8 Coed Adult Recreational Soccer Rules

TEAM ROSTERS/CHECKING-IN

All players must check-in with the field manager by the gate prior to taking the field. Be sure to have a form of identification, and sign the team’s official roster. A signature is only required prior to the first game played, however you must check in each night of play. Anyone not abiding by this rule is subject to league suspension.

Maximum players allowed per roster is 15. Once a team has reached the limit of 15 players that have been checked in, they may not add another player under any circumstance. A player may not sign more than one roster.

CO-ED RULES AND TEAM SIZE

Each team shall field no more than 8 players (with at least 2 females) at any one time. 8 Coed Sports rules allow a team to play and not forfeit as long as they have one female player. Anything less will constitute a forfeit. There is no maximum limit to the amount of females which must be on the field. Teams are allowed to pick up 2 players during the regular season to field a team but cannot have more than 8 players if they are picking up that night during the regular season. In the playoffs, all teams must follow their roster only and no pick ups are allowed. In order for a player to be eligible for the playoffs, they must play in at least 2 regular season games, no exceptions.

If a team is found to be playing with an illegal participant in playoffs, the game will be forfeited immediately and the opposing team is awarded the win.

COIN FLIP/BEGINNING OF GAME

The team that wins the coin toss at the start of the game will have first choice to kick-off, or choose a goal to defend. The referee will choose who calls the toss or odd/even selection.

KICKOFF

Kickoff consists of the ball being placed at midfield. The ball cannot be shot at the goal with the first touch, and must be touched by another offensive player to be a goal. Therefore, it takes at least two offensive touches to score. If the ball is shot from kickoff and goes into the goal with no other offensive player touching it, the possession goes to the opposing team as a goal kick.

TIME

The game will be divided into (2) 22-minute halves separated by a brief 3 minute halftime. There will be a running clock maintained by a referee who will advise both teams when there is one minute remaining in each half. The clock will stop during injury time-outs. Any team intentionally delaying, (kicking the ball far out of bounds) will allow the referee (at his/her discretion) to stop the clock.

Regular season games that get cancelled due to weather, lights, etc. will be official if they reach halftime, however playoff games will pick up where they were interrupted regardless of time remaining. Additionally, any games in the first half that get cancelled due to weather, lights, etc. will continue another time and start where they left off.

SUBSTITUTIONS

There is no limit to the amount of substitutions each team can make. All substitute players must notify the referee before entering the game, there is no substituting “on the fly.” Substitutions may occur during any stoppage of play, such as: Throw-ins, goal kick, corner kick, or after a goal is scored.

OUT OF BOUNDS

Anytime the ball goes out of bounds over either sideline, a throw- in will ensue. The person throwing in the ball must throw the ball overhead with both hands and keep both feet remaining on the ground out-of-bounds until the ball is released.

Anytime the ball crosses an endline, a corner kick or goal kick will ensue.
a. Last touched by a defender results in a corner kick. Ball is placed on nearest corner and kicked in by offensive team. Goals may be scored directly on corner kicks. All players must be outside the goal box. Defenders must be five paces from the corner kick.
b. Last touched by attacker results in a goal kick by the defense. Offensive players must be ten paces from a goal kick.

MIDFIELD (HALF)

A player cannot score a goal from the opposite half unless touched again on the other half by the offense or defense before entering the goal.

THE GOAL BOX

A goal box will be marked off in front of each goal. It will extend 5 paces/yards out and 2 paces/yard to each side of the goal posts. All players (offensive and defensive) must not touch the ball at anytime while it is within the vicinity of the outlined box. If an offensive player is on or in the box and the ball strikes that player, it will result in a goal kick. If a defensive player is on or in the box and the ball strikes that player, it will result in a penalty kick. A dead ball in the box that does not result in a goal will result in a goal kick for the defensive team. Players may run through the box at any time as long as the ball is not in the box. Once the ball has entered the box, players must remain outside of the outlined area.

NO GOALKEEPERS

Teams will not be allowed to have an official goalkeeper. Hands are not allowed to be used by any player under any circumstance.

OFFSIDES

There is no offsides.

SLIDING

There is no sliding of any sort on the field. No slide tackles and no other sliding, period, in any circumstance on the pitch even if no opposing player is near the ball. Slips and accidental falls will be up to referee discretion.

