Tournament Rules

ELIGIBILITY

All players must be a full time student as defined by their university and eligible to participate on their corresponding club soccer team
Players must be printed on the match roster, write-ins are not allowed

DURATION OF GAMES AND HALFTIME

Running time will be used throughout the entire tournament. All games will have 40-minute halves separated by a 10 minute halftime. Pool play games that are tied at the end of regulation time will remain tied. Playoff games that are tied after regulation play will proceed directly Kicks From the Mark

GAME CHECK-IN CONDUCT

At least fifteen minutes prior to the start of each scheduled game, a tournament administrator will check in the team.
Each player must have a school photo ID that must match to the team’s player roster. Failure to present a University Photo ID, said player will be ineligible to participate. The Field Marshall’s are there to assist you with anything you might need and to handle the administrative concerns of the match. They do not have any authority over any decision made by the referee.
Immediately after the match the Field Marshall will make sure the match card is signed by each team representative and taken to the tournament headquarters. A team who fails to properly check in with the Field Marshall will forfeit that game.

FORFEITURES

Teams failing to check-in (15) minutes prior to their scheduled kick-off time or failing to report ready to play within (5) minutes of scheduled kick-off time may forfeit their match. All teams must have a minimum of (7) players present to start the match. Teams who have forfeited may NOT continue on in the tournament.

ROSTER LIMIT

PLAYERS’ EQUIPMENT

Home team will wear light jersey while away team will wear dark. If there is a conflict, home team will change
No taped jersey numbers will be allowed, If there are not enough jerseys, the number of unique jerseys available will dictate the number of eligible players for that game.

SUBSTITUTIONS

Any stoppage provided the substitute is checked-in and ready prior to the stoppage. Exception on injuries.

COACHING

CAUTIONS AND EJECTIONS

Any player or substitute receiving an ejection (red card) during the course of the tournament will be ejected from the game immediately and be asked to leave the vicinity of the playing field (including the road and hill running alongside the fields) and is ineligible for the team’s next game. The League Directors will determine if the carded player’s action warrant suspension for more than one game or tournament entirely
A coach who is dismissed from the game will leave the vicinity of the fields, including nearby roads where he or she is able to watch the game. Depending on the severity of dismissal, there will be suspended a minimum of one game.
A player receiving two cautions (yellow cards) in a single game is considered to have been given an ejection (red card) for a purpose of awarding points for the Tournament competition.
A team will be disqualified from the Tournament if any player or coach fails to comply with the provisions of this section.

SUSPENDED AND TERMINATED GAMES

If in the opinion of tournament officials a game must be suspended; the game may be resumed, but is subject to being ended not less than five (5) minutes prior to the scheduled start of the next game.
If in the opinion of tournament officials, a game must be terminated for misconduct of players, substitutes, bench personnel, or spectators, the offending team could be suspended from further play and forfeits that game and all remaining games. **All previous points earned remain as played
If a game is terminated due to problems associated with the fields, including lighting for night games, or due to the serious injury of a player (see section INJURY) the resumption of play for that game will be at the discretion of tournament officials.
Tournament officials may at their discretion conclude the game, require completion of the game or utilize penalty kicks to determine the winner of the game depending upon the circumstance and taking into account the potential effect of the game results on the standings of the teams.

INJURY

Delay of the game will only be allowed for an injury requiring professional medical attention and the inability to remove the injured player from the field until and while the medical attention is being provided to the player. The delay will result in the appropriate time being added to the full game time, based on the judgment of the referee. Otherwise, each game will be played without stoppage time. **All preliminary games will be terminated not less than five (5) minutes prior to the scheduled start of the next game.
Failure to complete any game due to serious injury requiring suspension of play shall be controlled by the preceding section “Suspended and Terminated games.”

DETERMINING WINNERS:

Teams will be awarded points on the following basis
- Three (3) points for each win
- One (1) point for each tie
- Zero (0) points for each Loss
In the event of a tie in points at end of group play, teams to advance will be determined as follows
- Highest Number of Points
- Goal differential
- Goals Scored
- Point Total Head-to-Head
- Goal Difference Head-to-Head
- Fair Play (Highest Conduct Score)
  - Yellow Card: -1
  - Indirect Red Card: -3
  - Direct Red Card: -4
  - Yellow Card & Direct Red Card: -5
- If three-way tie exist within group after steps 1-6, a three-way coin flip will be conducted. If all coins are H or T, repeat until HHT or TTH. The two teams that show the same side fo the coin will compete in kicks from the mark.

PROTESTS

Protests are not allowed. Any situation not explicitly covered by the rules will be resolved by the Tournament Directors. Decisions relating to the interpretation of the Tournament Rules can only be made by the WCSA Directors

INCLEMENT WEATHER OR ACT OF GOD

In the event of inclement weather, or act of God that occurs once the games have begun, winners will be decided based on points earned up to that point, with any tie breakers being determined using the protocol outlined above in “Determining Winners”