A. Individual and Team Registration
Team captains can either pay their team’s full fee or split the payment between a set number of individual players during registration.
Team Rosters: Captains who pay the full fee must still have their players register for their team rosters.
Payment: By signing a team up for a District Sports league, team captains commit to covering the entire team fee either through individual player payments or paying the full team fee. Any individual player’s dues not paid by communicated payment deadlines will become the team captain’s responsibility.
Refunds: If a player has signed up for a season and cannot participate due to injury, District Sports will honor refund requests made up to one week before the scheduled start of league play. Refund requests made due to availability changes are not guaranteed and require a plausible explanation. If a player receives a refund, the portion of the team fee they were responsible for covering still must be paid, either by a replacement player or an existing roster member.
All league players and substitutes must sign a participation waiver. All players must be 18 years of age or older.
B. Roster Size
Team rosters may be whatever size a team prefers as long as team fees are fully covered. In instances where teams have an outstanding balance at the deadline, District Sports retains the right to place non-aligned free agents on the team for teams that register players individually.
District Sports suggests that teams carry the following number of players per category:
- 11s outdoor soccer- 18 players
- 9s outdoor soccer- 14 players
- 7s outdoor soccer- 12 players
- 5s soccer- 9 players
During the regular season, teams may pick up registered players from other District Sports teams as substitutes; this should only be the case if the team does not have enough rostered players present at a game. We request that captains be considerate of the level of play in any given league when recruiting substitutes. District Sports retains the right to suspend any team playing with unregistered players.
A player added to a team as a substitute must wear either the team’s assigned District Sports jersey or a shirt in an identical color. Referees may choose to exclude any players not satisfying these expectations.
C. Roster Rules
District Sports unequivocally respects the rights of players to determine and establish their gender identity as it pertains to participation in our leagues; we, as an organization, do not dictate this to players or teams.
For organizational purposes, District Sports has established the rules for our CoEd leagues by classifying players as either male-identified or female-identified. All players are welcome to play in men’s leagues, and there are no gender requirements during game-play. Female-identifying, transgender, genderqueer, and nonbinary players are welcome to participate in the women’s league.
The following are the maximum amount of players identifying as male or female that may be on the field at any given time for each format.
- 11s- Teams may have no more than eight (8) players of the same gender on the field at any time.
- 9s- Teams may not have more than six (6) players of the same gender on the field at any time.
- 7s – Teams may not have more than five (5) players of the same gender on the field at any time.
- 5s – Teams may not have more than three (3) players of the same gender on the field at any time.
D. Equipment
- Shin guards are mandatory and must be covered entirely by socks.
- Soccer turf shoes (recommended), cleats, or other athletic shoes are mandatory; no street shoes or metal cleats. Referees’ decisions on footwear suitability are final.
- Each team shall be responsible for providing at least one game ball (District Sports will supply a small number of game balls for indoor leagues).
- Watches are not permitted during play unless covered by wrist sweatbands or padded covering.
- Referees may also ask players to remove non-essential eye glasses or hats.
- District Sports is not responsible for any item lost or stolen during games or at District Sports field sites.
E. Uniforms
Check out our Jersey Policy here.
F. Season Schedule
Schedules are built based on the field permits we are awarded, the number of teams in a league, and the number of teams in leagues sharing the same space (as well as other factors).
While we will make every attempt to reschedule games lost for weather-related reasons, there are rare occasions when we may have to cancel playoffs or cut a season short. DS makes no ultimate guarantee of any specific number of games if conditions beyond the league’s control are present (including but not limited to excessive inclement weather conditions).
Teams cannot independently reschedule games – only league administrators have the authority to do so.
Reschedule Requests: Requests for schedule adjustments are not guaranteed. Requests by teams to alter the schedule after they have been posted require the consent of all affected teams’. Schedule changes are not final until approved and communicated to the affected teams by District Sports.
District Sports reserves the right to change field locations and times as needed throughout the season; we will always try to give at least 48 hours’ notice, though this may not be possible.
G. Forfeit Policy
Teams who do not alert District Sports of a forfeit with adequate notice ahead of their matches will be subject to a $75.00 penalty (assigned directly to the Team Captain). District Sports will donate all funds collected from late forfeits to one of the league’s charitable partners. For a detailed definition of “Adequate Notice,” see below:
- Teams playing on weeknights must submit notice before 2:00 PM (Eastern).
