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TOURNAMENT RULEBOOK

I. General Provisions

1. World Cup Taiwan Purpose

The World Cup Taiwan aims to bring together different teams made up of citizens from different countries who are residing in Taiwan in a soccer competition. The first edition of this tournament was held in 2014 and since then it has become a yearly event.

Taiwan's diplomatic allies have a priority of participation. The organizing committee may, in any of its editions, invite different countries from any continent to participate as guests.

This is the official competition rulebook. All participants are reminded that this is a social event between friendly countries and that these rules and fair play must be respected at all times.

2. Organizing Committee

Fernando Ramos

Lee Yi-Ching

Chiayo Kuo

Joy Hu

Harry Yeh

3. Participating Members

The members of the participating teams will have the responsibility of taking care of the behavior of the people who attend the event, whether they are soccer players, coaches, managers, representatives, guests, and especially their fans. Aggression against the organizers, volunteers, and/or referees is strictly prohibited and will be dealt with according to its severity.

Participating teams must provide the required information of their participants in the regulated time. This includes a complete list of their players, a copy of their ID documentation, and a signed informed consent form prior to their participation in the competition.

All participating teams and their players must be present during the event's opening ceremony (minimum of 8 players for male teams and 4 for female teams).

The participant teams' tents must be cleaned at the end of each day of the competition, teams that do not comply with the cleaning will have to pay a fine of 500 NTD which will be automatically deducted from the deposit made by each team.

All participating players must comply with these rules.

4. Withdrawal, Undisputed Matches, and Suspension of the Match.

Participating teams must complete all their matches until they are eliminated. The regulated waiting time to complete at least eight players for male teams and five players for female teams and start the game before declaring a forfeit will be 2 minutes after the time indicated for the start of the match.

Inappropriate behavior or failure to comply with the rules contained in this rulebook may be penalized with the suspension of the match, which will be declared as a loss for the team violating the norms contained in this rulebook. These games will be written down as 3-0 in favor of the winning team.

If the match is suspended due to force majeure, it will resume as soon as possible in the minute it was interrupted, with the same players. The expelled players will continue to be expelled. If a match cannot be resumed due to time constraints or force majeure, it will be decided by one penalty per team until one of them fails. If the penalties cannot be carried out due to time constraints or force majeure, it will be decided by a coin flip. The winner of the coin flip will be the team that selected the side that came out, or that won because the other team selected the side that did not come out.

5.No Replacement

If a participating team withdraws from the competition before being eliminated, it will result in all of its pending matches being declared as a loss, declaring the teams with which it should have played the said games as the winner or winners. These games will be written down as 3-0 in favor of the winning team.

6. Disciplinary Issues

The infractions made by the participants of the tournament will be handled as follows:

In the event that a player is cautioned with a direct red card, he will be expelled immediately from the game, and he/she will not be eligible to play the first half of the next game.

If a player accumulates 3 yellow cards, he/she will be suspended for the first half of the next game.

The accumulation of cards returns to zero in the semifinals.

The cost per warning will be as follows:

Yellow Card: 150 NTD

Red Card: 300 NTD

Insults, physical violence, or threats against referees, volunteers, or organizers: 1,000 NTD

The payment for any infraction will be automatically deducted from the deposit made by each team.

Participants must respect sportsmanship, non-violent play and behave according to the following provisions:

Avoid any kind of discriminatory behavior.

Breaking the rules contained in this rulebook may lead to the immediate disqualification of a team and prevent it from participating in future editions of the event.

Members of the participating teams must refrain from the use of alcoholic beverages or narcotic substances, or they will be suspended from the competition.

The behaviors described above are strictly prohibited and will be dealt with according to their severity.

7. Controversies and Protests

Only one representative per team can be present to express a team’s complaint to the organizers and remain present while the expressed complaint is resolved.

Any dispute during the tournament will be resolved by the main organizer of the World Cup Taiwan, and in matters which he deems necessary, he will request the assistance of 2 additional members of the board of organizers before reaching a final decision.

The decision reached by the World Cup Taiwan main organizer or by the World Cup Taiwan main organizer and 2 additional members of the board will be final and must be accepted by all parties involved; it is completely forbidden to take the problem to external organizations out of the event, the party that does so may be suspended from the event and will be automatically excluded from future editions of the World Cup Taiwan soccer tournament.

If a party is not satisfied with the result, it can send its protests in writing to the email of the organizing committee: worldcuptwn@gmail.com. An answer to the protest will be given within 5 business days.

No protests may be filed against the referees' decisions about events that occur during a match, their decisions on the field are final and absolute.

8. Medical treatment

There will be first aid personnel in the field, who will be in charge of administering medical treatment to anyone who needs immediate attention.

