All Coaches, Referees, and Board Members are volunteers giving of their time to make this opportunity possible for our players. Region 148 encourages everyone to consider giving some of their time to make the program the best it can be.

TEAM STRUCTURE

Each team must have an adult volunteer present at every team function. Each volunteer must:

• Be registered with AYSO.
• Complete and pass a Sterling Volunteers Background check.
• Complete and pass Live Scan Fingerprinting.
• Complete Safe Haven, Sudden Cardiac Arrest, and Concussion Awareness Certification.
• Complete SafeSport certification.
• Complete the 6U Coaches Training (COACHES ONLY).

In addition, each team will be assigned volunteer responsibilities at various times throughout the season. These responsibilities will the length of their team’s game and consist of things such as helping at the team table, monitoring fields to make sure no assistance is needed, or making sure that teams are keeping their sidelines neat and orderly, or help setup fields in the morning, or take them down at the end of the day.

Besides a Coach, each team may also want to have an Assistant Coach and Team Parent.

FIELD FORMAT

Both teams will be given an 6U-size field for one hour. No other team will be assigned to that field during that time.

** First teams of the day on each field are responsible for field set-up (your team should arrive at least 30 minutes early as your field time cannot be extended). Each field has (2) pop-up goals, Field lines may need to be sprayed. Additionally, the Kids Zone sign needs to be placed in a visible location.

Last teams of the day on each field are responsible for field takedown and storage (your team should understand that this is an embedded responsibility). All field equipment must be prepared to be return to the storage container, along with the Kids Zone sign. Any trash and/or recycling must be picked up and dealt with appropriately.  

6U DIVISION GUIDELINES

ONE-HOUR FIELD TIME STRUCTURE

• 25 minutes of activities/drills with full team (see below)
• 5 minutes break (see below)
• 30 minutes set aside for the game (see below)

SKILL BUILDING ACTIVITIES: First 25 minutes (every week):

• First 25 minutes = activities/drills with ALL players on their own HALF OF THE FIELD
• This should involve BOTH Coaches and all Assistant Coaches. It is recommended that your parents (as “Practice Coaches/Helpers”) assist the coaches by keeping the players active and by retrieving stray soccer balls.
• COACHES - use drills from your AYSO 6U Manuals or sessions from The Coaching Manual website.
• 5 MINUTE BREAK FOR WATER/PREPARE FOR GAME

GAME (Minutes 30: GAME ON FULL FIELD (4v4 or 5v5 NO GOALKEEPERS)

• Each team may have 1 person trained & registered, on the field to teach and help officiate the game.
• Coaches – please do not call every foul. The players are young and will inadvertently cause fouls.
• The two teams play against each other utilizing the “rules of play” as established by the 6U Guidelines and the game structure below:

GAME STRUCTURE:

Game is (4) 7-minute periods with a 1-minute break for water and substitutions after the 1st and 3rd period, and a 5-minute halftime break.
Each quarter will start with a kickoff from midfield with the teams alternating each quarter.

NO OFFICIAL SCORING

Scoring is not kept in this division.
No player shall play a (4) quarters until all players have played (3) quarters. This is tracked on the game card.

• Ball Size is size 3. 

6U RULES OF PLAY

HEADING THE BALL

Deliberate heading of the ball is banned for all players in this division in both practices and games.

• In a match, a free kick will be awarded to the opposing team if a player deliberately touches the ball with his/her head during a game.

Each team may have 1 person trained & registered, on the field to teach and help officiate the game.

1. Any ball going out of play will be re-started with a pass in/kick in (No Throw Ins). For 6U, the throw-in is replaced with the pass-in. Opposing players must be at least two yards from the ball until it is kicked.
   • Ball out on side will start with a pass in/kick in where the ball went out.
   • Ball out on Goal Line
2. Out on Defenders (defense) results in a corner kick.
3. Out on Attackers (offense) results in a goal kick.
4. All fouls will result in an indirect free kick.

** Games should involve “healthy competition” not “aggressive competition”. The “score” of a game is meaningless. REMEMBER, Development over Winning