INDOOR SOCCER LEAGUE RULES
Soccer Spectrum is one of the oldest Indoor & Outdoor Soccer facilities in North Texas, established in 1986. In 2021, Soccer Spectrum started a new chapter to its' proud legacy, bringing a renewed energy and vision for the next 30 years.
Soccer Spectrum reserves the right to modify league rules at their discretion and will update the website accordingly in the best interest of our guests. Soccer Spectrum reserves the right for any final decision on suspensions, rule discrepancies, and/or controversial issues that may arise during or after play, with the exception of suspensions sent directly to NTX Soccer by referees.
OUR CURRENT DIVISIONS*:
● Men’s Open (18 years & older) - Sunday, Monday, Wednesday
● Men’s Over 30 (each team will get 2 exemptions over 27)- Thursday & Sunday
● Men’s Over 50 (each team will get 3 exemptions over 48) - Saturday
● Women’s Open (18 years & older) Tuesday
● Women’s Over 35 (no age exemptions at this time) - Tuesday
● Coed Open (18 years & older) - Friday and Saturday
● Coed Over 30 (each team will get 2 exemptions over 27) - Friday
● Coed Over 40 (each team will get 2 exemptions over 38) - Saturday
*Indoor Divisions not currently offered: Women's O30, Men's O40, or Youth
ROSTERS:
● Max Roster Size: 21
● All league rosters will lock after the last regular season game. Team captains Must invite/drop players accordingly before the deadline via their Daysmart team profile.
- The roster lock requirements extend to any quarter-final, semi-final, and final games across all divisions. Consolation games are exempt from this requirement.
● Players may not be rostered on multiple teams within the same division at any time. Players found playing on multiple teams within the same division will be pulled and any points they scored removed from the games standings. Multiple offenses will result in suspensions and penalties.
- A player may not be dropped from one team in a division and added to another team in the same division during the season.
- A player may only play on one team in a division during a season.
● Captains are responsible for ensuring their team's Daysmart roster are up to date during the season as well as before/during playoffs & finals.
● Spectrum Personnel will only add players to the roster manually at the request of the team captain. If your roster is at the max capacity of 21, players must be dropped before adding or requesting to add more players.
TEAM STRUCTURE:
● For Mens, Women and Co-Ed Leagues, the game will consist of 6 outfield players and 1 goalkeeper on the field at one time.
● The Co-Ed game format consists of 3 females on the field (if only 1-2 are available, the team must play 1-2 players down) and 3 males on the field. The goalkeeper may be either. Male players may not sub in for female players. However, female players may sub in for male players. There must be always 1 male player on the field.
For Men’s leagues, women may play, but men’s rules will apply.
● Teams may play 2 players down maximum to start the game, which means 4 outfield players and a goalkeeper or 5 outfield players and no goalkeeper.
LEAGUE GAMES:
● All league games are 42 minutes long with two twenty-minute halves.
● Halftime is 1 minute long.
● All Indoor leagues will be 7 games guaranteed.
● Two Referees will be assigned to all games, excluding Youth Leagues.
● A size 5 ball will be used. The game ball will be provided by Soccer Spectrum
● The game clock on the scoreboard runs continuously throughout the game, with the only exceptions being playoff or final games & at referees discretion for certain injuries and/or extenuating circumstances
● Regular season games that end in a tie are considered a "draw". No overtime will be played in the regular season.
● Only in Playoff games or Championship games is Overtime played. Overtime consists of a 3-minute sudden death period followed by a PK Shootout if the game remains tied.
- Penalty kicks must first be taken by all the players on the field at the end of the sudden death period before players on the bench are eligible to take shots.
● All players must provide an active North Texas I.D. Card to the referee before the game to be eligible to play.
● Slide tackling is NOT permitted in any indoor league at Soccer Spectrum. The only exception is a goalkeeper may slide inside their box but must end within the box. Any slide tackle not utilizing this exception will be met with a blue card.
● In the event a team is short on players, they will be given a 10-minute period before the game is considered a forfeit, beginning at games start time. A single point will be awarded to the ready team at the 5 minute mark during this 10 minute period.
● During the grace period, the clock will remain running. If the minimum number of players arrives, the clock will not be reset. The game must start once the minimum required number of players have arrived.
● In the event of a forfeit, the teams will still be able to play for the remaining game time but a 3-0 win will be awarded to the team that was prepared to play on time.
SCORING:
Men’s & Women’s Leagues
● All goals will always count as one (1) point.
Co-ed Leagues
● Hot Rule (eligibility to score) - Male players are eligible to shoot from behind the line at any time. The ball may not be on the line.
● Male players may also score past the goal line if they receive the ball from one of their team's female players regardless of where she is located.
● The wall is neutral, as well as the goalkeeper inside the penalty area. (i.e. the female player passes the ball into the area, it bounces off the wall or deflects off the keeper, the male player can still score.)
