Unions eliminate regular season overtimes

DES MOINES - Overtimes for Iowa high school soccer matches in the regular season have been eliminated by the Iowa High School Athletic Association and the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union.
Matches that are tied at the end of regulation time now will be counted as draws, according to the rule changes for the 2025 spring season released Monday.
Postseason matches will continue to be determined by the previous rule — two 10-minute sudden-victory overtimes, followed by penalty kicks if necessary, to determine a winner.
Regular-season bracketed tournaments that require a team to advance to the next round will be decided by penalty kicks to determine which team advances to the next round of the tournament.
Other rule changes include:
• If a team is ahead by 10 goals in the first half of a match, there will be a continuous clock until either the score falls under 10 goals or halftime arrives. This is a change from having regular stoppage time kept regardless of the score in the first half. 
The 10-goal margin of victory rule remains. If the 10-goal margin occurs in the first half, the match will conclude at halftime. If the 10-goal margin occurs anytime during the second half, the match ends at that point.
• If there is a weather delay during a postseason match, no match may be started or restarted any time after three hours past the original start time.

Teams may mutually agree to end the match if there is a team leading during this delay.
• The Iowa adaptation of the yellow card rule, with players sitting out five minutes after receiving a yellow card, is now eliminated and the NFHS rule will be applied.
A player receiving a yellow card must leave the field and can be replaced. The player may not re-enter until the next substitution opportunity.
The IHSAA approved four changes last fall.
• Schools are permitted 17 matches per level, the same rule as IGHSAU. This replaces the policy of 15 dates which may include two tournaments.
• All varsity matches are required to be played with two 40-minute halves.
• The maximum amount of halves a player can play in one day is four. This replaces the policy allowing a maximum of 6 halves in a day.
• The maximum amount of halves a team can play in one day is four. This replaces the policy allowing a maximum of 6 halves per day.