SWISL Rules & Fair Play
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Registration:
SWISL is focused on keeping everything uniform and balanced in league while placing kids in proper divisions. To keep divisions fair, all towns participating in SWISL will be required to follow the same registration age requirements. Even though SWISL plays 2 seasons (Spring & Fall), there will be one cut off. Cut offs will be based off of a calendar year, Jan 1st to Dec. 31st . The age of your players on that season cutoff date will determine the age division they will participate in. Players are permitted to move up a division by parents’ choice however once registered, they are not allowed to move back down once they have completed registration. An exception can be issued by town local leadership if a player is close to cut off to have player remain down but must be presented to SWISL Board with valid reasoning and requires board approval. Each town is responsible for handling their own registration as long as SWISL requirements are met. Each town lead board member is required to submit final registration information to SWISL by selected deadline to be put in records. Final Registration Information should include Players Full Name, Team, Coach, & Birthdate. Copy of Birth Certificate may be required if SWISL Board request due to any dispute. Late registration will be handled by each town and how/when they choose to close their registration, but any additional players will need to be turned into SWISL Board before player is permitted to participate.
Example:
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John Smith (3/1/2014) & Mary Thomas (9/3/2015)
Fall Season 2023
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John Smith (9yr) – U10 Division​
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Mary Thomas (7yr) – U8 Division
Spring Season 2024
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John Smith (9yr) – U10 Division​
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Mary Thomas (8yr) – U8 Division
Divisions:
All divisions travel together (minus U15) to other hosting SWISL towns to play games. Each of the divisions are broken down below labeling age for players, players on field, game length, & target max roster size. Max roster size is recommended number of players each team should target. Teams can have fewer players than max number but should not exceed max number listed below; exceptions are made due to the number of players registered to ensure all kids are placed on team. Max roster may be exceeded by 1 or 2 players provided another team cannot be formed. To be clear, exceptions are made based on players, not coaches. If a town needs to form an additional team to meet max roster, the town’s local leadership needs to provide an additional coach for that team.
Example:
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U8 Division (Max Roster 10)
Town: Franklin
Players: 21
Teams: 2 teams with 10 & 11 players or 3 teams of 7 players. (1 team not permitted)
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U6 (4yr & 5yr old)
4 V 4 on field
8 min quarters
Max Roster: 9
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U8 (6yr & 7yr old)
5 v 5 on field
20 min half
Max Roster: 10
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U10 (8yr & 9yr old)
9 v 9 on field
25 min half
Max Roster: 14
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U12 (10yr & 11yr)
9 v 9 on field
30 min half
Max Roster: 14
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U15 (12yr, 13yr, 14yr) **NO HIGH SCHOOL**
11 v 11 on field
35 min half
Max Roster: 16
New Divisions:
U12 & U15 Girls divisions.
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Each town will be permitted to form girls’ teams in the two older divisions while the remaining divisions will be coed. Girls can choose to play in girls division or play coed. Teams must be submitted before the SWISL Registration Deadline. There must be a minimum of 4 teams in each division. If not, players will join the coed divisions. (Option: if the girls’ team would like to register and play as an all-girls team, even if there are not enough teams to form a girl’s league.) The U12 girls’ team may be required to play in a different hosting town than their fellow town members due to teams participating. U15 will play where U15 coed teams play.
Rosters:
SWISL is dedicated to ensuring kids are having fun but values the importance of keeping our organization fair and balanced. Teams are a key area, and it is important that all towns follow the same guidelines while also trying to please everyone. Towns participating perform different methods when selecting teams. Some teams are selected by computer, board members, draft, & some have been together for years to form bond with coach & team members. It is each town’s choice how their teams are formed however they must comply with SWISL Guidelines. SWISL asks that all teams formed by representing towns be balanced. All teams must follow max roster guidelines for their final roster. No player is allowed to play for multiple teams with the exception of borrowing a player for single game if team is short players and follows SWISL Guest Player Protocol. Final rosters for each team must be submitted to SWISL before the start of the season deadline. The final roster will have players’ names and jersey number listed. Teams are allowed to have duplicate numbers on their roster if numbers are submitted on final roster. If a player switches jersey throughout season, local director needs to report it to SWISL, so roster is adjusted with new number and player is permitted to play.
