HamptonRoads Youth Sports Association
U13, U16 Fall 2017
Youth SoccerRules
TheHampton Roads Youth Sports Association (HRYSA) iscomprised ofthe Youth SportsprogramsfromJoint BaseLangley– Eustis, theCityofPoquoson.
ThepurposeoftheHRYSAisto provideafun and safe atmospherefor youth to learn thedifferent aspectsofthe sportofsoccer. Additionally, participation willpromotethespiritof fair play, good sportsmanship, andteamwork.
TheHRYSAusestheFédérationInternationaledeFootballAssociation (FIFA) LawsoftheGame and United States
Soccer Federation(USSF) Rulesasmodified below.
1. TheField.
a. / Playing Field:U13, U16, / 100 - 120 yardsby55 - 75yards
b. Ifthefield linesare crooked then that is thewaytheballwillbeplayed and officiated.
U13, U16, / Eight(8) feetbyeight(8) yardsd. CoachingArea:U13Mid-field totheend line.On their halfofthefield.
U16Mid-field totheeighteen (18)yard line. Ontheir halfofthefield.
e. Teams willsharethesame sideofthefield, whilespectators willoccupytheother sideofthefield.
f.Thereshould beaminimumoftwenty-five(25) feetaround playing field for playersto run safetyout-of- bounds.
2. TheBall.
a. Size:U13, U16,Number five(5)
b. Thehometeam isresponsiblefor ensuringtwo (2) properlyinflated soccer ballsareavailablefor the referee(s) toselectfromtouseduringthegame.
3. TheTeam.
a. AgeDivisions:
U13Eleven (11)and twelve(12)year olds
U16Thirteen (13), fourteen (14), and fifteen (15) year olds
c. Playersthat arenotregistered through their respectiveYouth Sportsprogramsarenot eligiblefor play.
d. Youth canplayup one agedivision iftheir age is within oneyear ofthenextagedivision provided their parent is willingto sign awaiver. Youth mayonly playin ayounger agedivision iftheyare
developmentallydelayedasdocumented byaphysician. Ayouth can be eligible toplayin two agedivisions. For example,a twelveyear old youth can playin both U13 and U16 agedivisions.
e. Youth mayonlyplay for one teamper agedivision in which theyare eligible. f.TeamRoster (minimumsand maximumnumber ofplayersper team):
U13, U16Min - Eleven (11) players,Max - Twenty-two (22) players
g. Line-Up (including goalie) on theField:
U13 Min - Seven (7) players, Max - Eleven (11) players,
U16- Min - Seven (7) players, Max - Nine (9) players,
h. Games willstartwithan equalnumber ofplayerson thefield for eachteamregardless. Asmoreplayers arrive atthegamesite theywillbe immediatelyplaced in thegameaslongasboth sidesmaintain anequal number ofplayersuntilthe maximumline-upisreached. Teams willnotbepermittedtokeep playerson the sidelinesas substitutesiftheyarebelowthemaximumnumber andtheopposingteamhasplayerson the bench. For example:In theU9 agedivision, Team1hasthirteen (13) playersat thegame andTeam2only has seven (7) players. Thegamewillstartseven (7)on seven (7) and whenTeam2 getsanother player the gamewillbecomeeight(8) on eight(8),and so on untilthemaximum line-upofeight(8) isreached.
i. Each youth isrequired toparticipate ina minimumofhalfofevery game in which he/sheattends;unlessill, injured, or beingdisciplined byhis/her coach or parent. Beyond that, coachesmustmakeeveryeffort to play his/herteammembersanequalamountoftimeduring games.
j.Ifan injuryor ejection ofaplayer occurs afteragamebegins, it isnotnecessary for theopposingteamto drawdown to maintain equalityofnumbers. However, itishighlyencouraged to do so iftheteamsare evenlymatched. Atnotimewillateambepermittedto playmore than one(1)player over their opponent.
k. Substitutionsmaybe made attheend ofthequarter/half, after agoal is scored,when agoalkick iscalled, or duringapossession throwin. Substitutionsmustbemadeone(1) for one(1).Playersarrivinglatefor a game maybeplaced in thegame inaccordancewithsubstitution rules.
4. TheUniform.
a. Theuniform consistsofteamjersey, shorts, shin guards, and cleats. Asasafetymeasure, shin guardsare required to beworn withsocksover them.
b. Sweaters, sweatshirts,sweatpants, and warm-upsmaybeworn under thejersey for comfort. Theteamjersey mustbewornastheouter garment.
c. All attire mustbefreeofmetalfasteners(buttons, zippers), draw strings, andpockets. d. Jewelryisnot allowedtobeworn, exceptfor medicalalerts.
e. Metalor plastichair accessories(includinghair beads) arenotpermittedto be worn duringplayat anytime.
f. Ayouth mayonlyplaywith an orthopediccastafter1) adoctor’spermission isgranted and 2) itisproperly wrapped to suittherefereein charge. Wrappingrequirements arecompletelyat thediscretion oftherefereeand theyouth playsathisor her own risk.
5. TheReferee. Onlyone(1) gamereferee isrequired to startagame. Ifonlyone(1) refereeisavailableatgame time, eachteamwillberequiredto providean assistant to serve aslinesman. The linesman’sduties willbe explainedbytherefereepresent. Ifboth teamsappear for ascheduled gameand no refereeispresent, the teams willwaitten (10)minutes.Ifareferee is stillnotpresent afterthattime,a coach or parentfromeachteamwill call thegame.