● The goalkeeper is not neutral outside the penalty area. If the goalkeeper touches the ball, the eligibility to shoot is over, and must then go back to a female player for another opportunity to score.
● Female goals will count as two (2) points regardless of where they shoot from.
● Male goals will always count as one (1) point
● In the event of a deflection by the defense, the last offensive player touching the ball will determine the number of points awarded, ie a male player scoring from a deflection would count as one (1) goal and a female player scoring from a deflection would count as two (2) goals
- A deflected goal is defined as a shot by an attacker that is on target and strikes a defender altering its trajectory, but still entering the goal.
● Any own goals scored directly by a defender shall count as one (1) goal.
- An own goal is defined as a player altering the trajectory of a ball either intentionally or unintentionally to enter their own goal from a shot, pass, or play that was not on target to enter the goal.
Cards & Penalties:
Blue Card Consequences:
- The team must serve a 2-minute penalty
- After 2 minutes, a substitute may enter the field.
- The team is then short-handed and must play one player down during that penalty.
Yellow Card Consequences:
- The player must serve a 5-minute penalty but the player is not ejected and the team does not play shorthanded.
- After 5 minutes, the player may return to their bench and then be substituted on.
Red Card Consequences:
- The player is ejected from the game and cannot return.
- Players ejected with red cards for violent conduct, fighting, or threatening others must leave the facility at the time of ejection.
- The team must serve a 5-minute major penalty
- After 5 minutes, a substitute may enter the field.
- The team is then short-handed and must play one player down during that penalty.
- The clock continues to run during a red card ejection and all player ID cards for the offending team are held until the player receiving the red card is identified. The player receiving the red card will have their NTX ID card held by the referee after the game.
Important Card Distinctions:
- A blue card results in a 2-minute penalty, and does lead to being short-handed
- A yellow card is a misconduct warning, a 5-minute penalty, and does not lead to being short-handed.
- A red card results in ejection, a 5-minute penalty, and does lead to being short-handed.
Number Of Players During Red Card Penalty:
- During the 5-minute penalty after a red card, the team plays with 5 field players + 1 goalkeeper (i.e., one man down).
- Once the 5 minutes are served (regardless of whether a goal is scored), a substitute (not the ejected player) may re-enter to restore full strength.
Red Card & Return To Play Processes:
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A red card report will be submitted by the referee(s) after their shift and submitted to Soccer Spectrum.
Suspension periods and fines for Red Cards that are not escalated to NTX Soccer will be determined by Soccer Spectrum. The red card report and any relevant data relating to the ejection will be reviewed and a decision sent out to the offending player within 48 hours stating their suspension period and fine amount. Players receiving red cards over the weekend will be contacted the first following business day.
Referees reserve the right to escalate any red card to NTX Soccer at their discretion. Red cards escalated to NTX Soccer must be appealed and cleared through NTXSoccer.org via the suspensions & appeals process before a new ID card can be printed and the player returns to play at Soccer Spectrum.
Spectrum does not utilize VAR to overturn referee decisions. VAR is used at Soccer Spectrums discretion for security and safety measures only.
A red card ends the offending players current and active NTX membership and a new card must be purchased after the suspension period is up and any relevant fines are paid. A player may not return to play until their suspension period has been fulfilled and any relevant fines paid. Red card suspensions and restrictions apply across all divisions, leagues, and days. Fines may be paid in person or over the phone at (972)-644-8845.
Requests, complaints, information, and appeals relating to red cards may be sent to info@soccerspectrum.com
ANY AND ALL FIGHTS THAT RESULT IN BENCH CLEARING WILL RESULT IN AN AUTOMATIC SUSPENSION OF THE GAME. THE GAME WILL NOT BE SCORED (IF BOTH TEAMS ARE INVOLVED) IF ONLY ONE TEAM, THE TEAM THAT DID NOT CLEAR THE BENCH WILL BE AWARDED THE WIN. THIS WILL ALSO RESULT IN THE TEAM(S) BEING SUSPENDED FOR A MINIMUM of 1 WEEK FROM ALL SOCCER SPECTRUM GAMES WITH A $100.00 FINE PER PLAYER.
TEAM REGISTRATION:
● Team Captains must register their team at Daysmartrecreation.com.
● A deposit of $100.00 is required when registering a team. This deposit will go towards your team fees. Please note, if you withdraw your team after the schedule has been posted, the deposit will not be returned.
● Team Fees are $815 for the season. This includes referee fees as well so you will never have to come out-of-pocket for additional fees when playing at Soccer Spectrum.
● Team fees need to be paid in full by the 3rd game. If fees are not paid, game scores will be reversed to a 0 points for the team that owes. Soccer Spectrum reserves the right to replace a team that has not paid by the 3rd game with a team from the Stand-by list.
