Tournament Team Rules
All Star and Tournament Team Rules
(2007 edition - remain in effect until further notice)The following is addressed to coaches and administrators of All Star and tournament teams:
Although common sense should be your guide in dealing with All Star and Tournament teams, which collectively will be referred to as "select teams", it has become clear that some rules need to be put into place so that we can avoid problems and maximize the enjoyment of all the participants - players, families, coaches and other AYSO volunteers:
1. Team Status
All post-season teams are Tournament teams until December 1. After this date All Star teams may be announced. It is important to note that post-season play may not in any way interfere with the regular season. Once the Area All Star tournament (including the Sectional and Tri-Section tournaments) has been completed, each All Star team becomes another Tournament team and will have no special status or priority.
2. Team Organization
It is recommended for each team to appoint a team administrator. The team administrator will need to:
- Collect three medical release forms per player. Make sure the forms are completely filled out, are dated and have a wet signature, keep one set and give the other two sets to coaches.
- For teams participating in Area tournaments, collect a birth certificate or other proof of age for each player.
- Request players' AYSO ID or registration numbers from the Division Director.
- From 2005] Pertinent information from players and parents for a team roster (address, phone numbers, including cell phone, e-mail etc) will now automatically be available online once players have been assigned by the division director.
- From 2006] Arrange for parents to pay uniform and tournament fees (tba by Tournament Director) using our tournament payment system. Parents can access this through their Family Profile.
- Provide a list of referees that are planning to support the team during the post season to the Referee Administrator at referee@ayso76.org.
3. Team Expectations
At the first team meeting the following needs to discussed with the parents and players:
- Notify parents that they are required to volunteer at the Beverly Hills Sportsmanship Cup, usually the third weekend in December. Team coach or administrator is responsible for signing up the team's volunteers and their scheduling.
- Stress the fact there is a long-term commitment; most teams will play well into the spring or until the summer.
- Discuss the team's expectations in regards to practices.
- Discuss that parents are expected to pay for tournament/travel/field fees.
- Encourage parents to become referees. Tournament teams will directly benefit from bringing a referee team to a tournament. Many tournaments prefer complete referee teams to come along (3 referees completing 3 games each), rather than banking the referee deposits. Many tournaments are now rejecting applications if a team does not provide certified referees. Other tournaments may not accept teams that come from regions that did not supply referees in the past; this is not always explicitly stated. It is important for each team to do its utmost to bring referees to each tournament. There is higher likelihood of admission to a tournament if a team brings a complete set of referees.
4. Fees
There is a one time uniform fee for each tournament team player, which is $85 for 2007/2008 as well as a $10 administration fee. All teams are responsible for all tournament fees and referee deposits for all tournaments, including the tournaments that we will apply to as a region: Thanksgiving tournament, Beverly Hills Sportsmanship Cup (no referee deposit required) and the Riverside Locomotion tournament. Tournament application fees are typically $300-$500, and the referee deposits are about $150-200.
5. Uniforms
Uniforms must be ordered through the Region.
The primary uniforms for all teams will be the same pattern, each shirt having a unique number. This will facilitate players moving between teams. There will be extra uniforms available to each team in case of new players or other changes later on in the season. Contact the Tournament Director(s).
Uniform numbers will be allocated to players by coaches according to the following procedures:
- First, different sized uniforms will be allocated by the coach or team administrator as needed according to the sizes of the players.
- Second, if two players on the same team request a jersey with the same uniform number, and jersey size is not a consideration in the particular case (in which case the jersey will be allocated to the player for whom it was more size appropriate, the coach will seek to resolve the conflicting requests amicably. If agreement cannot be reached, the jersey will be assigned to the player with seniority, that is with the greater number of years playing in the division, irrespective of whether they have previously played in a tournament team in that or any other division. If two or more players with equal seniority request a jersey with the same uniform number, the jersey will be assigned by coin toss (if two players) or by random drawing (if three or more players), in either case conducted by a coach or team administrator with each player either present or represented by a parent. Once a uniform is assigned to a player in accordance with these procedures (size/seniority/coin toss or random drawing), that player may not switch it with another player except with the coach's consent and, if three players have requested the same jersey, by repeating the procedure without the participation of the player who wishes to switch. A player may not have a request for more than one jersey number resolved by a coin toss or random drawing
- The coach retains final discretion over the allocation of uniform numbers
It is optional for a team to order bags, jackets and other team items. Each team orders these individually. The region's color scheme (black/white/orange) and logo need to be adhered to.
