How the Cup is played, scored, and kept fair — the league constitution first, then the rules of each sport. Chapters adopt this rulebook whole and may append local ground rules that never contradict it.
Draft v0.9 · Carmel Chapter · Adopted rules take effect at board ratification1.1 — The Cup is a year-round competition among registered neighborhoods, played across four seasonal slates (Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter) and decided each December at Finals Weekend.
1.2 — In Year 1 all neighborhoods compete in a single table. Year 1 finishing positions seed three divisions: Division 1 (The Cup Tier), Division 2 (The Court Tier), and Division 3 (The Block Tier). Each division awards its own trophy at Finals Night.
1.3 — Promotion and relegation. At each year's end, the bottom finisher of each higher division is relegated and the top finisher of each lower division is promoted (counts may be adjusted by the board as the league grows; changes announced before a season starts, never during). Newly registered neighborhoods enter the bottom division.
1.4 — Standings are computed from the official Point Ledger only. The ledger is append-only; corrections are made by offsetting entries, never edits.
2.1 — Any Carmel neighborhood, HOA, or contiguous residential community may register. Each neighborhood names one Commissioner — the league's point of contact and the neighborhood's vote.
2.2 — Neighborhoods are placed in size brackets by home count — Cottage (≤74), Village (≤199), Estate (≤399), Township (400+) — and scored per-capita so small can beat big.
2.3 — A neighborhood must be registered before any of its residents may register as players.
3.1 — Players register individually, under their neighborhood, and sign up per sport. A player represents one neighborhood per calendar year — the one they reside in.
3.2 — Registration requires acceptance of the participation waiver and photo release (§ 21). Players under 18 additionally require guardian consent (§ 22).
3.3 — Sport sign-ups open when the site's registration window opens and close at each sport's roster deadline. The website shows live team-fill status; a neighborhood short of a sport's minimum may still enter with a combined bracket-mate roster at the board's discretion.
Every point a neighborhood earns lands in one of four categories. Civic service is deliberately the largest share — the Cup cannot be won on athletic talent alone.
| Action | Category | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Verified volunteer hour | Civic | 10 |
| Program-ops hour (league operations) | Civic · capped at 30% of Civic | 10 |
| City event check-in | Civic | 5 |
| Match played | Participation | 5 |
| Full-composition roster fielded | Composition | 5 |
| New player recruited | Composition | 5 |
| Kit adoption bonus (one-time) | Composition | 25 |
| Match win | Competitive | 10 |
| Tournament win | Competitive | 25 |
| Season championship | Competitive | 100 |
| Overall championship (The Cup) | Competitive | 250 |
Caps. A household may credit at most 20 volunteer hours and a neighborhood at most 250 points per month. Program-ops hours may not exceed 30% of a neighborhood's Civic total. Caps keep the Cup a breadth contest, not a grind.
5.1 — The Cup is multigenerational by rule, not by aspiration. Full-composition credit (§ 4) requires a fielded roster to include at least one player aged 50+, and mixed-gender participation as defined per sport in § 30.
5.2 — Minors participate in designated sports and roles per § 22.
5.3 — Heritage Slate sports carry founder-community designation: open to all, with legacy standing held by the 55+ communities that founded them.
6.1 — Matches are officiated by registered league referees. Referees never officiate matches involving their own neighborhood.
6.2 — Referee service credits program-ops civic points to the referee's neighborhood (subject to the § 4 sub-cap).
6.3 — Officials assigned to matches involving minors must complete a league background screen before assignment.
6.4 — The referee's match report is the official result of record, subject to § 8.
7.1 — Sports are designated home-field or hub. Home-field sports rotate among neighborhood facilities and permitted public park fields; hub sports (trivia, euchre, bowling, and card sports) play at a fixed partner venue for the season.
7.2 — Public-ground venues require a facility-use permit held by the league before scheduling. The published schedule names the venue for every event.
7.3 — A neighborhood hosting a home match is responsible for field setup, teardown, and leaving the ground better than it found it — violations forfeit the host's participation points for that event.
8.1 — Results are submitted by the assigned official (or, where none, by both commissioners jointly) within 24 hours of play, and enter the ledger as pending.
8.2 — Pending results auto-confirm 24 hours after submission unless a commissioner files a protest. Protests are decided by the league board within one week; the board's decision is final.
8.3 — Falsified results forfeit the match and the offending neighborhood's competitive points for the season slate.
20.1 — This is a league for making neighbors out of strangers. Abusive language, unsportsmanlike conduct toward players or officials, or discrimination of any kind draws a conduct review; sanctions run from a match suspension to expulsion, decided by the board.
20.2 — Commissioners are accountable for their sideline. A neighborhood's repeated conduct violations affect its Composition standing.
20.3 — Alcohol at league events follows venue rules and Indiana law; league play itself is dry.
21.1 — Every player accepts the participation waiver and photo release at registration; acceptance is recorded with a timestamp. Guardians accept on behalf of minors.
21.2 — The league maintains general liability and participant accident coverage; certificates of insurance are provided to venue hosts on request.
22.1 — Players under 18 register only with recorded guardian consent, and appear on rosters in designated youth-eligible sports and roles.
22.2 — Adults in supervisory or officiating roles over minors complete background screening (§ 6.3). Two-adult presence is required for any league activity involving minors.
22.3 — The league never publishes a minor's name, image, or contact information without explicit guardian consent.
The website's dateline shows live conditions and posts match-day advisories automatically. The thresholds are league law:
Each sport plays under its common recreational ruleset, amended by a one-page league sheet covering: format and match length, roster minimum and composition requirement, scoring submission, and any Cup-specific local rules.