#PlayFor8 Cup

The #PlayFor8 Cup is sanctioned by FYSA & is open to all US Soccer affiliates & members (US Club, AYSO, USSSA)

General Information

The #PlayFor8 Cup is established in honor of Alyssa Alhadeff, a 14-year-old soccer player with Parkland Soccer Club, who was one of 17 students and teachers that lost her life in the school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on February 14, 2018 (Valentine’s Day). Tournament proceeds will be donated to Make Our Schools Safe, a 501(c)3 national non-profit organization dedicated to protecting students and teachers at school. Founded by Alyssa’s parents, the mission is to empower students and staff to help create and maintain a culture of safety and vigilance in a secure school environment. Click here to learn more about Make Our Schools Safe.

Teams can play and compete for a cause and play in honor and memory of Alyssa. #PlayFor8 in the PlayFor8 Cup. Tournament Success Group coordinates the #PlayFor8 Cup with Lori Alhadeff, Alyssa’s mom. Proceeds to be donated to Make Our Schools Safe.

This will be an excellent preseason tournament. PlayFor8 Cup will offer three levels of competition: Gold, Silver, and Bronze Divisions for U9 through U19 boys and girls’ teams. Plus, a division for U8 teams, U9 Futures. The tournament is expecting teams from across Florida.

The #PlayFor8 Cup will be played Saturday and Sunday, October 19-20, 2024, and is sanctioned by FYSA. Local teams may be asked to play on Friday, October 18. The tournament will be held in Coral Springs, Florida. PlayFor8 Cup is open to all US Soccer affiliates, and members (FYSA, US Club, AYSO, USSSA). U9 through U11 are non-heading divisions.

Where

The main playing fields for the tournament will be Pine Trails Park in Parkland and Cypress Park in Coral Springs, FL.

Tournament details

AGE GROUP

PRICE

U9 Future Stars (7v7)

$825.00

U9 & U10 (7v7)

$825.00

U11 & U12 (9v9)

$900.00

U13 & U14 (11v11)

$975.00

U15 & U19 (11v11)

$1025.00

The entry fees include all referee fees. Entry fees received after September 16, 2024, the deadline date, will incur an additional $50.00 late fee. Note, registration deadline extended to Monday, September 30, 2024.

AGE GROUP

# PLAYERS

GUEST PLAYERS

U9 – U10(7v7)

U11 – U12(9v9)

U13 – U19(11v11)

Each team is guaranteed a minimum of 3 games. During the tournament, a player may play for only one team.

GOLD

Division I teams from across Florida are expected to participate in making this a highly competitive event at the Gold Divisions.

SILVER

Division II teams. Teams from across Florida are expected to participate in the Silver Divisions.

BRONZE

Bronze Division is primarily for recreational teams and new travel teams seeking comparative competition.

Additional Information

Mentoring

Mentorship is a great way to improve club culture and connect younger players with older players. Peer to peer mentoring (mentors and mentees) especially can be powerful in sharing experiences, knowledge, providing guidance and developing role models and leaders.

Through the PlayFor8 Program, Big Little Mentorship, youth soccer clubs can incorporate a mentorship program into their club curriculum and can be used as a great off the field development tool. Plus, high school players can earn community service hours with this mentoring program. Click here for details (pdf flyer) for Girls teams. Click here for details (pdf flyer) for Boys teams.

Contact Lori Alhadeff at info@makeourschoolssafe.org for more details.

Rules

Bracket Summary

Bracket of Four: Played as a single group of four teams in a round-robin format, with the two teams accumulating the most points advancing to the final.

Bracket of Five: Played as a single group of five, each playing two group matches. Following these matches, seed #4 and seed #5 will play a consolation match. In semifinal A seed #2 will compete against seed #3. The winners of the semi-final will proceed to the finals against seed #1.

Bracket of Six: Played as two groups (brackets of three teams). Each team will cross over and play the three teams in the other group/bracket. The two teams accumulating the most points from all six teams will advance to the finals to determine which team is the champion. It is possible that the finalists could have played each other already.

Bracket of Seven: Played as a single group of seven teams with all teams playing a total of four matches. Note, teams will not play all other teams in the bracket. The team accumulating the most points will be announced as the Champion. The team accumulating the second most amount of points will be the Finalist.

