Rules for Rec Tournament

In General


The only rule modifications from regular season rules of play (which are restated at the bottom of this page) are that during the Rec Tournament there are (1) shortened play periods and (2) tie-breaking rules for ties in standings. NOTE: In the Rec Tournament, tie breakers are only for COED Matches and Championship Matches; ties at the end of regulation in a group play match results in each team being awarded one point in the standings. Notably, there is no overtime in group stage games; overtime is only in Championship Matches or U16 Boys matches.



Medals to be Awarded by Division


  • U7 and U8: Participation medals for all teams except for Champions and Runners Up, who receive Champions and Runner up Medals.


  • U10, U12 and COED: Medals for Champions and Runners Up only



Modified Tournament Game Lengths


  • For U7 and U8: Teams will play two halves of ten (10) minutes, with no injury time added.


  • For U10 Boys and U11 Girls: Teams will play two halves of thirteen (13) minutes, with no injury time added.


  • For U12 Boys and U16 Girls: Teams will play two halves of fifteen (15) minutes, with no injury time added.


  • For U16 Boys: Teams will play two halves of twenty (20) minutes, with no injury time added in the first round. The Championship Match shall be two halves of thirty (30) minutes.



Competition Formats


  • Knockout Tournament (U16 Boys Division): For this competition format, the winner of the match advances to the next round. Here, ties at the end of regulation will proceed as noted below under the heading "Ties at the End of Regulation of COED or Championship Match."


  • Round Robin (U16 Girls, U8 Girls): For this competition format, teams are grouped in a division where each team plays each other. Teams earn points as noted under the heading "Round Robin Points System." First place in the group is Champion and second place is Runner Up.


  • Round Robin with Championship Match (U12 Boys, U11 Girls, U10 Boys, U8 Boys, U7 Boys, U7 Girls): For this competition format, the division is split into two groups of teams (Group 1 and Group 2). Teams within a given Group will each play the other teams in their division and earn points as noted under the heading "Round Robin Points System." First Place in each group advances to the Championship Match. The winner of the Championship Match is the Champion, with the losing team being Runner Up.


Round Robin Points System

Group Play Points System

  • Win = 3 Points
  • Tie = 1 Point
  • Loss = 0 points


Group play games may end in a tie and there is no overtime or penalty kicks in group play.


NOTE: The maximum goal differential that can be earned is +5 or -5. For example, if Team A beats Team B 7 - 1, Team A's Goal Differential is +5 and Team B's Goal differential is -5.



Group Play Tiebreakers:


If two teams have an equal number of points under the Group Play Points System, ties will be broken in the following order:


  1. Winner of head to head competition
  2. Goal Differential (Maximum per game Goal Differential is +5 or -5)
  3. Goals Scored
  4. Penalty kicks to be administered as outlined under the Penalty Kick Provisions of "Ties at the End of Regulation of U16 Boys or Championship Matches".


Ties at the End of Regulation of U16 Boys Match or Championship Matches


All U7 and U8 Championship Matches that are tied at the end of regulation shall proceed as follows:


  • One period of five (5) minutes with no injury time. At the end of five minutes, if no team is winning, proceed to penalty kicks.


Penalty Kick Provisions


  • Penalty kicks for U7 and U8 are taken 12 yards from the goal (the referee will step the distance off) with no goalkeeper
  • Each team will take three (3) kicks, alternative between teams. If, at the end of three kicks the score remains tied, teams will take one (1) kick per round until at the end of a given round, the tie is broken.
  • The first team to kick will be determined by a coin toss or "odds or evens" as administered by the referee.
  • No player may take a second kick until everyone on their team has taken a kick.


All U10, U11, and U12 Championship Matches that are tied at the end of regulation shall proceed as follows:


  • One period of eight (8) minutes with no injury time. At the end of eight minutes, if no team is winning, proceed to penalty kicks.


Penalty Kick Provisions


  • Penalty kicks for U10, U11, and U12 are taken 12 yards from the goal against a goalkeeper (the referee will step the distance off if there is no mark)
  • Each team will take five (5) kicks, alternative between teams. If, at the end of five kicks the score remains tied, teams will take one (1) kick per round until at the end of a given round, the tie is broken.
  • The first team to kick will be determined by a coin toss or "odds or evens" as administered by the referee.
  • No player may take a second kick until everyone on their team has taken a kick.


