Football Tournament Rules and Regulations: What to Include

What football tournament rules and regulations must cover

Most disputes at tournaments come from the same few gaps. Before writing anything else, make sure your rules answer these questions:

• Eligibility: age limits and the cut-off date, whether players must be registered with the club, whether a player can play for two teams.
• Format: group sizes, how many teams progress, knockout rounds, plate or consolation competitions.
• Match rules: length, number of players, substitutions, offside, restarts, ball size.
• Points and tie-breakers: in the groups and in knockout matches.
• Discipline: what a red card means for the next match, who hears complaints.
• Practical rules: late arrival, kit clashes, spectator areas, weather.

In England, a tournament involving affiliated teams normally needs sanction from the County FA where it takes place. Requirements differ between counties: some ask for the rules, a welfare officer's details and a fee several weeks in advance. Outside England, check with your national or regional association. Your local rules sit on top of the Laws of the Game, not instead of them.

A football tournament rules template

Use this structure as your football tournament rules template. Keep each section short; teams should be able to read the whole document in ten minutes.

1. General: name, date, venue, organiser, the governing body sanction (if any), and a sentence saying the Laws of the Game apply except where these rules say otherwise.
2. Eligibility: age group and cut-off date, maximum squad size, registration requirements, one team per player.
3. Team sheets: when and where to hand them in, and whether they can change during the day.
4. Format: number of groups, teams per group, who progresses, knockout bracket.
5. Match duration: length of each match, half-time (if any), changeover time.
6. Playing rules: number of players, substitutions, offside, kick-off, restarts, back-pass rule, ball size.
7. Points: for example 3 for a win, 1 for a draw, 0 for a loss.
8. Tie-breakers: the exact order for level teams in a group, and how drawn knockout matches are decided.
9. Discipline: consequences of cautions and dismissals during the event.
10. Referees: who provides them, the referee's decision is final on matters of fact.
11. Late arrival and walkovers: how long a team can be late before the match is awarded, and the score used.
12. Kit: which team changes in a clash, bibs available from the organiser.
13. Weather and cancellation: who decides, and what happens to unfinished matches.
14. Complaints: who hears them, deadline (for example, within 15 minutes of the match ending), whose decision is final.
15. Welfare and safety: first aid location, welfare officer, code of conduct for players, coaches and spectators.

Tie-breakers, knockouts and walkovers

There is no single correct order for tie-breakers, but there must be one written order. A common sequence for group stages:

For drawn knockout matches, short tournaments usually go straight to penalties: three per team, then sudden death. With very young players, some organisers use a coin toss or let both teams progress to a festival round, so a child is not left with a missed penalty as the memory of the day.

For walkovers, set a grace period (five minutes is common) and a score, for example 3–0. Say whether goals from walkovers count towards goal difference.

Rules for youth tournaments

Youth events need extra rules on playing time and welfare. In England, The FA sets a maximum number of minutes a child can play per day, by age group; tournaments must respect it. For example, from 2026/27 the limit is 60 minutes per day up to U9 and 90 minutes at U10 and U11. Divide that by the number of matches a team might play, including the final, before you set match length.

• Equal playing time: many organisers require every squad player to play a fair share of each match or of the day.
• Rolling substitutions with the referee's permission at a stoppage.
• Format by age: match the format to the age group (for example 7v7 at U10–U11 in England from 2026/27).
• Results: in England, results from U7–U11 matches may not be published as league tables, but trophy events are allowed within limits. Check your County FA's guidance.
• Heading and restarts: follow the national rules for the age group, such as the phased removal of deliberate heading in the youngest age groups in England.
• Welfare: a named welfare officer on site, a clear lost-child procedure, and a code of conduct for spectators.

5-a-side rules for tournaments

5-a-side tournaments, such as charity or company events, often use venue rules that differ from the Laws of the Game. Write the choices down; teams will come with different expectations.

• Goalkeeper area: only the goalkeeper may enter it; an attacker in the area gives a free kick, a defender gives a penalty.
• Height rule: the ball may not go above head height (or above a marked line on cage pitches); free kick if it does.
• No slide tackles and no contact with the goalkeeper.
• Kick-ins instead of throw-ins, and opponents 3 metres away from free kicks.
• Rolling substitutions from the halfway line.
• Match length: usually 8–12 minutes, one way or with a quick change of ends.

Rules for 11-a-side tournaments

For football tournament rules and regulations at 11-a-side, follow the Laws of the Game more closely and focus on what changes because of the shorter matches:

• Match length: often 2 x 15 to 2 x 25 minutes, with a short half-time.
• Squads: set a maximum (for example 16) and whether substitutes can return.
• Offside applies, so you need qualified referees, or at least assistant referees for knockout matches.
• Discipline: a sending-off usually means missing the next match; decide whether yellow cards accumulate over the day. Some events use temporary dismissals (sin bins) where the competition rules allow them.
• Pitches: full-size pitches limit how many matches fit in a day, so check the timetable carefully before accepting entries.

Publishing and applying the rules

Send the rules with the entry confirmation, print copies for the control table and brief referees before the first match. On the day, apply the rules consistently, even when it is inconvenient; a tournament where one team gets an exception will hear about it all afternoon.

Publishing results and tables as the day goes on reduces arguments about tie-breakers, because everyone can see the same numbers. Tools such as DorsalCUP apply the points and tie-breaker order you set and show live tables on a public page that teams and parents can follow on their phones.

Frequently asked questions