Bracket of Eight: Played as two groups of four. The winner of each round-robin group will play a final game to determine the Champion and Finalist.

DETERMINATION OF GROUP WINNERS

In group play, there will be no overtime games. Standings in a group will be determined by Game Points: 3 points for a Win, 1 point for a Tie, 0 points for a Loss.

If Two Teams Tie: Starts with tie breaker number 1 and proceeds through each level, as needed to determine a winner.

Head to head result (Not in the case of a three-way tie)
Goal differential
Most goal scored
Least goals allowed
Total number of shutouts
Penalty kicks* by FIFA “Taking of Kicks from the Penalty Mark.”

Referees

Interested in being part of the referee pool for the #PlayFor8 Cup? Please contact Mike Amato at referee@tournamentsuccessgroup.com or at 407-234-7583 (cell). Click here to register on the GotSoccer Registration for the #PlayFor8 Cup.

Through our tournament partner, Tournament Success Group (TSG), and our Referee Director Mike Amato, our goal is to use best practices in provide best, most professional coordination of the referee logistics. This includes:

Timely communication and coordination of all referee logistics
Use of Game Officials for scheduling, communication and payment
Schedules out early, 7-14 days prior to the start of the tournament
Mentors to provide coaching and feedback for referee development
Nutritional meals, snacks and water for referees
Best practices in assigning of games, number of games and level of games

Any questions please contact Mike Amato at referee@tournamentsuccessgroup.com.

Tournament Hotels

Hotel bookings can be made on the above pages for either team room blocks or individual rooms. If you have any questions or concerns about tournament lodging, please email us at: tournamenthousing@legacyti.net.

STAY-TO-PLAY: The #Playfor8 Cup is a Stay-to-Play tournament. It is MANDATORY that all out-of-area participants needing hotel accommodations book in the tournament room blocks at one of the official #Playfor8 hotels. All teams and clubs located more than 100 miles from the tournament MUST complete their hotel reservations via the links above at least 14 days prior to the event. This is a condition of participation, and teams that do not meet the requirement are subject to penalties. We have been able to secure heavily discounted hotel rates based on our commitment to the hotels that all traveling participants located more than 100 miles from the tournament sites will utilize an official hotel. In order for us to continue to secure heavily discounted hotel rates for the benefit of all traveling teams in the future, it is required that you comply with the Stay-To-Play policy. Families must reserve rooms in the room blocks available via the links above. Taxes are not included in rates. Rooms cannot be reserved using other discounted rates (AAA, military/government, loyalty points) or via sites like Expedia, Hotwire, Priceline, etc.

Questions or assistance please contact:

Vinny Agostino
Hotel Coordinator
E: tournamenthousing@legacyti.net
C: 954-296-2247

Roster Verification

To better serve our teams and their team managers/coordinators we will be offering free online/electronic check-in (E-Check-In). This will be mandatory for all teams. Click the document below for proper instructions to check in. Any questions should be emailed to Jose Cruzado at jcruzado@tournamentsuccessgroup.com.

DEADLINE for E-Check-In is Wednesday, October 15, 2024, at 11:59 PM – NO EXCEPTIONS.

We look forward to your team’s participation in the #Playfor8 Cup.

Field Map (Pine Trails Park)

[U18] Sports Medicine

Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital’s [U18] Sports Medicine program will provide athletic trainers for the United Soccer Cup and will be on site to assist players needing medical attention.

Contact Information for [U18] Sports Medicine:

Gabriel Casanova MS, ATC, LAT
Program Manager of U18 Sports Medicine
JDCH MRI Center Coral Springs
Department of Orthopedic Surgery
Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital
5830 Coral Ridge Drive, Suite 110
Coral Springs, Fl 33076

Office: 954-575-8941
Fax: 954-575-7910
Cell: 305-904-2704

Email: GCasanova@mhs.net
www.u18sportsmedicine.com

Weather Policy

The #PlayFor8 Cup tournament staff monitors the weather leading up the tour tournament and during the tournament very closely. We will communicate with coaches and team managers in a timely fashion whether prior or during the tournament with any weather-related issues.

