Rules

2010 3-v-3 SOCCER RULES & REGULATIONS for NEPA 3v3 Soccer Tournament

All games will be governed by the F.I.F.A. Laws of the Game with the following exceptions

PLAYER REGISTRATION: All players must be registered on their respective team's 3-v-3 roster. Roster changes, substitutions and additions, must be made before a team's first game is started. Any team or player determined by the event directors to have falsified age or skill level will be dismissed from the tournament. ALL PARTICIPANTS MUST CARRY PROOF OF AGE (VALID PLAYER PASS, DRIVER'S LICENSE or BIRTH CERTIFICATE). Teams will be placed into divisions based upon age and gender. Teams that span more than one age group will be placed into the division of the oldest, most experienced player on the team. Tournament coordinators will make every effort to place teams into divisions with similar players.

ROSTER CHANGES: Roster changes must be made before a team's first game has started. A coach or player may make changes, but they must have all the appropriate paperwork. The person making the change must have the Player Replacement Form filled out and the player must meet the following criteria:

-Player has the appropriate travel papers

- Player has proof of age

-Player's birth date qualifies the player for the correct age division

-Player's skill level qualifies the player for the correct skills division

NUMBER OF PLAYERS: Six is the maximum number of players on a team; three field players and three substitutes (A team must have a minimum of 2 field players). Players may only play on (one) team per division. There are no goalkeepers in 3-v-3. Coed teams must have a minimum of one female player on the field at all times. This only applies to adult teams. Teams that have only one female will forfeit their remaining games if the female participant is no longer able to compete.

SUBSTITUTIONS: Substitutions may be made at any dead-ball situation, regardless of possession. Teams must get the referee’s permission and players are to enter and exit at mid-field. There are no substitutions on the fly.

TEAM UNIFORMS: All players must wear jerseys/shirts during play and each team must bring both a light and dark colored jersey/shirt. If both teams are wearing the same color, a coin flip in pool play will determine which team must change. In playoffs, the higher seed will have the option. Numbers on the jerseys are not required.

TOURNAMENT EQUIPMENT: All players must wear shin guards. Any player without shin guards will not be allowed to play. Teams are responsible for providing game balls. Here are the following ball sizes for each age group: U6-U8: Size 3; U9-U12: Size 4; U13 and up: Size 5

FIELD DIMENSIONS: The playing field is 40 yards long by 30 yards wide.

THE GOAL BOX: The goal box, ten feet wide by six feet long, is directly in front of the goal. There is no ball contact allowed within the goal box, however, any player may pass through the goal box. If the ball comes to rest in the goal box, a goal kick is awarded regardless of who touched the ball last. Any part of the ball or player's body on the line is considered in the goal box and is an extension of such. If a defender touches the ball in the goal box, a penalty kick is awarded to the offensive team. If an offensive player touches the ball within the goal box, a goal kick is awarded to the defensive team. The goals are four feet high by eight feet wide.

GAME DURATION: The game shall consist of two 12-minute halves separated by a two minute halftime period OR the first team to reach 12 goals, whichever comes first. A game is considered official if half of the game has been played. A coin toss will determine direction and possession before the start of the game. The team winning the coin toss will choose which goal to defend and the other team will kick. Games tied after regulation play shall end in a tie, except in the playoffs. Games will start promptly at the scheduled start time. Teams not present at game time will forfeit. Teams are responsible for waiting until their seed for playoffs has been determined. There are No timeouts in 3-v-3.

GOAL SCORING: A goal may only be scored from a touch (offensive or defensive) within a team's offensive half of the field (Ball must be completely on the offensive half of the field: Can not be touching the mid-line).

FORFEITS: Any team forfeiting two consecutive games in pool play will be removed from the tournament. Any team forfeiting one game in the playoffs will be removed from the tournament.

AWARDS:

Awards are given to the winner and runner-up in each tournament division. Qualification for the 3v3 Challenge National Championship is based on playing age, with 1^st and 2^nd place in each age group qualifying to play on to Challenge Nationals in July.

THERE IS NO OFFSIDE IN 3-V-3 SOCCER.

NO SLIDE TACKLING. (Players can slide for a ball if there is no contact/intent to contact initiated. Ex. Player can slide for a ball that is going out of bounds, if no other players are around).

FIVE YARD RULE: In all dead ball situations, including kickoffs, defending players must stand at least five yards away from the ball. If the defensive player's goal area is closer than five yards, the ball shall be placed five yards from the goal area in line with the place of penalty.

KICK-INS: The ball shall be kicked into play from the sideline instead of thrown in. Kick-ins are considered in play when the ball is touched with a foot and moves. Example: The ball is placed on the sideline. Player A touches the ball, with a foot and it moves and Player B shoots or dribbles. A goal can be scored from the scenario given.

INDIRECT KICKS: All dead ball kicks (kick-ins, free kicks, kick-offs) are indirect with the exception of corner kicks and penalty kicks.

GOAL KICKS: May be taken from any point on the goal line.

KICK-OFF: Is an indirect kick and may be taken in any direction.

PENALTY KICKS: Shall be awarded if, in the referee's opinion, a scoring opportunity was nullified by an infraction (the infraction does not automatically result in a red card). It is a direct kick taken from the center of the midfield line with all players behind the mid-field line and the player taking the kick. This is a "dead-ball" kick. If a goal is not scored, the defense obtains possession with a goal kick.

