WHILST we should not have to remind any teams of the below three rules, we have encountered instances recently where as a Committee we have had to take actions against some of our member teams.
At the beginning of the season, you will have agreed to abiding by the IFA General Rules and these been distributed to your players for their agreement. If your players cannot abide by these fairly simple rules, then they do not have a place within IFA football.
The following rules are integral to our organisation. If you or your team is unable to comply, there will be a local Saturday or Sunday league which may be more suitable for you to continue with your football elsewhere.
7. Discipline
7.1 It is the responsibility of team management/officials to ensure that all team staff, players and supporters follow the agreed standards of behaviour both on and off the pitch.
7.2 In the case of on-pitch activities, it is expected that team managers/captains will remove any offending players from the field of play for a period of time at their discretion, using the IFA policy of allowing “rolling subs”. The IFA is no place for “hotheads”, people wishing to behave in such a manner should seek their entertainment elsewhere.
7.3 The IFA is a friendly organisation, there should not be any circumstances where players are sent off or forced to be substituted. If the home team has recruited a referee for the match, it is their responsibility to ensure that the referee is briefed on the IFA approach to matches BEFORE the game commences.
7.4 By entering the IFA, teams have agreed to be responsible for their own actions, so there should be no need for the intervention of the IFA Committee. There will be no warnings on behaviour – if the Committee feel the need to act they will do so with Draconian effect to offending teams. This should not happen because you are all sensible and will be playing games in the spirit they are intended.
8. Discrimination and Abuse
8.1 It is every participant’s duty to ensure that teams and individual participants are not subject to any form of discrimination or abuse. We gladly welcome all participants regardless of race, religion, gender or sexual orientation. Any participant or team that fails to accept this is not welcome at IFA events.
9. Social Media
9.1 We all have a presence on Twitter and Facebook, and most teams follow each other on these platforms. All teams and associated players must respect each other at all times, both on the pitch and on social media networks.
9.2 Any player or team seen to be disrespecting their opposition or another IFA side will be investigated with any individuals involved and their team facing expulsion from IFA competitions in extreme cases.
9.3 If anybody sees a member of their team commenting in this manner, it is down to the manager to proactively resolve the issue before it escalates.
Can we also take this opportunity to remind teams of the IFA spirit, with a focus on particular on:
“We encourage good natured banter between our teams and believe games should be played with smiles on faces. This means there should be little or no handbags with the opposition, disputing decisions with referees or linesmen and no arguing with or abusing opponents, team-mates or match officials. If a decision goes against your team, the captain or manager should have a word with the referee where appropriate and if you foul an opponent you are expected to pick them up if needed, or shake their hand”
We hope to see these rules and the principles of our league being followed by all teams going forward…..
On behalf of the IFA Committee
For full details of who’s who on the committee, please see the link below:
https://www.internetfootball.org.uk/ifa-stats/ifa-committee/