Each participant must be in optimal conditions to play in this competition and is responsible for their health. An informed consent form must be completed, signed, and delivered to the organizers by each player prior to their participation in the competition in order for them to use the insurance policy purchased for the event.

If a player suffers a concussion, the player must be examined by first aid staff outside the field. The player may continue playing if the medical staff allows it. If a player is bleeding, he must leave the field and be examined by the first aid staff who will tend to the wound and determine if he is able to come back to the field or not.

The use of alcoholic beverages or narcotic substances is absolutely prohibited during the competition. The player who is proven to be under the influence of either of the said substances during a match will be suspended from the competition immediately.

The World Cup Taiwan will hire a medical insurance policy for accidents for the duration of the tournament, the insurance policy will be delivered to each captain and vendor prior to the tournament, and neither the World Cup Taiwan nor its organizers will be responsible for injuries or accidents that occur as a result of the event celebration beyond what is covered by the medical insurance contracted for this purpose.

Through the signature of the informed consent form, each player ensures that he/she is fit to play and that he/she understands that neither the World Cup Taiwan nor its organizers are responsible for any injuries or accidents beyond what is covered by the medical insurance contracted for this purpose.

The emergency insurance policy will only cover incidents happening inside the venue during the 2 days of the duration of the event, any previous conditions or treatment that is sought after the event dates will not be covered by the insurance policy.

9. Expense Coverage

The World Cup Taiwan management will be responsible for the payments and logistics to carry out this event. The funds for the payment of said expenses will come from the payment of the teams’ registration fee, payment of tents for food stands, and contributions from sponsors.

The organizing committee reserves the right to refuse the participation of players. teams, sponsors, the presence of people attending the event, and/or any other persons when deemed necessary.

The registration payment made by the teams is non-refundable. If a team withdraws before or during the tournament, is expelled from it for disciplinary reasons, is unable to play their games due to a lack of players on the dates of the competition, or is not able to fulfill its participation for any other reason besides the ones mentioned above, the payment of the registration fee will not be refunded.

II.Technical Standards

10. Number of teams

The World Cup Taiwan will include the participation of 12 male teams and 6 female teams.

11. Call for Participation Criteria

For the call of teams of the male competition, Taiwan allies and Taiwan will be given a week in advance to proceed to make their registration payment. After that period, the World Cup Taiwan management will notify the rest of the teams of the procedure to fill the remaining available quota.

For the female competition, all teams will be given equal opportunity to make the registration payment and participate in the event.

The payments will only be received by electronic deposit to the provided account. Once the participation has reached 12 male teams, and 6 female teams, no other teams will be accepted. If a team has paid after the above number of teams was completed, its registration payment will be refunded.

12. Draft and Rulebook Explanation

The draft and rulebook explanation will be held in the presence of the attending captains or representatives of each team on the date designated by the organizing committee. If a captain or representative of any given team is not present during the draw, no complaints about the draft made by the said team will be taken into consideration.

13. Competition Format

For male teams, the teams will be divided into 4 groups of 3 teams each.

For female teams, the teams will be divided into 2 groups of 3 teams each.

The matches will be 20 minutes each half with 3 minutes of resting time in between halves for male teams, and 10 minutes each half with 3 minutes of resting time in between halves for female teams.

14. Groups Phase

After each male team plays 1 match against each of their group rivals selected by lottery, the best 2 in each group will advance to the quarter-finals phase.

After each female team plays 1 match against each of their group rivals selected by lottery, the best 2 in each group will advance to the semifinal phase.

In case of a tie in points between 2 teams in the group stage, the qualifying teams for the next round will be decided as follows:

a) Better result on their face-to-face match.

b) Difference in goals.

c) Three penalty kicks are taken by different players; the team that scores more goals in the penalty rounds will be declared the winner. If there is a tie in the goals after the three rounds of penalties, the shootout will continue with "sudden-death" rounds until one team scores and the other one fails.

In case of a triple tie in points in the group stage, the qualifying teams for the next round will be decided as follows:

a) Goals in favor. If only one team is able to move on to the next stage following this criterion, the second classified team will be decided by penalty kicks taken by different players; the team that scores more goals in the penalty rounds will be declared the winner. If there is a tie in the goals after the three rounds of penalties, the shootout will continue with "sudden-death" rounds until one team scores and the other one fails.

b) Less yellow cards, a red card will have the equivalent value of two yellow cards. If only one team is able to move on to the next stage following this criterion, the second classified team will be decided by penalty kicks taken by different players; the team that scores more goals in the penalty rounds will be declared the winner. If there is a tie in the goals after the three rounds of penalties, the shootout will continue with "sudden-death" rounds until one team scores and the other one fails.

c) The group head will advance as a winner of its group and the second classified team will be decided by penalty kicks taken by different players; the team that scores more goals in the penalty rounds will be declared the winner. If there is a tie in the goals after the three rounds of penalties, the shootout will continue with "sudden-death" rounds until one team scores and the other one fails.

