Youth League Rules:
Game Format
Teams will play 7v7 (6 players + a goalie) on a 90ft. by 165ft. turf field. 1, 40 minute game will be played per week. First place winner of each league will receive a Soccer Centers T-shirt. Each team must pay their full balance prior to your first league game.
Each team is required to have a coach at least 21 years of age at every game.
Roster:
Every team has to hand in a roster with all the player names and their Date of Birth. Each team may roster 16 players. Scores and standing will be kept on the Soccer Centers website.
*Team Roster required before playing in first league game (Coaches need to bring either Player Pass OR Copy of Birth Certificate to confirm player identity & age group). Rosters can be added online or emailed before the teams first league game.
Email – lt@soccercenters.com
Mail – See address below
Equipment
All players must wear soccer socks & shin guards, or will not be allowed to play.
All players must wear jerseys/shirts during play. If both teams are wearing the same color, the home team must change.
Players wearing protective casts must receive written approval by the League & Tournament director. If the referee on the field of play deems a player’s protective cast is unsafe in any way, the player will not be allowed to play until the Tournament director allows the player to play.
No jewelry will be allowed, including earrings of any type, rope necklaces and bracelets. The only exception will be players wearing medical bracelets.
Substitutions
Substitutions can be made on the fly.
Referees / Timing:
There will be no abuse of the referees tolerated, verbal or otherwise. Any indication of such behavior by a coach or parent will result in immediate removal from the tournament site. No abuse of any player, coach or referee will be tolerated. Please keep all comments (cheering) positive.
Teams must be ready to enter the field at least 5 minutes prior to scheduled game time.
Kick Offs / Kick Ins / Direct and Indirect Kicks / Goal Kicks / Penalty Kicks:
Kick Offs
May be kicked in any direction. You cannot score directly from a kick off, the kick off is an indirect kick.
Kick-ins
The ball shall be kicked into play from the sideline, rather than thrown in. The ball is considered in play when the ball is touched and changes position. This is an indirect kick, and a goal cannot be scored from this kick.
Direct and in-direct kicks
All dead-ball kicks (kick-ins, kick-offs, free kicks) are indirect with the exception of corner kicks, hand balls, and penalty kicks. Indirect kicks must only change position before the ball will be considered in play. If a free kick is awarded within five yards of the opposing goal line, the ball will be moved back to five yards from the line. It is the referee’s discretion where the ball will be placed.
Goal kicks
May be taken from any point of the goal box. All Goal Kicks are indirect kicks. Goal kicks can’t go over the middle line before being touched by a player on the field. If a goal kick is played short and the ball is in play it is allowed to kick the ball over the middle line.
Build Out Line (Only applies to U8, U9 & U10 brackets)
All players from the opposing team need to drop back behind the build out line when there is a Goal Kick or the GK has the ball in their hands.
Five-Yard Rule
In all dead-ball situations, defending players must stand at least five yards away from the ball. If the defensive player’s goal is closer than five yards, the ball shall be played five yards from the goal line in line with the direction of play prior to the penalty.
Goal Scoring
Goals can be scored from anywhere on the pitch while in the ball is in play. GK is not allowed to throw directly into the goal. Goal Kicks and Kick-Ins are indirect.
Interference
If there’s interference because the ball hits the roof of the dome, lamps or wires there will be a kick-in on the sideline for the other team.
Goal Keepers / Off-sides / Slide Tackling / Hand Ball Clarification:
Goal keepers are restricted to using their hands only inside the penalty box and no slide tackling is allowed. If a player is sliding for the ball, contact with any player(s) from the other team is NOT ALLOWED. If a player slides and contact is initiated, a free kick shall be awarded. This does not prevent players from sliding to stop/intercept a ball where contact is not initiated during the slide. Example: a player may slide to save a ball from going out-of-bounds.
Hand Ball Clarification
Deliberate handling of the ball that denies a team of an obvious goal-scoring opportunity will result in the following: A yellow or red card given to the player committing the hand ball (at the discretion of the referee).
Delay of games / Forfeits / Overtime
Delay of Game
The referee has the official time on the field and holds the right to take necessary action if he/she feels that a team is delaying the game. Any player may be cautioned with a yellow card if it is deemed by the referee that the player is intentionally wasting time, such as if a player intentionally kicks the ball long distances away from the playing field in order to waste time. The referee has the official time on the field.
Forfeits
Teams are given five minutes from scheduled game time, or from delayed start time due to unforeseen circumstances, before the referee issues a forfeit. The Director must approve all forfeits before the game is considered an official forfeit. The Director has the option to replay a forfeited game if deemed necessary. Any team forfeiting three games during pool play may be removed from the tournament. Any team forfeiting one game during the playoffs may be removed from the tournament.
Play-off Penalty Kick’s
If there’s no winner after the official game time the game will go to shout-outs. A coin toss will decide team-kicking order. The 7 or 8 players from each team remaining on the field at the end of the game will be the only players to kick for their team. The remaining 3 field players after overtime regulation will rotate, alternating teams with each kick. The first round of shootouts will consist of each player kicking once (round of 3 players shooting per team). The team with the most goals after the first round will be considered the winner. If the score remains tied after the first round of penalty kicks, the other players will alternate in a sudden death penalty kick format until one-team scores unanswered. If one team has received a red card during the game and finishes with 6 or 7 players on the field, a remaining roster player (other than the red carded player) must be chosen to kick in the rotation of penalty kicks. If the red-carded player is the last remaining roster player, one of the two field players must kick twice.
Game Balls / Sizes:
Teams are responsible for providing game balls. The ball size for each group is as following:
– U8-U12 = Size 4
– U13 & up = Size 5
Tiebreakers all Tournaments and Leagues:
The following tiebreakers will decide who the winner is:
– Points
– Head-to-head
– Goal differential
– Goals against
– Goals scored
– Shout-out
When there are 3 teams with the same amount of points (3-way tie) the goal differential, goals scored or goals against will decide who wins.
Max Goal differential will be MAX 5
*Not showing for a league game with less than 24 hours notice, results in a $75 no-show fee added to the league fee + referee fees for both teams for the games.
For schedule questions please contact:
lt@soccercenters.com
For media inquiries please contact Shelley@SoccerCenters.com