2020 Return to Play Guidelines
**This is an evolving situation and these regulations are subject to change at any time**
ALL PLAYERS MUST SIGN THE 2020 WAIVER AND THE COVID RELEASE PRIOR TO PLAY
Please remember, participation in the Versus Sports league is 100% voluntary. If you are not comfortable returning to play, Please Don’t. We will do everything within our power to promote player safety, but don’t forget, returning to play is not without risk. We’re in this together and all players play a role in keeping one another healthy and safe.
If you decide to play in the Versus Sports Soccer League you agree to the following Return To Play Regulations:
- Schedule and field assignments will be posted ahead of time and players will go directly to their fields. No gathering at the picnic tables.
- Arrive no more than 15 minutes prior to game and leave immediately after.
- Adhere to social distancing guidelines in parking lots, when arriving and departing, and whenever possible.
- Participants must stay on their assigned field – no warm-ups on other fields.
- Where possible, teams should set up on opposite sides of the field.
- A game ball and sanitizer will be provided for each field. It is the captain's responsibility to make sure the game ball is sanitized before and after the game.
- Players will be expected to bring everything they may need. No sharing of equipment. No pinnies will be available, no first-aid, no ball pumps, etc.
- Players and referees are encouraged to bring hand sanitizer for use, and/or wash their hands prior to, at half time, after any contact with a shared surface, and immediately following a game.
- Cloth Facial Coverings- It is recommended that all players, officials and league organizers have a cloth facial covering in their possession for times when physical distancing measures are difficult to maintain. Face coverings should be worn as much as possible. The CDC acknowledges that face coverings may be challenging for players to wear while playing sports. Versus Sports encourages players to wear face coverings while not engaged in active play (e.g., during warm-ups, while on the sideline, at half time).
- No throw-ins. Kick-ins will be used when the ball goes out on the sidelines.
- Keepers must wear gloves.
- No spitting. If it occurs, 1st time, Ref will remind the player, 2nd time, Ref will ask the player to sub.
- No defensive walls will be allowed. All fouls made outside the penalty box will earn an indirect free kick to eliminate the need to form a wall.
- Minimize contact. No high fives, group celebrations, etc.
- Adopt an “Arrive, Play, Leave” mentality. Minimal congregation before, during or after games.
- There will be no bathrooms or trash cans available at this time. carry in/carry out
- Spectators are to be kept at a minimum
- Personal equipment should be stored in a bag immediately following each game or training session. Clothes / uniform should be laundered, and all personal equipment sanitized after each game.
- If you feel ill or have a temperature of 100+ STAY HOME. If symptoms begin while participating in sport, participant must leave the game and facility immediately. If a player is diagnosed with COVID-19 they MUST NOTIFY the league administrator immediately. ( info@versussports.net or 802-233-3478). Any player with a fever should not attend or participate in Versus Sports League Play until they have no fever for 72 hours without the use of fever-reducing medications.
- As per the CDC, any player that contracts COVID-19 will not be allowed to resume play until:
- At least 3 days has passed with no fever; and,
- Symptoms have improved (i.e., cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, muscle or body aches, loss of taste or smell, etc.); and,
- It has been at least 10 days since symptoms first appeared.
Contact Tracing:
Close Contact and COVID Cases in Recreational Sport Programs or Leagues If a player, official or individual who operates as staff for the Versus Sports Soccer League has been identified as having been in close contact with someone who is diagnosed with COVID-19, they must self-quarantine: stay home. This does not include healthcare workers that are properly using Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). Please refer to the Health Department’s website for what it means to be in close contact and for instructions for isolation, quarantine, and self-observation. Contact tracing is a strategy used to determine the source of an infection and how it is spreading. Finding people who are close contacts to a person who has tested positive for COVID-19, and therefore at higher risk of becoming infected themselves, can help prevent further spread of the virus. A contact tracing team from the Vermont Department of Health calls anyone who has tested positive for COVID-19. They ask the patient questions about their activities within a certain timeframe – to help identify anyone they have had close contact for a prolonged period of time. This is generally defined by the CDC as being less than 6 feet apart for a period of several minutes.) Those contacts might include family members, co-workers or health care providers. When there is a confirmed case of COVID-19 in the recreational sports program or league; you will be able to consult with the contact tracing team at the Vermont Department of Health. To reach this team directly, you may call 802-863-7240. All Vermonters are encouraged to consider keeping a contact journal. If you do get sick, this will make it easier to get in touch with those people, and so they can take proper precautions to prevent further spreading of the coronavirus.
