Champions League Football Tournament Begins

Dear Esteemed Students of ÖzU,

The 2024-2025 ÖzU Champions League Football Tournament is commencing! The opportunity to reflect team spirit on the field, create unforgettable matches, and lift the championship trophy awaits you now. Are you ready to showcase your talents and reach the pinnacle with your team?

To participate in the tournament, form your team and procure the "ÖzU Champions League Application Form" from the Fitness office on the 1st floor of the Sports Center, fill it out with your teammates' information, and submit your application to the office on the Fitness floor of the Sports Center by Wednesday, October 22, 2024, at 16:00. Remember that participation quotas are limited!

Team selections will be made when you submit your squads during the application process.

Application Date          : October 10, 2025

Application End Date  : October 22, 2024, Wednesday (Submission of squad)

Tournament Start Date : November 08, 2024

Tournament End Date          : May 19, 2025

For licenses, the submission of documents - draw: Thursday, October 23, 2024, at 14:00 at the Sports Center. 

Documents: For each athlete, a health declaration (wet-signed), 1 passport-sized photograph,

For the Champions League application form, a minimum of 18 individuals and a maximum of 22 individuals can be listed. The squad must include 4 international students. Licenses will be issued in exchange for two separate forms ( one team roster form and each athlete's signed health declaration form and photograph). Licenses are specific to the tournament and valid for in-school competitions.

The championship is limited to 32 teams. The selected teams are shared at the bottom of the announcement.

For questions and suggestions, email address: sportive@ozu.edu.tr

ÖzU Champions League Football Tournament Game Rules

1. All matches will be played in accordance with the official FIFA Laws of the Game. The offside rule will not apply during the group stage and knockout rounds prior to the quarter-finals.  The offside rule will be applied from the quarter-finals onward (quarter-finals, semi-finals, and final).
2. Matches are played with 10 outfield players and 1 goalkeeper. Each squad must consist of a minimum of 18 and a maximum of 22 players. A team must have at least 7 players on the field to start a match. Players arriving late may enter the game if they are listed on the official team roster. 
3. A match lasts for two equal halves of 20 minutes (20+20=40 minutes).  The interval at half-time lasts for 5 minutes. The referee will keep official time. 
4. Each team should be present on the field in their jerseys at the scheduled kick-off time.  Players may not wear watches, rings, bracelets, or any accessories that may pose a danger to themselves or others. All accessories are forbidden and must be removed when instructed by the referee.   Players who fail to comply with the referee’s instructions may be dismissed from the game. 
5. Players must wear rubber-soled cleats or turf shoes suitable for artificial grass. Metal-studded cleats are strictly prohibited.
6. All Champions League matches will be played on weekends between 12:00 and 17:00.
7. The referee may inspect players’ footwear before or during the game. Players with inappropriate footwear will be instructed to change them. Players who refuse to comply can be sent off from the field by the referee.
8. If a team is reduced to fewer than 7 players during play, the team is considered to have lost the match. The match will be forfeited, and the result will be recorded as a 3-0 loss for the team. 
9. Substitutions are allowed only with the referee’s permission. Each team is entitled to 5 substitutions until the end of the match. 
10. Any player listed on the team roster may play as goalkeeper, provided their names are included in the pre-match lineup. 
11. Once the match has started, the goalkeeper cannot play as an outfield player. Players may only take the goalkeeper’s position in the event of a goalkeeper’s expulsion or injury. However, with mutual agreement between the two team captains, certain flexibilities (such as allowing the goalkeeper to play on the field or waiting periods) may be granted.
12. If the goalkeeper is sent off from the field, the substitute goalkeeper may take the goalkeeper’s place. If no substitute goalkeeper is available, an outfield player must substitute for the goalkeeper. In that case, the team will continue to play with one fewer player on the field.
13. Goal kicks are taken from within the penalty area once the ball is stationary on the ground. Play can be restarted once the ball is stationary inside the penalty area. The ball does not need to leave the penalty area to be in play. If an opponent touches the ball before it leaves the penalty area, the kick must be retaken. 
14. The back-pass rule will apply. If the goalkeeper handles a deliberate back-pass from a teammate, an indirect free kick will be awarded to the opposing team, and the opposing team can take the indirect free kick from the point on the penalty area line nearest to where the infraction occurred.
15. Each team must have a copy of its official player list available during every match.
16. Teams must be present at the tournament venue at least 15 minutes before the scheduled kick-off time. 
17. Teams may be granted a maximum delay of 10 minutes after the scheduled kick-off time. This delay may be added to the total match time at the referee’s discretion. Any team arriving later than 10 minutes after the scheduled time will forfeit the match.
18. The tournament format will be determined based on the number of teams registered.
19. In knockout and final matches, if the score is tied at the end of regulation time, the winner will be decided by penalty kicks.
20. Team jerseys will be distributed after the group stage.
21. Group stage matches will be played in a single round-robin format.
22. The top two teams from each group will advance to the next round (subject to change based on total number of teams and groups).
23. After the group stage (Round of 16 and finals), teams may add up to four additional players. The final team roster must be submitted in writing to the Athletic Center.
24. All knockout matches will be single-elimination. If these matches are tied, the team representatives will provide the referee with the list of players who will take the penalty kicks. Each team may nominate take as many penalty kicks as the number of players (5 players on the field at the end of the regulation time). If the game remains tied after the first 5 penalties, sudden-death penalties will follow. Only players present on the field at full time may take penalties. The goalkeeper who played during regulation may not be replaced during penalties except in the case of injury.
25. All protests must be submitted in writing to the Tournament Organizing Committee. 
26. Players who leave, are eliminated, or expelled from the tournament for any reason will not be eligible to receive an award even if their team wins the championship.
27. Starting from the Round of 16, teams will be divided into two seeded pots for the draw. Teams that were in the same group cannot face each other in the first knockout round.
28. The teams defeated in the semi-finals will play a third-place match.
29. A maximum of four (4) players from the University’s official football team may participate on any Champions League team.
30. Teams formed by Turkish nationals must include at least 4 international students, while teams formed by international students must include at least 4 Turkish nationals. At least 2 of these players must be in the starting lineup.
31. Teams without a foreign player must start the match with a reduced number of players. For Example: If a team is missing two foreign players, the team will start and finish the match with nine (9) players. Should a foreign player arrive later, they may enter the game.
32. Students holding dual citizenship are considered Turkish nationals for tournament purposes.