HAND BALL CLARIFICATION: In the opinion of the referee, deliberate handling of the ball that denies the opposing team a goal or an obvious goal-scoring opportunity will result in the following:

-a penalty kick will be awarded

-the player committing the foul will be sent off and shown a red card.

CAUTIONED PLAYERS (YELLOW CARD): Yellow cards will accumulate throughout the tournament. Players that receive two yellow cards in one game will result in a red card and will automatically be suspended for their next game (no exceptions). Any player accumulating three yellow cards during a tournament will automatically be suspended for their next game (no exceptions).

PLAYER EJECTION (RED CARD): Referees have the right to send off a player from the game for continual disobedience or as a result of an incident that warrants sending off. The team may then continue with their remaining two, three or four players, however, if the player receiving the red card was on the field of play, the team must complete the entire game a player short. The player receiving the red card will automatically be suspended for their next game (no exceptions). Players that are red carded need to leave the immediate playing area, including the fan and team areas. If a team receives 2 red cards in the same game, that team forfeits the game. ANY PLAYER THAT RECIEVES A RED CARD WILL BE ESCORTED BY A TOURNAMENT OFFICIAL TO THE SCORE TABLE WHERE THE PLAYER WILL REMAIN FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE GAME. THE PLAYER WILL HAVE TO RETURN TO THE SCORE TABLE BEFORE THE START OF THEIR NEXT SCHEDULED GAME. THERE ARE NO EXCEPTIONS TO THIS RULE.

SCORING (IN POOL PLAY): Games will be scored according to the following scoring system: 3 points for a win; 1 point for a tie and 0 points for a loss.

TIEBREAKERS: For teams that are tied in record, the following will be used to determine seed or place finish. If one team forfeited a game, they are the lower seed. (Teams with any forfeits automatically lose all tiebreakers).

For teams tied in record where one team received a forfeit, games against the team that forfeited are disregarded when figuring the tiebreaker. In pool play, ties between two or more teams will be broken by:

(1) head-to-head results in games among the tied teams;

(2) Goal difference in head-to-head games;

(3) Goals against in head-to-head games;

(4) Goal difference in pool play games;

(5) Goals against in pool play games;

(6) Shootout. Each tie-breaking criterion is carried out to the fullest in determining the seeds in ties between three or more teams. When one criterion establishes only a partial seeding in ties between three or more teams, leaving remaining teams tied, the tie-breaking process starts over with the (1) criterion.

Two examples:

Example A:

Team A 2-1 (Team A defeats Team B, 1-0)

Team B 2-1 (Team B defeats Team C, 2-0)

Team C 2-1 (Team C defeats Team A, 4-0)

(1) Head-to-head will not work because each team is 1-1 against the two opponents.

(2) Goal difference in head-to-head games produces: Team A = -3; Team B = +1; Team C = +2. Criterion (2) determines all three seeds: Team C is Seed 1, Team B is Seed 2 and Team A is Seed 3.

Example B:

Team A 2-1 (Team A defeats Team B, 1-0).

Team B 2-1 (Team B defeats Team C, 2-0).

Team C 2-1 (Team C defeats Team A, 3-0)

(1) Head-to-head will not work because each team is 1-1 against the two opponents.

(2) Goal difference in head-to-head games produces: Team A = -2; Team B = +1; Team C = +1. Team A is Seed 3. With the remaining two teams tied at +1, revert back to Criterion (1). (1) Team B beat Team C head-to-head. Team B is Seed 1. Team C is Seed 2.

SHOOTOUTS: Each team designates three shooters to take one penalty kick each from the midfield line with no defense. The winner of a coin flip chooses whether to shoot first or second. Teams alternate shots. If one team makes more shots in the first three attempts, it is declared the winner. If the shootout is tied after three rounds; it continues one shot at a time with every available player from each team shooting. If either team has a lead at the end of any round, it is the winner.

Example: Team A has four players and Team B has five players. In the first three rounds, each team makes two shots. The shootout proceeds to the fourth round where Team A's remaining player make a shot. Team B has one of its two remaining players shoot and that player scores. In the fifth round, Team A returns to its first shooter who misses. Team B's last shooter misses. In the sixth round, Team A (second shooter in original order) shoots and scores. Team B's first shooter goes again and misses. Team A is declared the winner.

TOURNAMENT DIRECTOR: In the event of a misapplication of the official 3-v-3 Rules, the tournament director reserves the right to overturn a referee decision. The event director has final authority regarding all event disputes and issues. Under no circumstances can any coach, team official, player, or parent protest any decision that a referee makes in the application of the FIFA laws of the game.

SPORTSMANSHIP: Players, coaches and spectators are expected to act in the nature of good sportsmanship at all times. Fighting will not be tolerated! Player's, coaches, and fans guilty of fighting will be banned for the duration of the event. Abuse of the referee, verbal or otherwise, will not be tolerated. The field referee will have the authority to eject any offending party. Any indication of such behavior by a player, coach or parent will result in immediate removal from the tournament site. We are all here to play soccer and have fun. SITUATIONS OR OCCURRENCES THAT THESE RULES DO NOT ADDRESS SHALL BE LEFT TO THE SOLE DISCRETION OF THE TOURNAMENT DIRECTOR.

Revised June, 2011