Ohio Soccer State League
The decision of which league your team will play in is a collaboration between the team’s coaching staff and the club’s DOCs. Make sure you check with TFA’s Directors of Coaching before submitting an application to OSSL.
The information presented below is meant to be a guide for Coaches and Team Administrators of teams participating in the OSSL League. Always refer to the OSSL website, https://ohio-soccer.org/state-league/, for the most up-to-date league information. Questions regarding OSSL can be directed to the Club Administrator at clubadministrator@tfacincinnati.com.
Contact:
Jen Schuppe
jschuppe@ohio-soccer.org
Ohio Soccer Association
Office: (513) 576 – 9555
Office Address: 7228 Columbia Rd, Suite 900, Maineville, OH 45039
Website: https://ohio-soccer.org/state-league/
Facebook: Ohio Soccer Association
Twitter: @theohiosoccer
Office hours: Tuesday through Thursday 9am-2pm – but check website to confirm
Topics Covered:
OSSL Calendar
Application
Game Scheduling
Player/Coach Registration
IN & KY Out of State Permission to Play
In-Season Changes
Referee Fees
OSSL CALENDAR
The league calendar can be found on the OSSL website.
APPLICATION
Once it’s been established that your team will participate in the OSSL League, you must go to https://ohio-soccer.org/state-league/ and submit an application before the league’s deadline.
** The club will pay the OSSL league fee for all TFA teams. Teams do not need to submit payment. Please forward your application email confirmation to the Club Administrator.
GAME SCHEDULING
Once your team’s been accepted in the OSSL, self scheduling will begin. You will work with your opponents to schedule games. It is advised that before starting this process, you make note of any known conflicts that will occur during the season so as not to schedule games on these dates. Examples of such conflicts are: tournament dates, coach’s non-availability and player conflicts, such as dances, field trips and SAT/ACT tests.
PLAYER/COACH REGISTRATION
With the use of Demosphere, team carding with the league is much more simplified as all leagues within Ohio Soccer Association are also using Demosphere. Families upload birth certificates and photos for each player into their Demosphere accounts. The only forms that you need to collect are the Indiana or Kentucky Out of State Permission to Play forms for players that reside in Indiana or Kentucky. Refer to the section below titled “IN & KY Out-of-State Permission to Play” for details.
Refer to the Team Admin>Coach Responsibilities page of the website for the Risk Management process for coaches.
Steps to get your team carded/rostered with OSSL:
1. Confirm Roster – Confirm that all players have accepted and are listed with your team in Demosphere. Confirm that your team has at least two Coaches assigned in Demosphere. (You can have up to three.) If there is a Team Admin, he/she should also be assigned to the team.
2. Verify Photos – Verify that a photo has been uploaded for every player and coach in Demosphere. It should be a head shot only. No one else should be in the photo. No sunglasses or hats.
3. Player Proof of Birth – Demosphere will show a player as Verified or Not Verified. Verified means that their birth certificate has already been approved in the system. No action is needed. If the player is Not Verified, it either means: 1. They have not upload a birth certificate yet, or 2. The birth certificate has been uploaded, but has not yet been reviewed/approved. You will not be able to see if a birth certificate is uploaded. For the players that are Not Verified, just check with your families to verify that they did upload the BC.
4. Out of State Forms (IN & KY) – Send the approved forms to clubadministrator@tfacincinnati.com. See section below.
5. Coach/Admin Risk Management – Verify that all coaches and admins have completed all Risk tasks. (You will not be able to see this in Demosphere.) Refer to the Team Admin>Coach Responsibilities page of the website for the Risk Management process.
6. Once all these steps have been completed, send an email to clubadministrator@tfacincinnati.com, to let the Club Administrator know that your team is ready for review.
** Deadline: Complete at least 2 weeks before your first game.
7. The Club Administrator will let you know if anything is missing in Demosphere for players or coaches. The Club Administrator will notify you once all players and coaches have been verified by OSSL in Demosphere.
When the roster and cards are ready, you can drive out to the Ohio Soccer office and pick them up, or Ohio Soccer also offers to mail them to you. Please plan ample time for mailing before your first game.
IN & KY OUT-OF-STATE PERMISSION TO PLAY
Players that are residents of Indiana or Kentucky must complete the Out-of-State Permission to Play form for that respective state. This form is good for an entire seasonal year (Fall and Spring seasons). The state will return an approved form and the approved form should be included with the registration paperwork. Note that it might take a few weeks for the form to be processed by the state.
INDIANA
Players that reside in Indiana must complete an Out of State Permission to Play form to get clearance from Indiana to play in Ohio. If you have Indiana players, reach out to them to complete this online form.
Click on the link below to get to Indiana Soccer’s website for information:
https://www.soccerindiana.org/services/tournament-sanctioning-and-forms-/
Required information:
State Association: OSA (Ohio Soccer Association)
Club Name: Total Futbol Academy
League: e.g. Ohio Soccer State League (OSSL)
Age Group: U8, etc.
KENTUCKY
Players that reside in Kentucky must complete an Out of State Permission to Play form to get clearance from Kentucky to play in Ohio. If you have Kentucky players, reach out to them to complete this online form.
Click on the link below to access the online form:
Kentucky Out-of-State Permission Form
Required information:
League: e.g. Ohio Soccer State League (OSSL)
IN-SEASON CHANGES
Teams that already have an approved roster for the seasonal year will use these steps to make subsequent roster changes.
Teams that do not already have an initial roster (including high school teams only playing in the spring) should refer to the NEW TEAM REGISTRATION section above.
** Note: If you do not have any changes to your roster from the fall to the spring season, no action is required!
Overview for Roster Changes:
For a Transfer: Obtain the Inter Team Transfer Form (signed by player & coach of team player is transferring from) (see Team Admin>Important Documents)
For a Player Quit: Obtain the Voluntary Quit Form (this MUST be signed by player, parent and coach)(see Team Admin>Important Documents)
Send the Club Administrator:
1. Player Name
2. Current team name
3. New club and team name
4. A photo of the current player card, cut in half, as proof that it has been destroyed.
5. Completed Transfer or Player Quit Form
The club with the incoming transfer will initiate the transfer in the Demosphere system. Our Club Administrator will either initiate the transfer or contact the Club Administrator for the other club to initiate the transfer, as appropriate.
Once the transfer is final in Demosphere and all required paperwork is received, a new card and roster will be provided.
REFEREE FEES
Refer to the “Referee Fees” document on the Team Admin>Important Documents page of our website, for the referee fees for each league.