Disciplinary Regulations

1. Matches may be announced via sportive@ozyegin.edu.tr, the WhatsApp group, or MyOzU. Teams failing to appear for a scheduled match without providing a valid excuse will be disqualified from the tournament, deemed to have forfeited the match with a 3–0 loss, and penalized with a –3 goal difference. (If both teams have a legitimate reason for absence on the announced date, their captains must contact the Athletic Center and obtain approval for a postponement.)
2. Each team is entitled to request a postponement for a single match during the tournament, provided the request is submitted at least two days before the match. Failure to appear for a second time will result in disqualification from the tournament, and all remaining matches will be recorded as 3–0 forfeits for that team.  (This rule is subject to change annually.)
3. The referee may perform an identity check before or after the match (within 15 minutes) either at his/her own discretion or upon the request of the tournament officials or the opponent team captain. If it is determined that a player in the game is not listed on the official team roster, or if the player fails to present a valid Özyeğin University ID upon request, the team will forfeit the match with a 3–0 loss. Teams cannot have players who are not affiliated with Özyeğin University. If it is determined that a team has a player who is not a member of Özyeğin University, the team may be dismissed from the tournament.
4. A yellow card received by a player during a match will not carry over to upcoming matches. However, a player who receives two yellow cards in a match is sent off and suspended for the next game. 
5. A player who receives a red card will be sent off immediately and suspended for the next two matches. If the referee reports that a player has used offensive, insulting or abusive language and/or gestures toward the referee, the opponent, or the tournament organization committee while leaving the field, a more severe sanction will be imposed on the player by the Organization Committee, or the player will be dismissed from the tournament entirely. 
6. Any objection, protest, physical contact, use of offensive or abusive language toward the referee or the organizing committee, insulting an opponent or teammate, fighting, inappropriate chanting, or harassment before, during, or after a match may result in the match being terminated or abandoned. In such a case, the Organization Committee may dismiss one or both teams or individual players from the tournament, regardless of the score, and/or impose additional penalties.  
7. Teams attempting to field players who are not on the game roster are forfeited with a 3-0 loss, either at the end of the match or before the end of the match.  
8. Any team found guilty of match-fixing will be expelled from the tournament.
9. Red card suspensions will carry over to the next tournament.
10. All disciplinary actions will be notified to team captains via the WhatsApp group created for the tournament. These disciplinary actions will also be recorded in a shared drive file, where captains can review and verify them.