THREE POINTS OF CONTACT

A player cannot have three points of their body touching the ground when the ball strikes them or it will result in a free kick for the opposing team. Example: putting a knee down while both feet are on the ground to block a shot.

ALL KICKS ARE DIRECT KICKS

The ball is to be placed at the point of the infraction and to be put in play by any player on the affected team. No opposing player is allowed to be within 5 steps of ball prior to kick. Goals may be scored on direct kicks. A direct kick is to follow these infractions: (1) Charging (2) Roughness (3)Handball (4) Dangerous play/kick (5) Slide-tackles. Penalties incurred inside the goal box by the defense will result in a penalty kick on an open goal 15 paces out from the top of the goal box. If an infraction occurs within 5 yards of the goal box and does not result in a penalty kick, then the referee will mark the spot of infraction 5 yards from the edge of the box and require defending players to remain 5 yards away in front of the box. The defense may not be in the goal box. Handballs even unintentional if you are the last defender will result in a penalty kick. Referee discretion must be absolute of last man.

Scoop shots are not allowed directly from free kicks that result in a direct goal. If the ball is scooped from a free kick, the ball must be redirected by a teammate or opposing player before going into the net to count as a goal. If the ball is scooped on a free kick and not touched by any player, but goes in the net, it will be a goal kick for the opposing team.

HAND BALL

If the ball strikes the outstretched arm of any player it will result in a free kick for the opposing team. This is up to the discretion of the referee. If a shot from the offensive team is within the frame of the goal and strikes the arm or is blocked by the arm of a defensive player, this will result in a penalty kick. This is also up to the discretion of the referee. Yellow/red card may be given for intentionally blocking a goal with hands.

INTENTIONAL INTERRUPTION OF A GOAL SCORING OPPORTUNITY

If an offensive player takes a shot that is rolling into the goal and a defensive player deliberately enters the box to prevent the goal from happening, this will result in a penalty kick and player may be issued a yellow/red card based on severity of infraction.

PLAYOFF OVERTIME

Overtimes will only be used during the playoffs if the score remains tied at the end of regulation. Overtime in playoffs will start with 4 men and 2 women on each team for the first 5-minutes of overtime. In the 2nd five minutes, each team will drop one more male and female (3 guys 1 girl) to finish out the remaining 5 minutes of overtime. Golden goal in overtime ALWAYS finishes the game! Penalty kicks will only be used in the playoffs after 2 overtime periods have elapsed.

SHOOTOUT SPECIFICS:

1. Each team selects 5 players (3 males, 2 females)- You can start with any five on or off the field when penalty kicks begin. A coin toss will decide which team shoots first. The referee will decide which goal to shoot at. Shots will be placed and not dribbled.
2. Teams will alternate taking direct penalty shots from 15 paces off the goal line at an open goal. The order of shooting for each team must be alternated: Guy/girl/guy/girl/guy.
3. If tied after the 1st round of penalty kicks, there will be a 2nd round of a different five players shooting. Players who shot in the 1st shootout are not eligible to shoot again until all remaining players present have shot. If and when 1st team begins to utilize players for the second time, the other team may “recycle” players as well. Thus, some players on the team with more people present, may or may not shoot. If tied after the 2nd round, the shootout then goes to sudden death. Penalty spot is extended 5 yards for sudden death. 1 kicker each round, not gender specific. If the shootout is still tied after each player from each team has attempted a shot, the penalty spot will be moved to half field until the tie is decided.

8 Coed reserves the right to skip to sudden death after the first round of penalty kicks.

SCORING/STANDINGS

A victory is determined by the team with the most goals, earning the winning team 3 points in standings. A tie counts as 1 point, and a loss gives zero points. Cumulative point total will determine playoff seeding after regular season has ended.

In the event of a tie in points, the better goal differential will determine the higher seed. If that is a tie, total of goals scored is next determining factor. If that is also tied, lowest goals allowed yields higher seed.

Additionally, if there are not more than 3 COMP teams registered on a particular night, the playoff bracket will be split with the top half of teams being placed in the upper division (COMP), and the lower half of teams being placed in the lower division (REC). This is the best way to create a fair environment for everyone involved.

FORFEITS

Forfeits must be communicated at least 3 hours prior to game time in order to give the league a chance to notify the opponent and make alternate arrangements. Forfeits which are not communicated in a timely manor can result in disciplinary action, since it is unfair to the other team playing.

