VI. The Rapids Classic | 9U-19U | AUGUST 2021

The 2021 Rapids Classic is the go-to destination for top teams across the Western United States. This tournament is built for all competitive teams looking for challenging opposition in a fun environment. Teams joining us this year for our 10th Anniversary are in for a great weekend of competitive soccer! Follow the tabs to find more information on the 2021 Rapids Classic tournament.

Watch this space for updates and details on the day-to-day schedule of the tournament, as we finalize brackets and approach kick off!

Teams should register and play according to the 2021 Fall season. We will follow US Soccer’s Age Group Guidelines based on birth year. Teams will be placed in Bronze, Silver, and Gold divisions, with Gold divisions composing the highest level of teams registered. This event is hosted at 3 (THREE) different facility locations at DICK’S Sporting Goods Park, Aurora Sports Park, and The Gates Soccer Complex.

Early Bird Registration:

• Early registration ends on July 29th, 2021.
• Waitlist registration will close on August 5th, 2021.
  • Teams waitlisted will be notified no later than by August 5th, 2021 of their acceptance into the event.

**A $100 late fee will be added on for all registrations received during our waitlist time period.**

Acceptance Process:

• Acceptances will begin no sooner than 6 Weeks out from the event date.
• If your team is traveling for this event, please reach out directly to check the status of your application. We can accommodate early acceptances for traveling teams to help them plan their trips by accepting teams sooner.

Payment Process:

• Your card has been stored on file along with your application.
• Tournaments staff will process applications starting on July 8th, 2021 (6 weeks out from the event).
• When you receive an acceptance email, please double-check your accounts to make sure the payment has been correctly processed.

Bracket Release and Schedule Release Timeline:

• Tournament Brackets:
  • Brackets will be released to teams no later than 2 weeks out from the event date.
  • Placement will be based off the questions you answered in the application as well as your GotSoccer ranking and league standings.
  • Teams will have 24 hours to review placement and request changes, all changes are subject to staff authorization and no guarantees can be made.
  • If you have any special requests, please reach out early and let us know! We will do our best to accommodate, but can not make and guarantee. (I.E. “Our team lost some players since last year, so we should be in Bronze not Silver” or “We want a harder schedule, please place us up a bracket if possible!”)
• Tournament Schedules:
  • Schedules will be released to teams no later than 1 week out from the event date.
  • Teams will have 24 hours to review schedules and request changes, all changes are subject to staff authorization and no guarantees can be made.
  • If you have any special requests, please reach out early and let us know! We will do our best to accommodate, but can not make and guarantee. (I.E. “Our team is driving from Vail, please do not schedule us later than 5 PM and earlier than 9 AM”)

NEW IN 2021 – U13 TO U19 ELITE DIVISIONS 

• ELITE Divisions will be for ECNL and Champions League P1 teams looking for top-level competition to kick off the Fall soccer season.
• Includes top-quality playing surfaces, regional quality refereeing, and VEO footage of all games available after the event for FREE.

Teams interested in joining the ELITE Divisions can reach out directly to Tournament Director Marcus Owerko at 303.399.5858 ext. 113 or through email at [email protected]

Weather, External Conditions, and Cancellations

Regardless of weather conditions (unless for safety reasons), players and coaches must be on the field at the scheduled time, ready to play. The Tournament Director has authority to reduce the length of matches due to weather conditions before the start of a match; all such matches will be considered official. The Tournament Director may also reschedule (time and location) a match before it begins. Only referees or the Site Director can suspend a match already started due to weather conditions. All matches that reach halftime will be considered final per Tournament Director. i.e. 1 second into 2nd half and the home team leads 1:0, lighting strikes, game is considered over. 

Severe Weather in Area:

• Should a storm begin to threaten the event, state-of-the-art radar will be used to determine the distance of the storm and any strikes of lightning that may be within a 10-mile radius. 
• Should there be a lightning strike within said 10-mile radius, games will be temporarily stopped and teams must return to their cars. 
• A “Waiting Time” of 30 minutes without a strike of lightning must be observed before the teams can safely return to the facility. 
• If the “Waiting Time” exceeds 60 minutes, games will be ended at their time of stoppage if more than 60% of the game has been completed. 
• If less than 60% of the game has been completed, the Tournament Director has authority to reschedule the game to a new time or cancel the game and award points based on a points averaging scale. 

Cancellation Refund Agreement:

• For a tournament in progress (dates of planned event), in the event of rain, snow or acts of God, the tournament director reserves the right to reduce game times and numbers of games.
• Refund Structure is as follows:
  • 100% refund – if the tournament is cancelled in entirety due to COVID-19. 
  • 80% refund – if the event is cancelled entirely due to weather, or any other external forces. 
  • 60% refund – If only 1 game is played of the 3 guaranteed games. 
  • 30% refund – If only 2 games are played of the 3 guaranteed games. 
• No refund is given if:
  • A team withdraws within 30 days prior to the tournament.
  • a team decides to forfeit a game, giving them less than the guaranteed minimum of played games. 
  • The team withdraws to play in another tournament.

Colorado Air Quality Monitoring:

• Due to the ongoing mountain forest fires, referee assignors on site will monitor the air pollution levels. 
• Should levels rise to 125, referees will instill water breaks and staff will actively monitor the Air Quality situation.
• Should levels rise to 150 or higher, games may be shortened by up to 10 minutes per half. 
• Should levels rise to 200 or higher, games will be cancelled on the spot and attempted to be rescheduled.

