Joseph L. Rodrigues

Tournament of Champions

2014 Competition

The Tournament of Champions features state and league champion teams of the Midwest Region in these seven categories: Men’s Open, Women’s Open, Men’s Under-23, Women’s Under-23, Men’s Over-30, and Women’s Over-30. Founded in 1980 by the former Region II Director, Joseph Rodrigues, the TOC offers the highest level of competition in the region. To honor his vision, the competition was later renamed the Joseph L. Rodrigues Tournament of Champions.

I.Titles and Awards

Section 1.The tournament is open only to affiliated teams within the Midwest Region of USASA and recognized by their State Associations, National Leagues,, Regional Leagues, and/or Direct Affiliate as:

(1)Men’s Open Division

(a)the State, Regional, or National League Champion

(b)the State, Regional, or National League Runner-Up

(c)the winner of the previous year’s Tournament of Champions

(d)the runner up of the previous year’s Tournament of Champions

(e)if needed to round out the competition, a team designated by the host State Association.

(2)Women’s Open Division, Men’s U/23 and O/30 Division, Women’s U/23 and 0/30 Division

(a)the State, Regional, or National League Champions

(b)the State, Regional, or National League Runner-Ups

(c)League Champions

(d)the winners of the previous year’s Tournament of Champions

(e)the runner up of the previous year’s Tournament of Champions

(f)if needed to round out the competition, a team designated by the host State Association.

Section 2.A “Traveling Cup” shall be entrusted to the State Association, Regional League or National League of the winning team until the next tournament is played. Any State Association, Regional or National League that has won the Traveling Cup three times shall be awarded that cup in perpetuity.

Section 3.Each “Traveling Cup” is named for a person who has significantly contributed to the game of adult soccer, and shall be decided upon by the Regional Council at the next meeting following the retirement of the previous cup.

Section 4.A trophy shall be awarded to the first and second place teams. Other awards may be issued at the discretion of the host State Association and the Region.

II.Management

  1. The Regional Director shall appoint a Tournament Administrator.
  2. The Tournament Administrator, with the advice and consent of the hosting association and the Regional Director, may appoint a Tournament Committee and a Disciplinary Committee.
  3. The Tournament Committee shall be responsible for the management and administration of this tournament, including scheduling and player eligibility. The Tournament Committee has the discretion to enforce all Rules of the Tournament.
  4. The Disciplinary Committee shall be responsible for the disposition of protests and disciplinary matters. The decision of this Committee shall be final.
  5. The Regional Referee Administrator shall assign and coordinate the referees.

III.Entry Requirements

  1. There shall be no entry fee. There shall be no admission charge for players, coaches, referees or administrators.
  2. States, Regional or National Leagues, entering the competition must submit a completed entry form and a performance bond check for Five Hundred ($500) for each team entered, to the Tournament Administrator no later than the Tournament final entry deadline.
  3. Each State, Regional or National League, is required to send at least one qualified official for each of its teams entered in the competition - up to a total of four. Each Regional or National League is required to pay the cost of sending such officials to the Tournament to the State Association (s) in which their competing teams are domiciled. State Associations, Regional or National Leagues that do not comply with the referee representation minimums shall be fined five hundred dollars ($500.00).
  4. All teams must send at least one representative to the mandatory meeting scheduled by the Tournament Administrator prior to the commencement of the competition. The representative must have a player pass for each player participating, and the roster copies necessary to complete the proper registration of his/her team at the meeting.
  5. Each team must provide an original, signed roster from the Registrar of their State Association, Regional or National League at the time of registration. The roster must include the player’s name, birth date, team name, and date of registration.
  6. Each team must provide five (5) typed copies of the Player Roster/Game Report Form to the Tournament Administrator, or designated official, at the mandatory meeting.
  7. Each roster may have 21 players listed, of which 18 of those players may suit up for any one game.
  8. Three guest players are allowed on the roster of 21 players. However, a guest player must be properly registered in the same state in which the team competes.
  9. Rosters may not be changed after completing registration with the Tournament Committee.

IV.Team and Player Eligibility

  1. To be eligible to participate, a team must be registered through their State Association, Regional or National League and shall enter the Tournament through their State Association, Regional or National League.
  2. Each player of a team competing must meet the eligibility criteria relating to age or gender and must be properly registered with that team.
  3. Any player requiring a Professional Player Release Form, International Player Clearance, Previous Team Release Form, or any other document proof of eligibility must have that/those documents available for review at the Tournament Venue.

d. A player who is under the age of thirty may be listed on the player roster of an Over-30 team, but may not participate in any game until the player has attained the age of thirty.

e. A team participating in the Women’s O/30 Division may have no more than three players between the ages of 25 and 29.

f. A Coed team on the field of play shall have a minimum of 3 and a maximum of 5 male field players. The goalkeeper may be of either gender. If a male player is sent off, the team cannot play with more than 4 male field players. If a female player is sent off, the team can not play with more than 6 female field players. Additional player send-offs shall be handled in a comparable manner. Neither the roster nor the number of players suiting up is required to have any specific gender composition.

g. Each player must have a valid player-pass issued by the State Association, Regional League, National League, State affiliatedLeague, or USASA. A player will not be permitted to participate without a player pass. Other than guest players, each player must be registered to the team in which he/she is playing.