- Teams playing on weekends must submit notice before 5:00 AM (Eastern) for all games scheduled to start before 1:00 PM (Eastern).
- Teams playing on weekends must submit notice before 10:00 AM (Eastern) for all games starting at 1:00 PM and later (Eastern).
If a team shows up in good faith but cannot field a full lineup, they will not be penalized. Any team that does not pay their forfeit penalty will not be allowed to participate in their league’s playoffs (should they qualify) or register for a future DS program.
H. Weather Related Cancellations — District Sports Game Hotline: 202-263-1143
Game Cancellations: Games played on turf fields will continue even in the event of rain, though we may decide to cancel games out of concern for player safety (i.e., severe storms, accumulating snow, freezing rain, extreme temperatures, etc.).
Cancellation Notification: District Sports encourages players to check for communications before leaving for games. We will make every effort to provide as much advance notice as possible when canceling games. Notification will go out via email and text (to those who’ve provided these details when registering), and we will also update the pre-recorded message on our Gameday Hotline (202.263.1143).
Suspended Games:
- If, due to weather or safety conditions, a match is abandoned before halftime, the game will be replayed in full (schedule permitting).
- If, due to weather or safety conditions, a match is abandoned at halftime or later, the result as indicated by the score when the game ended may stand.
- In the event that a match is abandoned on referee decisions due to team(s) conduct league officials will determine what outcome shall be recorded. In this scenario, DS is under no obligation to replay the match no matter when the game was halted.
I. League Standings
Game statistics (wins and losses) will be recorded and posted on your league’s page. Players are encouraged to review their respective League Standings page periodically. Captains should notify the League Administrator of errors.
- Forfeits are reported as a 3-0 loss
- Games that are canceled (not rescheduled) are reported as a 0-0 draw.
- Tie-breakers for playoffs are auto-calculated and explained on your league’s Standings Page.
J. Fans and Spectators
Spectators are allowed and encouraged to attend District Sports games. We ask that all District Sports-affiliated players and fans respect the rules set forth by individual facilities.
Fan and spectator behavior is ultimately the responsibility of the team captain. Any fan or spectator being verbally abusive toward players or league/school officials, entering the field of play, or disrupting gameplay in any other way will be asked to leave by referees.
K. Pets
Pets are not allowed on any DCPS or privately owned field premises; rules at fields controlled by the DC Department of Parks and Recreation vary. District Sports asks players and affiliated fans to refrain from bringing any animal to games unless they are a trained service animal.
L. Alcohol/Drugs
Drugs and alcohol may not be present at any game that DS organizes.
M. Referee Decisions
District Sports considers the in-game decisions of referees to be final. While we appreciate and welcome feedback on all elements of our league, including referees, challenges to both calls and non-calls will not be reviewed or overturned by league management, nor will referee decisions be considered justification for a replay. District Sports will not authorize a replay of any match abandoned due to player behavior.
If a match is abandoned in the first half of a game, the following rules will apply:
- If one team or player is judged by the referees and league managers to be responsible for a match abandonment, District Sports will record the match as a 3-0 forfeit in favor of the team whose player(s) were not responsible for the match abandonment.
- If both teams or players from both teams are judged by the referees and league managers to be responsible for a match abandonment, it will be recorded as a tie (0-0) regardless of the game’s scoreline when it was abandoned.
If a match is abandoned in the second half of a game, the following rules will apply:
- If one team or player is judged by the referees and league managers to be responsible for a match abandonment (and they are winning at the time of abandonment), the match will be recorded as a tie (0-0), regardless of the scoreline of the game at the time it was abandoned.
- If one team or player is judged by the referees and league managers to be responsible for a match abandonment (and they are tied or losing at the time of abandonment), it will be recorded as a forfeit (3-0) in favor of the team whose player(s) were not responsible for the match needing to be stopped, or the scoreline will stand if the team was not responsible for the match abandonment.
- If both teams or players from both teams are judged by the referees and league managers to be responsible for a match abandonment, the scoreline will be considered final at the time the match is abandoned.
In the event of an abandoned match, District Sports is not obligated to issue refunds or schedule make-ups.