15. Quarter-Finals

After the 8 male teams have faced in direct elimination, the winners of the 4 games will advance to the semifinals.

If there is a tie in this phase, the game will be decided by three penalty kicks taken by different players; the team that scores more goals in the penalty rounds will be declared the winner. If there is a tie in the goals after the three rounds of penalties, the shootout will continue with "sudden-death" rounds until one team scores and the other one fails.

The 4 female teams that advanced in the group stage will move directly to the semifinals.

16. Semifinals

After the 4 men's teams have faced in direct elimination, the 2 winning teams from those matches will go to the final, and the 2 teams that are not victorious in the semi-finals will compete for third place.

After the 4 women's teams have faced in direct elimination, the 2 winning teams from those matches will go to the final, and the 2 teams that are not victorious in the semi-finals will compete for third place.

17. Final and Match For Third Place

The final and third-place matches will be played according to the results of the semifinal matches at the time and date indicated by the organizing committee.

18. Dates and Schedule of Matches

The dates and times indicated for the celebration of the matches will not be modified except in cases of duly verified force majeure, as long as there are favorable conditions for such modification without affecting the development of the tournament.

19. Pre-match Warm-up

The captains of each team must ensure that their players perform a warm-up prior to their respective matches at least 15 minutes before the start of each game.

20. List of Players and Accreditation

The citizens of the participating countries cannot be reinforcements for other teams except when their team captain has allowed it.

Teams must submit their player list by Wednesday 31st of August. Teams that have not paid the registration or have not sent their list of players in time will not participate in the tournament.

The list must include name, surname, identification number (Alien Resident Certificate, Passport, or National Health Insurance card) to be presented on the day of the tournament, and the number on the shirt for verification purposes.

A player can be substituted in case of a confirmed injury 48 hours before the competition by providing the necessary documents to prove his/her injury.

Each team player must present a signed informed consent form, verify his/her identification document at least 30 minutes previous to their first match, and continue to verify his/her identification document on each of his/her remaining matches. The players whose information is missing or whose IDs have not been verified previous to each match will not be allowed to play. The line-up list of each participating team should be written down on site by the head coach or captain 30 minutes previous to each of their upcoming matches.

If a team uses a player that has not previously verified his/her ID in a game, the team will be fined 500 NTD and the said player will be expelled from the match. After the player has been expelled, the game will continue normally. The player who has been expelled will not be eligible to play the first half of the following match. The 500 NTD will be automatically deducted from the deposit made by each team.

If a team uses players that have not been previously registered, the team will be fined 1,000 NTD. The team will also be forced to forfeit the match and the other team will be declared as the winner following the forfeit regulations, giving a 3-0 win for the team being declared as the winner. The 1,000 NTD will be automatically deducted from the deposit made by each team.

21.Male competition dispositions

Each male team must register a minimum of 15 players up to a maximum of 25 players of the nationality of the country they represent, including 1 foreign reinforcement from any nationality as a goalkeeper, if and only if the team does not have a goalkeeper. The maximum number of registered players cannot exceed 25 including the possible foreign reinforcement.

Each male team can only register a maximum of 1 first-division professional player and 3 second-division professional players in their team. A male player will be considered a first-division or second-division professional player if he has been enrolled in a professional first or second-division team six months prior to the event according to the accredited team list provided by the Chinese Taipei Football Association (CTFA).

If a team reports an illegal foreign reinforcement on the field, it is that team’s responsibility to present enough proof of their claim during the competition to the organizing committee which will make a decision based on the evidence.

If the claim is proven, the team that used an illegal foreign reinforcement will be fined 1,000 NTD, the team will also be forced to forfeit the match and the other team will be declared as the winner following the forfeit regulations, giving a 3-0 win for the team being declared as the winner. The illegal foreign reinforcement will be suspended from the competition.

The 1,000 NTD will be automatically deducted from the deposit made by each team.

22. Female competition dispositions

Each female team must register a minimum of 7 up to a maximum of 13 players including 2 possible foreign reinforcements. The foreign reinforcements can play in any position during the competition.

No professional female football players are allowed in the competition. This will apply to both reinforcements and regular players alike. A female player will be considered a “professional” if she has been enrolled in a professional, school, or university team in the previous 3 months to the celebration of the tournament.

If a team reports that a female player falls under the condition of “professional”, it is that team’s responsibility to present enough proof of their claim during the competition to the organizing committee which will make a decision based on the evidence.

If the claim is proven, the team that used a professional female player will be fined 1,000 NTD, the team will also be forced to forfeit the match and the other team will be declared as the winner following the forfeit regulations. The professional player will be expelled from the competition.