REFEREE

Please understand that any touching, threatening or abusive language and behavior towards the referee will deem suspension from the league. If needed, the Police will be called and reports filed. Any abuse towards the referee will not be tolerated and action taken accordingly.

YELLOW CARD

Yellow cards are given by the referee for any act that can disrupt the flow of the game. This includes aggressive or reckless play, profanity, intentional hand balls, kicking the ball far out of bounds to run the clock, etc. Referees will use their best discretion, as yellow cards are a last resort to be sure the rules are being followed. Any player receiving 3 yellow cards in the regular season will be suspended for one game. Additionally, two yellows in one game results in a red card.

RED CARD

If a player receives a red card, or 2 yellow cards in the same game, they will be disqualified from the current game and must leave the facility. This includes all parking areas. Red carded players have 2 minutes by the referee’s watch to leave the facility. Their team must play down a player for the remainder of the game, and may not substitute for that player. This applies to playoffs as well, including overtimes. The team must continue to play down a player in 1st and 2nd overtime. The red carded player will be suspended for one game, and will not be allowed at the fields the following week. Failure to follow this rule results in a team forfeit as well as a longer suspension for the red carded player. Any one player receiving two red cards in one season will be out until the following season.

FIGHTING

There is absolutely no fighting. Please walk off the field or substitute yourself out if you feel you’re near that moment. If a player is involved in a fight there is minimum two game suspension. There are no refunds if this occurs and the team/player may not be allowed back into the league depending on the severity of the situation. If anyone from that same team is fighting the team is suspended at least one game. Subs coming onto the field will be red carded during any altercations. This is a coed league for fun and recreation, fighting has no place here. Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

ABUSIVE LANGUAGE

Swearing or cursing at yourself or someone else may result in yellow or red card subject to referee discretion.

REC DIVISION vs COMP DIVISION

In effort to create a fun and fair playing environment, there is a Recreational “REC” division and a Competitive “COMP” division for each night. Please be courteous to other teams who are truly recreational by registering your team in the proper division. Teams which sign up as REC but choose to recruit COMP players may be forced by the league to change divisions. Additionally, if a REC team wins the division championship two seasons in a row they then must move up to the COMP division for their next season.

REC division teams may play 1-2 COMP teams during their regular season games.

UNIFORMS/TEAM COLOR

Players are expected to show up with the color that the schedule on our website indicates. While uniforms are preferred, we understand that not every team will have one. However, we do expect teams to be color coordinated. Players may be asked to change shirts if the color they are wearing is conflicting with the flow of the game.

Pinnies may be rented by filling out a form with the field manager by the gate, and must be returned at the conclusion of the game. Failure to return the pinny to the league will result in a suspension until it is returned.

CANCELLATIONS/RAINOUTS

Soccer may be cancelled for the night due to existing weather conditions, dangerous or unplayable field conditions, facility constraints, etc. Our staff makes every effort to play all scheduled games, thus we will not cancel games unless absolutely necessary. Please remember that we will often not have an answer until closer to games times. We will do our best to notify players as far in advance as possible. If the night is cancelled, our staff notify all of the team captains and points of contact. If a league is cancelled on site, the staff will attempt to contact those teams still scheduled to play the remainder of the night. Depending on the time of cancellation, some teams will unfortunately have to be notified on site. If we do cancel, follow next week’s schedule (ex. If April 13th is cancelled, teams should follow the April 20th schedule for their next game). The games that are cancelled will be moved to the back of the schedule and made up at the end of the season.

GAME TIME REQUESTS

Most teams in the league prefer to play in the middle time slots. Requests for all games to be in the middle time slots will not be taken into consideration, as it is unfair to the rest of the teams in the league. We try to give every team a fair mix of times.

Annual members have the ability to purchase time slots on the member page upon sign up. If you wish to have more games at specific times, consider becoming an annual member.

SOCCER BALLS

All teams are required to provide a size 5 soccer ball for each game. Please coordinate.

ALCOHOL

Consumption of alcohol is not allowed on or around the fields, as it is a city rule. Please save the social drinking for the post-game bar or elsewhere than at the fields.

PETS (ANIMALS)

Unless it is a service animal, there are no pets, animals, dogs, cats etc. allowed inside the fence of the playing fields.

Thank you in advance for reading and abiding by our rules. 8 Coed Sports reserves the right to use all rules at their own discretion.