We’ve had a few questions on Ottawa Footy Sevens registration that we’ve heard more than once over the past couple of weeks, so here are the answers to the most commonly asked.

• Will there be summer leagues and when does summer registration open?
• When is the Kicking Cancer’s Butt Tournament and is registration open yet?
• Will there be any more Spring leagues announced?
• Will you be adding team slots in the sold out leagues?
• I didn’t get my team registered before the league sold out. . .Did the leagues sell out more quickly than previous years?
• Why don’t you have preferential registration?
• If I register a team, can the league find me some additional players?
• What happens if I don’t have the full team fee at the moment?
• When is the balance due?
• Is the league affiliated with the OSA or EOSA?

Will there be summer leagues and when does summer registration open?

We are concentrating on spring registration at the moment, summer registration will open in about a month’s time. There will be summer seasons with roughly the same game times, game length, structure and cost immediately following the end of the spring leagues at:

• Louis Riel Dome/Hornet’s Nest’s leagues
• Ben Franklin Dome leagues
• Carleton Friday league
• Carleton Sunday league (league will be 60 rather than 90 minute games in summer)

There are unlikely to be summer seasons at the same venues at Carleton Fieldhouse, Carleton Saturday league & 11-a-sides at Ottawa U due to the Universities’ varsity sports commitments.

When is the Kicking Cancer’s Butt Tournament and is registration open yet?

The tournament will be Friday May 31st and June 1st at Louis Riel Dome. We are currently waiting for the Ottawa Regional Cancer Foundation donation page to go live on their website, and we expect to be able to open registration around the 2nd of April.

Will there be any more Spring leagues announced?

We try to be as transparent as possible and make all of our leagues available at the same time. However, we are still waiting to get final confirmation from a couple of venues. It is unlikely that they will come to anything and another league be added at this stage, but if we do add a new league, preference will be given to teams already registered for the spring league should they wish to transfer their registration to the new league.

Will you be adding team slots in the sold out leagues?

See the answer above: it is extremely unlikely as we are using all of the field time to the full and unless we can add extra field time, we won’t be able to add any additional teams.

I didn’t get my team registered before the league sold out. . .Did the leagues sell out more quickly than previous years?

Yes, every year the leagues seem to sell out more quickly than the last. Last year it took over a week for the first league to sell out. This year one league sold out in 90 minutes and others had sold out within a week.

Why don’t you have preferential registration?

We always let our existing teams and players know about league registration first, by e-mail and using our website, twitter and blog. We don’t start advertising the leagues in other places until after our existing teams have had a chance to register.
In terms of reserving specific places in specific leagues for teams, it is impossible to say who is a more deserving of a place in a specific league than another team. We have teams that have played with us for 4 years, but missed a few seasons, teams who play on the same night every season but at different venues, teams who missed a season due to the league selling out before they got registered and teams that have changed names and captains, teams who have to swap to a different night at certain times of the year due to work commitments . . .  It is almost impossible to come up with a generic criteria as to who should get preferential treatment for a specific spot in a specific league. We’ll always try to accommodate our regular teams wherever possible, but we cannot guarantee a specific spot in a specific league.

If I register a team, can the league find me some additional players?

In a word, no. The best way to find players for your team (or if you are looking to join a team after the individual slots have sold out) is by posting on our forum.

What happens if I don’t have the full team fee at the moment?

You can register a team for any league with a $250 deposit.

When is the balance due?

The balance is due one week before the start of the league.

Is the league affiliated with the Ontario Soccer Association or East Ontario Soccer Association?

No, we are not and never have been affiliated with any governing body or governed by their policies, procedures or insurance. All Footy Sevens leagues are governed by our own policies, procedures, discipline and liability insurance and are specific to our leagues.
Our leagues are casual, friendly sports leagues looking to cater to people who want to play their footy as an entertainment and show up, play their game and go home with the minimum of additional administration or registration. We do not require that teams are affiliated to a club or that players have to apply for and carry player cards. In this we are similar to the many other recreational or intramural sports leagues in other sports, and not part of any larger governing body for any sport.