6. Tournament Applications.
Every tournament team must follow these procedures:
a. You may not enter a team in a tournament without first notifying our Tournament Directors. E-mail to tournamentdirector@ayso76.org.
b. All rosters must be printed out from our ayso-online system and signed by the Regional Commissioner or, if the Commissioner is unavailable, the Registrar. Most tournaments require that players be listed in order of uniform number. It is recommended to have a few rosters signed at the same time. However any roster changes (other than an absent player) need to be signed by the Regional Commissioner.
c. All tournaments must be paid for by a Region check, to be issued by our Treasurer, and the funds for payment must be remitted to the region before we will issue a check.
d. Please follow this procedure when applying to tournaments (other than those that we apply to as a Region): Call or e-mail the Director of the tournament you are interested in directly, asking to reserve a spot for your team. Log in to ayso-online and submit a check using our automated check request system. We will cut a Regional check and will notify you how it can be picked up. Fill the roster for the tournament and get the team roster and check signed by our Regional Commissioner or the registrar (see above).
e. If any player is unable to afford the cost of participation in a tournament, please let us know and we will determine if funds are available to subsidize participation. Unfortunately, we are prohibited from using general Region funds but we hope the Sportsmanship Cup will provide us with a profit that can be applied for this purpose. For full or partial scholarship requests, the applicant is required to contact the Regional Commissioner.
f. The Thanksgiving, Beverly Hills Sportsmanship Cup and Riverside Locomotion Tournament are the only tournaments we will apply to as a region. The teams need to apply to all other tournaments on an individual basis. Information about tournaments can be found on the National website. The Tournament Directors will also notify the teams of additional tournaments as they become available.
7. Referees
For all tournaments, teams are responsible for providing their own referees and they must provide this information at the time of application to a tournament; if they do not have any referees, they might lose their referee deposit. The Referee Administrator will make a complete list available to teams with the names of referees in the region who will be available for post-season tournaments. We suggest that teams contact referees on this list as soon as they apply to a tournament. Whenever a tournament team is accepted into a tournament, the team must finalize the referees by contacting the referee(s) and notifying our Referee Administrator by e-mail at referee@ayso76.org.
8. Referee Deposits
Tournaments will refund the referee deposit when referees have been supplied. The region will receive a check and will credit each team for referees that have been submitted directly by the team. Any refunds for additional regional referees, who were able to officiate at the tournament, will be used by the region to fund the referee program. Teams may opt to donate their refunds to this regional referee program as well.
9. Conduct
We expect coaches, assistant coaches, parents and players to remember that they represent our Region and to conduct themselves appropriately. In particular, everyone is required to cooperate with tournament officials and referees and to make sideline comments that are positive, instructional (in the case of coaches only) and encouraging.
10. Practice Fields and Scrimmage Games
Teams may contact the Field Allocation Director for practice time field space availability. After the city permit ends, the region will try to secure field space at local parks, however there may be a cost to the teams. In addition it is recommended for teams to find or rent space at the surrounding parks on an individual basis. Scrimmage games can be arranged with the surrounding regions by contacting the region (e.g.: Santa Monica, Culver City, Pacific Palisades, West LA, Hollywood/Wilshire). Contact information is at http://www.ayso1p.org.
11. Player Transactions
Please refer to Rules Governing Selection of Coaches, Teams and Players for Post-Season Play for information about player transactions between tournament teams.
12. Fundraising
Please refer to the memorandum on fundraising rules and guidelines for information on team fundraising.
PLEASE NOTE that failure to adhere to any of above mentioned rules may result in your being terminated as a coach or even disbanding of the team.
Last updated February 12, 2010 at 09:29 AM