We are pleased to announce a NEW hotel booking service:

TRAVELING TEAMS is pleased to partner with Colorado Rapids Youth Soccer Club to provide trusted hospitality services for the Colorado Rapids Tournament Series. For over 20 years, TRAVELING TEAMS has proudly served youth sports as the nation’s leading event housing partner.

*ALL TEAMS IN NEED OF HOSPITALITY BOOKINGS WILL USE TRAVELING TEAM SERVICES TO ENSURE A SMOOTH HOSPITALITY EXPERIENCE*

For questions or to book your stay, please reach out to our good friend Michael McGill at Traveling Teams through the contact information below:

Michael McGill – Senior Account Manager

• Work: (866) 468-3268 x8884
• Mobile: (248) 513-2912
• Fax: (800) 920-7023
• Email: [email protected]

Incorrect Score Reports:

• Score corrections will be submitted via our new Score Reporting email account. 
• If you see your scores are incorrect, you must submit the score reporting Google Survey found at this link: 
• CLICK HERE FOR SCORE REPORTING SURVEY

CSA Referee Administration

• Esse Baharmast – Director of Referees
• Deanna Duncan-Allen – Administrative Registrar

Colorado Referee Committee:

• Neal Fausset, State Referee Administrator / State Youth Referee Administrator
• Denise Duran, State Director of Instruction
• Younes Marrakchi, State Director of Assignment
• Eric Bryan, State Director of Assessment

Referee Disciplinary Committee:

• J. Kirk McGill
• Megan McCain
• Tom Widera
• [email protected]

Check-In & Roster Verification Process:

* WE HAVE RECENTLY CHANGED OUR ROSTER VERIFICAITON POLICY – PLEASE SEE BELOW *:

Due to the update to the GotSport system, we have a better way to certify rosters and check teams that will save time and effort for team managers, administrators, and tournament staff alike. If you have any questions, please reach out to [email protected]

*Rapids South and Rapids Central teams will have Club Admins complete your check-in and roster verification process*

Roster Verification Process:

You will be responsible for 3 things to check your team:

1. Submit your club-approved roster as PDF through your registration.

   • Go back into your GotSport tournament registration.

   • In the Application Questions part, on Page 2 you will find an area to upload your roster PDF.

2. Build a roster for your team in GotSport.

   • For most CSA League teams, this will be as simple as “cloning” your roster from your league season into your tournament roster.

   • You can add and subtract players, coaches, etc. here.

3. Show proof of medical forms and guest player forms at Check-In onsite.

   • Prior to your first match, you must check in at the “Check-In Tent” at your facility where you will play your first game.

 *For help Contact GotSport Support at 904-746-4446 or email them at [email protected]!*

Roster Uploading Timeline: 

• Rapids Classic Roster Deadline: August 9th, 2021
• Verified rosters must be completed and accurate in GotSport the MONDAY BEFORE your event!
• Referees will use the GotSport Game Card with rosters printed on them as the verified roster.
• The referee will check your roster on your phone before the kickoff of each match.
• If there are any disputes in regards to player eligibility or roster eligibility, the referee will use the provided roster to compare with the GotSport Game Card roster.

Check-In Process:

• At check-in, you MUST show online proof of:
  • Submitted online roster through your phone/tablet.
  • Guest player forms (PDF)
  • Medical forms (PDF)
• All teams MUST check-in 1 hour prior to their first game’s start time.
• One team representative (Coach or Manager) must verbally agree and listen to the roster agreement when you check in that confirms your roster is age-eligible, and should there be any discrepancies in the roster at any point throughout the event, your team is subject to immediate removal from the event without refund

Expected Locations for Teams: 

• 11v11 – ALL at DICK’S Sporting Goods Park (Grass)
• 9v9 – Most at Gates South Complex (Grass) & Some at Aurora Sports Park (Turf/Grass)
• 7v7 – ALL at Gates North Complex (Grass)

Expected Times of Games: 

• Thursday: 
  • 7v7 – No Games
  • 9v9 – Local teams MAY play between 5:00 PM and 8:30 PM
  • 11v11 – Local teams MAY play between 5:00 PM and 8:30 PM
• Friday:
  • 7v7 – No Games Likely
  • 9v9 – Some teams MAY play 5:00 PM to 8:30 PM
  • 11v11 – Some teams MAY play 5:00 PM to 8:30 PM
• Saturday: All ages, all day from 8:30 AM to 8:30 PM
• Sunday: All ages, all day from 8:30 AM to 5:30 PM

Teams Traveling From Out of State or Far Distances: 

• Schedules will be prioritized to give Thursday and Friday before 5:00 PM as travel days to arrive in Denver, Colorado.
• Teams traveling far distances WILL NOT have games on Thursday.
• Friday games after 5:00 PM ARE a possibility for all teams.
• ALL TEAMS staying in hotels must use Traveling Team services to assist thier sty in Colorado. Contact info can be found in the “Lodging” tab above.

Colorado Rapids vs. Real Salt Lake Discouunted Tickets Availible for Registered Teams! 

• Teams registered for the 2021 Rapids Classic will have access to the Colorado Rapids vs. Real Salt Lake MLS game for a discounted rate!
• Ticket prices start as low as $22 per ticket. Purchase your team’s tickets today to guarantee seating together. *Link available after registration!*

Game Details: 

• Game: August 21, 2021 – Rapids vs. Real Salt Lake @ 7:00 PM
• Location: DICK’S Sporting Goods Park
• Ticket Prices:
  • Corners: $22 per ticket
  • South Endline: $23 per ticket
  • East Sideline: $25 per ticket
  • West Sideline: $39 per ticket

*To book group outing tickets, please reach out directly to Bianca Velez at [email protected] referencing your participation in the Classic!*