Informational Links:
If you decide to play in the Versus Sports Soccer League you agree to the following Return To Play Regulations:
- Schedule and field assignments will be posted ahead of time and players will go directly to their fields. No gathering at the picnic tables.
- Arrive no more than 15 minutes prior to game and leave immediately after.
- Adhere to social distancing guidelines in parking lots, when arriving and departing, and whenever possible.
- Participants must stay on their assigned field – no warm-ups on other fields.
- Where possible, teams should set up on opposite sides of the field.
- A game ball and sanitizer will be provided for each field. It is the captain's responsibility to make sure the game ball is sanitized before and after the game.
- Players will be expected to bring everything they may need. No sharing of equipment. No pinnies will be available, no first-aid, no ball pumps, etc.
- Players and referees are encouraged to bring hand sanitizer for use, and/or wash their hands prior to, at half time, after any contact with a shared surface, and immediately following a game.
- Cloth Facial Coverings- It is recommended that all players, officials and league organizers have a cloth facial covering in their possession for times when physical distancing measures are difficult to maintain. Face coverings should be worn as much as possible. The CDC acknowledges that face coverings may be challenging for players to wear while playing sports. Versus Sports encourages players to wear face coverings while not engaged in active play (e.g., during warm-ups, while on the sideline, at half time).
- No throw-ins. Kick-ins will be used when the ball goes out on the sidelines.
- Keepers must wear gloves.
- No spitting. If it occurs, 1st time, Ref will remind the player, 2nd time, Ref will ask the player to sub.
- No defensive walls will be allowed. All fouls made outside the penalty box will earn an indirect free kick to eliminate the need to form a wall.
- Minimize contact. No high fives, group celebrations, etc.
- Adopt an “Arrive, Play, Leave” mentality. Minimal congregation before, during or after games.
- There will be no bathrooms or trash cans available at this time. carry in/carry out
- Spectators are to be kept at a minimum
- Personal equipment should be stored in a bag immediately following each game or training session. Clothes / uniform should be laundered, and all personal equipment sanitized after each game.
- If you feel ill or have a temperature of 100+ STAY HOME. If symptoms begin while participating in sport, participant must leave the game and facility immediately. If a player is diagnosed with COVID-19 they MUST NOTIFY the league administrator immediately. ( info@versussports.net or 802-233-3478). Any player with a fever should not attend or participate in Versus Sports League Play until they have no fever for 72 hours without the use of fever-reducing medications.
- As per the CDC, any player that contracts COVID-19 will not be allowed to resume play until:
- At least 3 days has passed with no fever; and,
- Symptoms have improved (i.e., cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, muscle or body aches, loss of taste or smell, etc.); and,
- It has been at least 10 days since symptoms first appeared.
Contact Tracing:
Close Contact and COVID Cases in Recreational Sport Programs or Leagues If a player, official or individual who operates as staff for the Versus Sports Soccer League has been identified as having been in close contact with someone who is diagnosed with COVID-19, they must self-quarantine: stay home. This does not include healthcare workers that are properly using Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). Please refer to the Health Department’s website for what it means to be in close contact and for instructions for isolation, quarantine, and self-observation. Contact tracing is a strategy used to determine the source of an infection and how it is spreading. Finding people who are close contacts to a person who has tested positive for COVID-19, and therefore at higher risk of becoming infected themselves, can help prevent further spread of the virus. A contact tracing team from the Vermont Department of Health calls anyone who has tested positive for COVID-19. They ask the patient questions about their activities within a certain timeframe – to help identify anyone they have had close contact for a prolonged period of time. This is generally defined by the CDC as being less than 6 feet apart for a period of several minutes.) Those contacts might include family members, co-workers or health care providers. When there is a confirmed case of COVID-19 in the recreational sports program or league; you will be able to consult with the contact tracing team at the Vermont Department of Health. To reach this team directly, you may call 802-863-7240. All Vermonters are encouraged to consider keeping a contact journal. If you do get sick, this will make it easier to get in touch with those people, and so they can take proper precautions to prevent further spreading of the coronavirus.
Informational Links:
- Phased restart details: Section 9.1: https://accd.vermont.gov/news/update-new-work-safe-additions-stay-home-stay-safe-order#sports-and-organized-sports