The 1,000 NTD will be automatically deducted from the deposit made by each team.

All the female players must have short fingernails before participating in any of their games.

23. Alignment and Bench

Teams must submit the list of starting players at least 30 minutes before their game starts. There is no limit to substitutions. Players are allowed to re-enter the playing field after a previous substitution.

24. Uniforms and Other Equipment

The players of each team must wear matching uniforms (jerseys, shorts, and socks) for each game.

All jerseys must have a visible marked and unique number. Players are not allowed to change their jersey numbers during the competition. No repeated numbers will be allowed.

According to FIFA rules, it is prohibited to display political, religious, or personal messages or slogans in any language. For any offense to this rule, the player and/or the team will be sanctioned by the competition organizer with 500 NTD as a fine, and the player who violates this rule will be expelled from the competition. The 500 NTD will be automatically deducted from the deposit made by each team.

The use of shoes with metal cleats is prohibited.

It is mandatory that each player has shin guards and long socks before entering the field. If the referee finds out that a player is not wearing shin guards, the referee will ask the player to get out of the field and wear them before being allowed into the field again.

No player will be allowed to wear earrings, chains, bracelets, or other jewelry when entering the field.

Each team must have a No. 5 soccer ball at each of their games.

25. Referees

3 CTFA-qualified referees will be hired for each male game.

1 CTFA-qualified referee will be hired for each female game.

The Chinese Taipei Football Association are professional experts in applying the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) rules, hence, their decisions on the field are final and absolute.

A team that does not accept the referee's decision and abandons the field will be declared the loser giving the other team the win with a 3-0 score.

No organizer has the power to overturn the referee's decisions and by enrolling to participate in this tournament, every team and its players agree to comply with their rulings. Aggression against the referees is strictly prohibited and will be dealt with according to its severity.

If a team wishes to file a complaint against a referee, they can do so in writing in the 5 days following the tournament for the World Cup Taiwan management to deliver it to the CTFA personnel.

26. Game Rules

All matches will be played in accordance with the Rules of the Game promulgated by the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) and the provisions contained in this rulebook.

Male matches will be played with regular 11 aside rules.

Female matches will be played with 7 players per team on the field (6 field players + 1 keeper), the offside rule will not apply to female matches.

27. Trophies

Trophies will be awarded as a prize to the first, second, and third-place team, as well as medals to each of the registered players of the teams that reach the said positions in the male and female competitions.

A medal for the best player of the tournament and the least beaten goalkeeper of the male and female competition will also be awarded. To decide on the less beaten goalkeeper prize, only the group phase matches will be taken into consideration.

If there is a tie in the group phase, the award will be given to the goalkeeper of the tied team that made it farther in the tournament. The best player of the tournament will be selected among the players of the team that reaches first place in each competition.

III.Final Provisions

28. Participants' ID verification

To corroborate the nationality of each player the following documents will be accepted: Alien Resident Certificate, Passport, and National Health Insurance card. For any other special circumstances, the World Cup organizers will analyze each individual case and provide a list of accepted players to the persons in charge of the ID verification in advance.

The World Cup Taiwan reserves the right to refuse any player whose documents show inconsistencies, any player whose ID does not match the list provided, any player who did not provide a valid ID for verification, or those players whose documents were unable to be verified.

To verify their information, the captains and their players must report to the verification tent at least 30 minutes before their match, only those players that have verified their ID will be able to participate in the upcoming match.

29. Vests

The World Cup Taiwan organizers will provide vests for teams whose uniforms are too similar. If the referee decides that the uniforms are prone to confusion, he shall do a coin toss exclusively to determine which team shall wear the vests, thereby, the team that loses this coin toss will wear the vests. The winner of the coin flip will be the team that selected the side that came out, or that won because the other team selected the side that did not come out.

30.Covid-19 Regulations

The participants of the tournament must follow the COVID-19 regulations and guidelines provided by the New Taipei City government and the Taiwanese Center for Disease Control. Any violation of the COVID-19 regulations and guidelines will be fined 300 NTD which will be automatically deducted from the deposit made by each team.

31. Exceptional Circumstances

The Organizing Committee will issue any notice or report with instructions on exceptional circumstances that may arise.

32. Unforeseen events

Any matter not provided for in this rulebook, such as cases of force majeure, will be resolved by the main organizer of the World Cup Taiwan, and in matters which he deems necessary, he will request the assistance of 2 additional members of the board of organizers before reaching a final decision. Such decisions will be binding and cannot be appealed.

33. Languages

The official language of this tournament will be English, but the translation of the Rulebook will be provided to Chinese if the circumstances require it. If there are any inconsistencies between the English and Chinese versions of the rulebook, the English version will prevail.

34. Copyright

The World Cup Taiwan management has the copyright for this competition’s trademark and rulebook.