Facilities are equipped with lightning detection equipment and horns will blow to alert in case of lightning. If the horns sound, please have your team seek shelter immediately. The tournament will monitor the weather, and after 30 minutes from the last lightning detection, the Resume Play horns will sound. Any updates with regards to weather and having to adjust the schedule will be posted on the tournament website, as well as emails and text messages to team coaches and managers. In the case of inclement weather, please check the website regularly for updates.

As noted in the tournament rules, as it relates to inclement weather, the tournament rules and policy are:

INCLEMENT WEATHER GROUP PLAY. In the event of inclement weather, the Tournament Committee will have the authority (in its sole discretion) to change games as follows:

Reschedule or Relocate match (Time and location determined by Tournament Director).
Shortened match – The Tournament Director may reduce the length of halves due to weather conditions before the restart of a match once delayed due to weather; all such matches will be considered official.
Go to “Penalty Kicks” (Time and location determined by Tournament Director
Be Cancelled (The tournament committee has the right to cancel any match. Any game that is not started and is canceled [as opposed to postponed] due to weather or other external conditions will be recorded as a 0-0 tie. Canceled games will not be rescheduled.)
Games that have been started and subsequently suspended due to inclement weather or other external conditions will be deemed complete if one half of play has been completed or the first half cannot be completed prior to the start time of the next scheduled game on that field. For any such game that is not completed, the score at the time of the suspension will be the final score. Any game that is not started and is canceled (as opposed to postponed) due to weather or other external conditions will be recorded as a 0-0 tie. Canceled games will not be rescheduled.

If in the event the Tournament Director rules that during the preliminary round “Taking of Kicks from the Penalty Mark.” will be done due to inclement weather or field conditions, the following rule will apply:

Each team will take a maximum of five (5) penalty kicks.
At the end of five (5) kicks the game will be scored as a 1-0 win for the team that has scored more penalty kicks, or a 0-0 tie if both teams are tied in penalty kicks at the end of five (5) kicks.
In the overall standings, 3 points will be given for the win, 1 point for a tie and 0 points for a loss.
The 1-0 on penalty kicks will be counted for or against to determine the tiebreaker for advancement.
If regular games have been played in the bracket and the Tournament Director has determined that other games go to penalty kicks due to inclement weather or field conditions, the regular games score will revert back to a 1-0 win or a 0-0 tie.

INCLEMENT WEATHER FINALS. In the event of inclement weather affecting the Finals, the Tournament Committee will have the authority (in its sole discretion) to change games as follows:

Relocate or reschedule any game(s)
Change the duration of any game(s)
FIFA penalty kicks
Final Games that have been started and subsequently suspended due to inclement weather or other external conditions, will be deemed complete if one half of play has been completed or the first half cannot be completed prior to the start time of the next scheduled game on that field. For any such game that is not completed, the score at the time of the suspension will be the final score.
If the score at the time of the suspension is tied, or the game cannot be started due to inclement weather, Point E (below) will be taken into account
If the score at the time of the suspension is tied, or any Final game that has not started, and a Champion and Finalist needs to be determined, the tournament will revert back to final group standings based on three (3) points for a win, one (1) point for a tie, and zero (0) points for a loss. In the event of a tie on points between the two teams that are in the Finals, the following criteria will be used to determine the Champion and Finalist.
Head to Head competition
Goal differential to a maximum of four (4) per game
Most goals scored to a maximum of four (4) per game
Least goals allowed to a maximum of four (4) per game
Most Shutouts
FIFA Penalty kicks

Weather issues can create challenges for the tournament staff and we ask that coaches, team managers and families be aware of the above policies and be patience as information and updates are disseminated.

How Do I Register?

Teams must register online to pay by credit card or check payable to Tournament Success Group.

Please indicate on the check memo which team and mail it to:

Tournament Success Group
Attn: #PlayFor8 Cup
455 NE 5th Ave, #D-404
Delray Beach, FL 33483

*Please complete the online application fully. Incomplete applications cannot be processed. Teams will not be eligible for acceptance until the registration fee has been received. Any team not accepted will receive a refund. Any accepted team which withdraws after the application deadline of Monday, September 9, 2024, will not be eligible for a refund.