the right to modify all tournament rules in order to safely and fairly end the tournament successfully. Games may be shortened or eliminated in case of inclement weather or unplayable field conditions. Coaches are asked to be patient and remain flexible – changing the format of the tournament is a major undertaking.
The Tournament Director has the authority to temporarily suspend play due to unsafe weather conditions. Teams should remain (safely in cars or under shelter) in the vicinity for game resumption. If lightning is sighted, the tournament director will immediately suspend play and clear the field. Play will resume after 25 consecutive minutes of no lightning.
* NO refunds are given once teams have been accepted.
REFEREES:
U7-U8 Age divisions will use a one-person referee system. U9-U14 Age divisions will use a three-person referee system. The Tournament Committee shall have the right to select a club linesperson from a team if necessary.
EQUIPMENT/UNIFORMS:
Substitutions: Substitutions shall be unlimited and may be made with the consent of the referee at any stoppage.
SCORING:
Points will be awarded as follows:
3 points for a win
1 points for a tie
0 points for a loss
FORFEITS:
PROTESTS:
PLAYER and/or TEAM OFFICAL SUSPENSIONS:
MATTERS NOT PROVIDED FOR:
The Tournament Committee shall determine any matter not provided for in the tournament rules. In addition, the Tournament Committee may amend the tournament rules when, in its judgment, the amendment will be beneficial to the conduct of the tournament. The decision of the Tournament Committee shall be final.