  1. A player may only be named on the roster of one team in any division.

V. Uniforms

a. Player's shirts, shorts and socks must all be alike. Clearly visible numbers, at least six inches high and sewn, pressed, or silk screened on, must be worn on the back of each player’s jersey, including the goalkeeper. Each player on a team must wear a different number.

b. A description of the team’s uniforms must be provided on the Player Roster Form.

c. When the referee determines that the uniforms of the two competing teams are so similar as to create possible player identification problems on the field, the home team shall change its uniform.

d. The home team is listed first on the schedule.

VI Playing Rules

a. In all competitions, the playing rules are the FIFA Laws of the Game, in

Effect at the time of the deadline of entry, with the following exceptions:

b. Teams must be at their match site, ready for player check-in, no less than fifteen (15) minutes prior to the scheduled kick-off.

c. Team managers or coaches shall be entitled to verify the eligibility of their opponent’s players.

d. Unlimited substitutions shall be permitted. Substitutions may be made by both teams, during any stoppage of play.

e. No more than eighteen (18) players from the Player Roster may be in uniform for a game.

f. Only eighteen players and three other persons (coaches, managers, and trainers) are allowed in the bench area of each team. Children under the age of twelve years old are not permitted in the bench area.

VII. Scheduling

a. TheTournament Committee will determine the length of all games. Games will be no less than sixty (60) minutes. The final games will be ninety (90) minutes when feasible.

b. Teams are to be drawn into groups that play a round-robin, or other form of elimination, to determine the finalists.

c. The semi-final and final games shall be played on the last day of the tournament.

d. Whenever possible, pairings shall be made so that teams that have already played each other are placed into separate brackets.

e. A team that fails to field at least seven players at the scheduled kick-off time shall forfeit the game by a score of 3:0. The Tournament Committee may use its discretion in enforcing this rule.

VIII. Scoring and Eliminations

a. Teams are to be awarded three (3) points for a win, one (1) point for a tie, and no points for a loss.

b. Should teams be tied at the end of the round-robin, the following criteria shall be used to break the tie:

i. Head to Head. The winner of “head to head” competition between tied teams shall advance.

ii. Goal Differential. The team with the greater goal difference (goals scored minus goals allowed) shall advance

iii.The team that scores the greater number of goals shall advance.

iv.Teams which are still tied after applying the above criteria shall be required to use “kicks from the penalty mark” to determine which team shall advance. If due to a lack of daylight and the absence of artificial lighting, or if due to prohibitive weather conditions, this is not possible, a coin toss, a drawing of lots, or similarly fair alternative method shall be used to determine the winner at the discretion of the Tournament Committee.

c. If a semi-final or final game should result in a tie, “kicks from the penalty mark” shall be used to determine the winner. If this is not possible due to a lack of daylight and the absence of artificial lighting, or if due to prohibitive weather conditions, a coin toss, a drawing of lots, or similarly fair alternative method shall be used to determine the winner at the discretion of the Tournament Committee.

d. If non-completion of a game results from misconduct clearly traceable to one of the competing teams, its management, or its followers, the Tournament Committee is authorized to decide the disposition of the game.

e. If a game is not completed because one of the teams is unable to field at least seven players, the score will stand as of the moment of termination or abandonment. If the team responsible for abandonment has more goals than the opposing team, or the game is tied, the opposing team will be awarded a forfeit victory of three (3) goals.

IX. Disciplinary Matters

a. State Associations, Regional or National Leagues whose teams fail to complete all of their scheduled games may forfeit their bond money.

b. Players sent off the field by the referee shall be suspended from the next scheduled tournament game played as a minimal penalty. The Disciplinary Committee shall have the authority to suspend such players for additional games in the competition.

c. Any player sent off by the referee for a second time during the competition shall be suspended for the remainder of the competition.

d. A note indicating a protest, accompanied by a one hundred dollar ($100.00) cash protest fee, must be submitted to the Tournament Administrator within one hour after the conclusion of the match. The fee shall be returned if the protest is upheld (if the Disciplinary Committee agrees with the protesting team).

e. Any team found to have played an ineligible player shall be suspended from the tournament and shall forfeit its bond.

f. Any team not in compliance with the Entry Requirements and Player and Team Eligibility sections of the Rules of the Tournament shall be fined one hundred dollars ($100.00).

g. Fines, bonds, and protest fees go to the Midwest Region’s Treasury.

h. The Tournament Committee may impose sanctions against an individual player, coach or entire team for displaying gross or unsporting behavior. Sanctions may include prohibiting participation in the Tournament of Champions the following year. The State Association, Regional or National League of the sanctioned party may appeal the Committee’s decision at the next meeting of the Regional Council.

X. MATTERS NOT PROVIDED FOR

Any matters not provided for by these Rules of the Tournament shall be determined by the Tournament Committee, with the approval of the Regional Executive Committee, whose decision shall be final and shall not be appealed.

XI. AMENDMENTS

Rules of the Joseph L. Rodrigues Tournament of Champions may only be amended by majority vote of the Regional Council.

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