All U16 Boys matches that are tied at the end of regulation shall proceed as follows:


  • Two periods of eight (8) minutes with no injury time. At the end of eight minutes, if no team is winning, proceed to penalty kicks.


Penalty Kick Provisions


  • Penalty kicks for U16 Boys are taken 12 yards from the goal against a goalkeeper (the referee will step the distance off if there is no mark)
  • Each team will take five (5) kicks, alternative between teams. If, at the end of five kicks the score remains tied, teams will take one (1) kick per round until at the end of a given round, the tie is broken.
  • The first team to kick will be determined by a coin toss or "odds or evens" as administered by the referee.
  • No player may take a second kick until everyone on their team has taken a kick.




Regular Season Rules of Play



Referees shall apply the Laws of the Game subject to the following special exceptions set forth by competition type and level and any above enumerated exceptions for Tournament Play:

U7 and U8 Rec

Modification Notes
Format See Tournament Rules Above No injury time added
Number of Players 4v4 (no goalkeeping) Players should not stand in front of the goal the whole game, this is goalkeeping. Even if a defender, players should move to at least 1/3 of the field when their team is in possession of the ball
Substitutions On any stoppage of play
Goalkick restarts Defensive team must drop to half field
Ball in Goalkeeper?s Hands No Goalkeepers No Goalkeepers
Offside No Offside
Heading No heading allowed Infraction results in indirect freekick
Throw-ins Players may attempt 2 retries in the event of foul throw It is important to call foul throws and feel free to explain violation to offending player and/or show them how to throw the ball in correctly
Fouls All fouls are called and result in an indirect free kick

U10 Rec

Modification Notes
Format 2x25 minute halves (5 min halftime) No injury time added
Number of Players 7v7 (6 outfield players and 1 GK)
Substitutions On own throw in, any team’s goalkick If a team has had subs up and waiting for a significant period, but no opportunity to sub, you may allow them to sub on an opponents throw in.
Goalkick restarts Defending team must stay behind buildout line until ball is kicked by offensive team Video Re Build out Line is here
Ball in Goalkeeper?s Hands Defending team must stay behind buildout line until ball is kicked by offensive team Goalkeeper does not need to wait until defending team is behind buildout lineBall is live if/when goalkeeper drops ball to ground
Offside Attacking Player cannot be in offside position if they are on the defending side of the buildout line closest to the goal on which they are trying to score While normally an attacking player cannot be in an offside position on the defending half of the field, this rule moves that line further into the attacking end. Under this rule, attacking players may be behind the second to last defender so long as they are still the defensive side of the buildout line closest to the goal in which they must score. Video here explains rule in general
Heading No heading allowed Infraction results in indirect freekick
Throw-ins Players may attempt 1 retry in the event of foul throw Feel free to explain violation to offending player
Punting Not punting or dropkicking is allowed; ball may be thrown or kicked from teh ground by goal keeper. Buildout line applies to ball in goalkeepers hand. Video explaining Buildout here.

U12 Rec

Modification Notes
Format See Tournament Rules Above No injury time added
Number of Players 9v9 (8 outfield players and 1 GK)
Substitutions On own throw in, any team’s goalkick If a team has had subs up and waiting for a significant period, but no opportunity to sub, you may allow them to sub on an opponents throw in.
Goalkick restarts Standard laws of the game No buildout line at this age group
Ball in Goalkeeper?s Hands Standard laws of the game No buildout line at this age group
Offside Standard laws of the game No buildout line at this age group
Heading Heading is allowed
Throw-ins Standard laws of the game
Punting Punting is allowed

COED Rec

Modification Notes
Format See Tournament Rules Above No injury time added
Number of Players 11v11 (10 outfield players and 1 GK); at least 3 women at all times on field If the teams do not have enough women to accommodate requirement they can play a man down, unless the opposing team is ok with them replacing the woman with a man.
All other Rules Follow Standard Laws Of the Game