SHOOT-OUT RULES & CHAMPIONSHIP GAME TIE-BREAKERS

With the exception of the Championship Game, the rules for which are noted at the bottom of this page, any Tournament game that results in a tie at the end of regulation play will be decided by a Shoot-Out.  The procedures for conducting the Shoot-Out are as follows:

• Both teams will use the same goal, which will be chosen by the referee.
• Each team will select 3 players who will take one kick each in the first round. The players need not have been in the game when regulation time ended. Goalkeepers can also be shooters.
• The players taking the kick should wait in the circle at mid-field. The goalkeeper not defending the goal should wait just outside the goal area. The rest of the team should be on the side line.
• The team to kick first will be decided by a referee coin toss. The teams will shoot alternately, with the team winning the coin toss going first.
• The kicks will be taken from the penalty mark (12 yards from the goal line, except U10 = 8 yards).
• Goalkeeper substitution is allowed. The referee should be notified of the substitution.
• The kicker MUST wait for the referee to signal before taking the shot. Kicks taken prior to the referee’s signal will not count.
• The goalkeeper must start on the goal line, and can move laterally along the goal line. Only after the ball is kicked is the goalkeeper allowed to move forward, toward the kicker.
• There are no rebounds or second shots. The player taking the shot gets only one kick at the ball; a "swing-and-a-miss" counts as an attempt
• If, after each team has taken their 3 shots in the first round the game is still tied, additional rounds of one shot each will commence. Each team will select a new player to have one kick, starting with the team that kicked first, continuing with new players until one team has scored and the other team has failed to score.
• No player on a team can take a second shot until all players on the roster have taken at least one shot. If still tied after the roster of shooters is depleted, start over in the same order (like a baseball lineup).
• If a team has an insurmountable advantage during the first 3 kicks, such as a 2-0 lead after 2 kickers per side, there is no need for the remaining kicks to be taken.

Championship Game Overtime Rule:

• If the Championship Game ends in a tie score at the end of regulation, the game will be extended for a 10-minute overtime period.
• A coin toss will determine which team picks the goal it wishes to defend.  The team losing the coin-toss gets the kick-off.
• This will NOT be a “sudden-death, first-goal-wins” format.  The full 10-minute period will be played.
• All players are eligible to play in the overtime period, irrespective of the amount of playing time in regulation.  No substitutions will be allowed except in the case of injury.  
• If the game is still tied at the end of the overtime period, the game will then be decided by a Shoot-Out, following the rules given above.

Please bring a copy of this page with you to the game, and have it handy for you, the other coach and the referee to use as a reference guide to avoid any problems or disputes.