The CISL follows a set of house rules that draws from a variety of soccer leagues, including the FIFA rule book. The rules outlined below are not meant to be exhaustive but to provide to league members a general indication of expected conduct. Games will consist of two x 22-minute (running-time) halves, with a short rest in between. There may be added time at the end of the halves at the discretion of the match official.
4.1 The second half may be adjusted to ensure the match ends at the allotted time.
4.2 The game is played with each side fielding six players and a keeper. If a team is not ready to commence play (with at least five players) within ten minutes of the scheduled start time, the opponent will be awarded a default win. Any team that is responsible for delaying the start of a match will have one point deducted from the league standings for each infraction.
4.3 There are no off-sides.
4.4 Substitutions may occur at any stoppage of play or “on the fly”. However, they must take place behind your own team’s goal or sideline.
4.5 Following the scoring of a goal, no player shall take possession of the ball.
4.6 The official shall stop play when the ball is considered out of play or for an infraction. A change of possession will occur at the point of the infraction.
4.7 All fouls will result in a direct or indirect free kick. Opposing team players must be a minimum of five yards away from the ball. This includes goal, corner, and free kicks.
* Measurement of this distance must be made exclusively by the team for which the foul was awarded. Play will resume following the official's whistle.
4.8 Penalties will be awarded at the discretion of the referee for any fouls committed in the 'box'. The penalty is to be taken 11 yards from the goal line. All players must be behind the placement of the ball. The ball is considered 'live' following the attempt. This means the play will continue even in the event the shot is rebounded, saved, or deflected.
Handballs
- Referees will call only DELIBERATE handballs (i.e. if player intentionally strikes the ball with hand or arm).
- For the purposes of determining handball offences, the upper boundary of the arm is in line with the bottom of the armpit. The upper part of the shoulders is not considered a handball. If a player uses his hands to protect from a hard shot, the call will be at the referee’s discretion.
- ALL handballs called by the referee result in DIRECT free-kicks. Handballs inside the box result in a penalty kick.
From the IFAB (Rules of Arbitration for Handball):
What is considered a handball? If a player:
- deliberately touches the ball with their hand/arm, including moving the hand/arm towards the ball
- scores in the opponents’ goal directly from their hand/arm, even if accidental, including by the goalkeeper
- after the ball has touched their or a team-mate’s hand/arm, even if accidental, immediately:
- scores in the opponents’ goal
- creates a goal-scoring opportunity
- touches the ball with their hand/arm when:
- the hand/arm has made their body unnaturally bigger
- the hand/arm is above/beyond their shoulder level (unless the player deliberately plays the ball which then touches their hand/arm).
What is not considered a handball:
Except for the above offences, it is not an offence if the ball touches a player’s hand/arm:
- directly from the player’s own head or body (including the foot)
- directly from the head or body (including the foot) of another player who is close
- if the hand/arm is close to the body and does not make the body unnaturally bigger
- when a player falls and the hand/arm is between the body and the ground to support the body, but not extended laterally or vertically away from the body
The goalkeeper has the same restrictions on handling the ball as any other player outside the penalty area. If the goalkeeper handles the ball inside their penalty area when not permitted to do so, an indirect free kick is awarded but there is no disciplinary sanction. However, if the offence is playing the ball a second time (with or without the hand/arm) after a restart before it touches another player, the goalkeeper must be sanctioned if the offence stops a promising attack or denies an opponent or the opposing team a goal or an obvious goal-scoring opportunity.
4.9 Over-time will only be used for playoff matches. It will consist of one, 10 minute, extra-time period. The extra-time period is sudden-death, and if the score remains tied at the conclusion of the extra-time period, then penalty kicks will follow to determine a winner. This is essentially the “golden goal” rule.