Game Procedure for Season & Tournament
Hosting Towns:
With SWISL continuing to grow with new towns and wanting to improve our league, it is important for every town hosting & traveling to have leadership available in event of an issue. All SWISL & Local board members are encouraged to attend events to show support, but it is required that 1 Local board member from the hosting town be present at events. Each town is responsible for turning in the name and contact information for board members that will be present so that issues can be addressed if needed. It is also the hosting town’s decision to decide whether the weather is fit to play the games. The hosting town director needs to communicate with SWISL board members when making that decision and allow for enough time to reach out to traveling towns and referees know in the event of cancelation.
Ref Check:
Referee will do team check-in 10 min prior to start of game so that games start on time and stay on schedule. Referees will check for required equipment stated in the laws of the game. Referees will check and confirm rosters based on what was submitted to SWISL. Player’s name and number must match what is listed on ref roster sheet. If a player does not match, the referee will direct them to referee director & SWISL board member. It will be their decision whether to allow the player to play or not. Games will not be delayed while the issue is being addressed. If a player is not permitted to play, they must sit on the parent sideline during the game. If a team is short players or has guest players, coaches need to inform ref if they would like to play down, and guest player must show requirements of Guest Player Protocol before being permitted to play.
Guest Player Protocol:
A guest player is a player who intends to fill a roster spot for a team short player and is primarily used as a sub. A player may play a single game for a team in need due to a team not having enough players for a specific day. Team must meet all requirements in order to use guest players.
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The team must have 75% of its registered roster. If a team has less, then the coach needs to work with the opposing coach & board to reschedule.
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Team is only permitted to have roster size of 1 above playing field.
Example:
U12 9v9
Allowed only 10 players if using guest players.
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Guest players must come from equal or lower division. Not permitted to play down division.
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Coach must show proof of team that player is registered with in SWISL
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Players are only permitted to play as guest player in one game each Saturday excluding tournament.
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Guest players must start on the bench at the start of game and half time with the exception that team does not have enough players to fill the field.
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Guest player should only be used as a sub and should not exceed more than 50% of playing time unless needed to fill full field. Guest players should primarily sub with each other to ensure that registered roster is getting most playing time.
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During tournament, a guest player is not permitted to play if his/her registered team is still in contention with the exception of the first round.
Game Play
SWISL expects fun at all times during games. All teams need to have fun, play hard, and show sportsmanship at all times while representing themselves, their town, & SWISL.
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Sportsmanship:
All players, coaches, & parents need to show good sportsmanship at all times during events. Our youth soccer league is meant for these kids to have fun while learning & developing their soccer skills. Unfortunately, like many sports, a team wins, and a team loses. It is important & expected that team winning show class at all times. Coaches are expected to make adjustments based on score of game to ensure scoring is limited if game is lopped sided. Players are expected to show good sportsmanship at all times for both winning and losing teams. Teams winning should not brag or taunt the opposing team. Teams losing should not retaliate by quitting, committing player fouls intentionally, or using inappropriate language. Parents are not permitted to encourage unsportsmanlike behavior to players or by doing so themselves. SWISL has a zero-tolerance policy for unsportsmanlike behavior and referees will enforce it if necessary. A warning will be issued to the team & coach followed by a yellow card (5 min) if it continues to happen.
Referee: The referee is to be respected at all times. Remember referees are here to help our league and allow these kids the opportunity to play soccer games on Saturday. They are human and just like professionals, they miss calls and make mistakes as well. Coaches are encouraged to approach the referee at half time or after the game in a professional manner to discuss a call if needed. Yelling at a youth referee is considered verbal abuse. Any reported instances of this will go under SWISL board review.
Game Play:
17 Laws of the game.
Tournament:
SWISL will honor its U10 & U12 end of year tournament 1- or 2-weeks following conclusion of regular season. All registered teams are encouraged to participate however it is an optional event. A U15 tournament will be played as long as there are enough teams in the division, the minimum is 5 teams. All regular season regulations will be applied to tournaments as well.
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All teams must have 75% of the registered roster to participate. Exception: A combined team from that town may be allowed if they do NOT have enough players for multiple teams. The combined team must include players registered with SWISL. The combined team can NOT exceed max roster size. The combined team must include players from the appropriate age group for that team. Ex. A U10 team must consist of U10 players registered through SWISL. If one player is registered as a SWISL U12 player the whole team will play in the U12 division. All combined teams MUST be approved by their towns’ board members and then APPROVED by the SWISL board members. This roster MUST be sent to the SWISL board members BEFORE the last game of the season.
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SWISL registered teams only
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Guest players permitted following Guest Player Protocol
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Bracket is random selection.
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Single elimination (except for third place playout)
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Teams receive participation ribbon and top offense, defense, & character ribbon. Third and second place will receive medals while first place will receive trophy.