5v5 Soccer leagues

FORMAT

HOW THE LEAGUE WORKS
1. Every team plays two matches a night.
2. 30 min games | Two 15-minute halves with a 5-minute break | 10 minutes between games — the standard for small-sided rec play.
3. Real referees — Every match, every week — no self-officiating, no disputes over the score.
4. Everyone makes the playoffs — All 8 teams enter the Week 5 bracket — quarterfinals through the final, no one's season ends early.

THE SEASON — 5 WEEKS, START TO FINISH
Week 1: Round Robin
Week 2: Round Robin
Week 3: Round Robin
Week 4: Power Round
Week 5: Championship

Rules:

1. Roster/field players — 5-8 per team (1 goalkeeper + 4 outfield), minimum 4 to start a match.
2. Field size — roughly 25-35m long x 16-25m wide (varies by facility), smaller goals (~3m x 2m).
3. Ball size — size 4 (some leagues use size 5).
4. Offside — no offside rule.
5. Slide tackling — banned outright (safety on turf), regardless of contact.
6. Goalkeeper distribution — no backpasses handled by keeper (direct free kick if violated); keeper distributes by hand/roll rather than punting.
7. Kick-ins, not throw-ins — ball out over the sideline is restarted with a kick-in, defenders must stay back ~2m.
8. Corner kicks & kickoffs — direct kicks (can score straight from them); kickoff can go any direction.
9. Goal kicks — keeper must release the ball (throw/roll/pass/dribble) out of the box within a few seconds; no punting/drop-kicking.
10. Substitutions — unlimited, rolling subs (in/out at the halfway line, no ref stoppage needed).
11. Match duration — 30mins, 15min halves, 5min half break, 10 mins between games.