ID CARDS:
● An NTX Soccer player card is required to play at Soccer Spectrum. Each player must submit their own, valid ID card to the referee and be registered on that team to be eligible to play.
● Cards are valid for one year from August 31st – August 31st of the following year.
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- Cards may be purchased for the new soccer year beginning in July of the current year for the next year.
● Adult cards are $25.00 The price of the card remains the same regardless of when it was purchased.
A government picture I.D. is required for registration in all adult leagues.
Youth leagues (U17 and younger) may bring a birth certificate, school ID, or government ID for proof of age.
● Soccer Spectrum will take your photo and produce the I.D.
● Players and coaches with valid ID cards are the only people allowed in the players’ boxes. No children or spectators in the players boxes.
● Should you have any questions regarding I.D. cards contact Soccer Spectrum or the NTX Soccer office in Frisco at (972)323-1323.
NO CARD, NO PLAY, NO EXCEPTIONS!
Driver's Licenses and other forms of ID are not accepted on the field for play.
RESCHEDULES:
● Soccer Spectrum no longer accept reschedule requests. All games scheduled are final. If you have a specific schedule request, please make sure that you make your request at the time of renewal or signing up. These can be sent to info@soccerspectrum.com Any request made after the schedule is posted will not be changed.
FORFEITS POLICY:
● A forfeit will be awarded if an opposing team is not ready to play within 10
minutes of a scheduled start time. A single point will be awarded to the ready team at the 5 minute mark during this 10 minute period.
● The clock starts at the scheduled kickoff time and time will not be made up if
a team shows up late.
● A forfeit will go down as a 3-0 win for the team that was prepared to play on time.
● If both teams do not show, and/or are not ready to play – neither team will be
awarded any points, leaving their games scored 0-0. Each team will have to pay a $50.00 forfeit fee.
● For any team that forfeits a game less than 48 hours before, a forfeiture fee of $100 will be charged to the team. A credit of $65.00 will be awarded
to the team that showed up for their committed match. (The forfeit fee minus ref fees) If a team still has a balance due past the 3rd game, they will not receive a forfeit credit.
● Teams that forfeit multiple times during the regular season may not be allowed to participate in Post Season.
● Teams that forfeit multiple times during the regular season may be subject to
being removed from the league without a refund.
RENEWALS:
Each team has the opportunity to let Soccer Spectrum know that they will be renewing for the next season, by week 3-5 of the current season. If a team has not let us know by week 5, in week 6 we will allow new teams to take the spot for any team that has not renewed. A deposit of $100.00 is required to hold your spot. This deposit will go toward team fees. Teams with fully paid deposits on the waitlist will be given priority in placement starting week 6.
REFEREES:
● Referee Fees are included as part of your league fee.
Soccer Spectrum does not tolerate violent conduct, verbal abuse, threatening
behavior, racist/hateful language, or spitting at or near officials, staff or opponents under any circumstances.
CHAMPIONSHIP FORMAT:
● Championship Games are a 1v2 format. Leagues containing 7 teams will adhere to this format. Leagues with less than 7 teams may utilize a semi-final or quarter-final format to accommodate.
● Ties - For any Championship games that ends in a tie, the game will go straight to overtime. Overtime consists of a 3-minute sudden death period followed by a PK Shootout of five (5) kicks per team starting with the players on the field.
● If no winner is decided after five (5) kicks, teams shall continue alternate kicks until a winner is decided. All players on the lineup are eligible to take part. A player of the same team takes another kick after five (5) players of his team have made an attempt and may repeat again after an additional five (5) players. All players on a team must shoot unless injured as determined by referees.
- Penalty kicks must first be taken by all the players on the field, including the goalkeeper, before players on the bench are eligible to take shots.
● In the Co-ed divisions, the penalty kicks must be taken alternately by gender
(male/female/male or vice versa). There is no requirement as to the number of males or female shooters; however, a goal scored by a female shooter will count 2 points whereas goals scored by male shooters will count 1 point.
STANDINGS:
Standings are determined by wins, losses, and ties.
● WIN = 3 points
● TIE = 1 point
● LOSS = 0 points
● FORFEIT = 3-0 win (worth 3 points)
The best overall team record determines playoff positioning.
In the event of a tie in records, the following tie-breaking system will be used:
A) head-to-head play B) Goals differential C) Goals for D) Goals Against
DIVISIONS & RESTRICTIONS:
Individuals may play on different teams provided:
- They are on the team roster
- They are not playing on two teams within the same division.
- If you are a rostered and active A division player on any night, you are only allowed to also play in B divisions on any night. You are not permitted to play on a team in a C division or lower. The only exception to this rule is goalkeepers. Goalkeepers can play on any division, just not more than one team in the same division.
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To provide the most fun and competitive environment for all teams,
Soccer Spectrum reserves the right, if necessary, to place teams in the
appropriate division based on the level of play and /or ability of the players.