6. TheGame.
a. Thepublished schedulewith anyamendments,corrections, or revisionsistheofficialschedule. Games are expectedto beplayed as scheduled.Theschedulewillbealtered onlyin rareand extraordinary circumstances. Anyrequestsfor schedule changes should bemade to your Youth Sports Administratorwell in advanceoftheproposed change. Asageneralrule, mattersofpersonalconvenience(i.e.theinabilityofa coach toattend aparticular game) arenotsufficient to mandateaschedule change.Failureto playa scheduled gamewillresult in aforfeit totheopposingteam.
b. Gamesmaybeplayed rain or shine. Ifthese conditionsoccur orarepredictedwell inadvance, thehost Youth Sports Administrator willmake thedetermination whether or not thegameshould becancelled or postponed.Thisdetermination ismadenormallybythreeo’clock (3 pm) for evening gamesor by five o’clock (5 pm)thenightbeforefor morning games. However, ifagamehasnotbeen cancelled/postponed, both teamsarerequired tobeon thefieldatgame time. Thegame willbeheldat thereferee(s)’ discretion provided thefield is safe/suitablefor play.
c. Aten (10)minutegraceperiod willbegiven to teamsnothavingtheminimumnumber ofplayersat the scheduled gametime. Coaches should check with thereferee(s) to insureallhave thesametime. Ifa team getstherequired numberofminimumplayerspriorto theend oftheten (10)minutegraceperiod, the time consumed waitingwillbesubtracted from theoverallgametime. Ifthe teamstilldoesnothave enough playersafter ten (10)minutes, thegamewillbeaforfeit.
d. Acoin toss willdeterminetheteam thatgetsthe choiceofballor goaltheywilldefend at thebeginningof thegame.
e. TimePeriods:U13Two (2) – thirty(30) minutehalves
U16Two (2) – thirty-five(35) minutehalves
f.Therewillbe two (2) minutebreaksbetween quartersand afive(5) minutebreak between halves. Teams will changegoalsafter thefirst(1st) halfofthegame.
g. Agame isconsidered “official”oncebothteamshavefieldedtheminimumnumber ofplayersand one(1) halfofthegamehasbeencompleted. All gamesterminated prior to beingconsidered “official”maybe rescheduled bythehostYouth Sports Administratorprovided there is enough time intheseason and circumstancesallow.
7. Fouls.
a. Headingmaynotbe taughtduringpracticesor allowed during gamesineithertheU9 or U11agedivisions, butwillbeallowed inthe U13 and higher agedivisions.
b. Off-sides willbecalledinage divisions U11 and higher.
c. Slidetacklingisnotallowed inanyagedivision. Players who slide tacklewillbe issuedaredcardand ejected from thegame.
d. Anytime thegoaliedistributestheball intheair(whether bythrowor kick), it musttouchaplayer or the ground before itpassesmidfield.
8. Conduct.
a. Coachesareresponsiblefor theproperconduct anddecorumofhis/herteammembersandtheir spectators.
Playersand coaches willbeon onesideofthefield,whileallspectators willbeon theoppositesideofthe field duringthegame.
b. Acoachmayaddressarefereeatanytime astohowmuchtime isremaining in thegame. Duringthegame theonlyplayer who can addressareferee istheteam captain asdesignated bythe coach priorto thegame beginning.
c. Aplayer and/or coachmaycall instructionstoamember ofhis/herteamonlyifhe/she identifiestheplayer and/orteambyname. Anyinstructions which couldmislead amemberoftheopposingteamin anyway,be provocative, or are interpretedasun-sportsmanlike conductbyarefereewillresult inan indirectkick being awarded.
d. Ifthere isanyun-sportsmanlike conduct(such asyellingor anyother typeof verbal abuse)bya coach, player, or parent/spectator; thereferee willissuenomorethan one(1) warningto theviolator. A secondun- sportsmanlikeinfractionwillresultin one(1)ofthe actionsbelowbeingtaken dependingon whom the violator is.Therefereewillreport thefactstothehostYouth Sports Administrator as soon aspossible after the incidentoccurs. Ifaplayer or coach receivesared card for anyreason, atminimumhe/shewillbe required to sitoutthenext game their teamplays.
(1)Coach:Aredcardissued,expulsion fromthesoccerarea, possibleterminationofthegame ifno other coachingstaffispresent, and one(1) gamesuspension to beserved duringthenextscheduled game.
(2)Player:Ared cardissued,removalfrom thegame, placedon the teambench under thesupervision ofthe coach for theremainder ofthegame,and one(1) gamesuspensionto beserved duringthenextscheduled game.
(3)Parent/Spectator:Expulsion immediately from thesoccer area.
e. Petsarenotpermitted ator on anyathleticfield. Petownersmust abidebyallcityand militaryinstallation lawsregardingpetcontrol. It istheonsiteYouth Sports Administrator’sor hometeam coach’sresponsibility to contact theproper authoritiesifnecessary.
f.Allyouth activitiesarealcoholfree anddrug free. Thisincludes smoking.
g. Weaponsofanykind arenotpermittedatanytimeat anyfield for anyreason, exceptfor officialpolice business.
9. TheHRYSA SoccerRules willbereviewed byalltheYouth Sports Administratorson an annualbasis.Any proposed changes willbediscussed and votedon. Amajority vote isrequired to revise theHRYSA Soccer Rules.