The Ultimate Guide to Running Your Own Soccer Tournament

Running your own soccer tournament is a lot of work. From marketing your event and building your tournament website in the very beginning to clearing up the trash at the very end, there are myriad things that can go wrong, literally hundreds of details, large and small, to take care of, and more than likely, too few volunteers to help along the way.

So we've put together a series of stories from talking to our numerous friends in the business that we hope will help you get a handle on it, and make sure that running your own soccer tournament turns out to be the rewarding and positive experience you deserve it to be.

There is, of course, a significant difference in how you'll run your event depending on the size of the tournament, its purpose, and whether it is a long-established annual event, a one-off, or the first of what you hope will become a long tradition.

Long established events may not have to worry quite so much about marketing, but may have the challenge of dealing with burned out volunteers. A brand new tournament, on the other hand, may not be well-known enough to be able to fill out certain age-brackets with an adeqate number of competitive teams. This can lead to lop-sided score lines and disappointment all round.

You may even opt to hand over the nuts and bolts of tournament organization to an outside professional soccer tournament management company.

You have to make decisions about where you are going to get all the various pieces of soccer equipment you'll need, from soccer balls, to goal posts to corner flags and field marking paint.

Then there is the worst-case scenario of what to do if you have to cancel your tournament due to bad weather.

We hope to address most of the issues you're likely to face running your own soccer tournament in the stories that follow. As with the other sections of the site, if you have any suggestions for stories you would like us to cover, feel free to let us know by filling in the Feedback Form.

Related Stories About Running Your Own Tournament

Soccer Logos Designed for Your Tournament. Every soccer tournament should have a great soccer logo. It will help to build your brand, help you sell merchandise, and it will pay for itself may times over, if it's done right.

The Importance of a Soccer Tournament eMail Newsletter. In tough economic times, it's more important than ever for soccer tournament directors to understand the importance of keeping in touch with coaches, team managers, DoCs and parents.

Is Your Soccer Tournament Covered?. So you are a tournament director in charge of putting together an annual soccer tournament. Most of the particulars are in order, but there’s one major issue: how should you insure your event so that if someone gets hurt or something gets damaged, your organization isn’t footing a huge bill?

Finding a Sports Insurance Provider. When it comes to running camps or tournaments, we've got you covered. Soccer Tournament Guide has found one of the most experienced sports insurance providers out there, The Camp Team.

Soccer Tournament Marketing Case Study. The local vendor is no longer willing to throw the dollars at the dart board and see what happens. Marketing specificity is essential to a company that is marketing a product. This phenomenon in marketing isn’t new but is certainly more refined in the modern era.

Good PR Shouldn't Be Just Before a Tournament. Maintaining good communication is just one of the keys illustrated in this guide of what NOT to do when running a soccer tournament.

Bad Weather Insurance, Cancellation Policies and Refunds. What to do if bad weather forces you to cancel all or part of your soccer tournament.

Turning Your Tournament Website Into a Profit Center. Don't make the mistake of viewing your tournament website as just another marketing expense. A well-built website can be a profit center in its own right.

Hiring a Soccer Tournament Management Company. There are companies out there that make a living promoting and organizing soccer tournaments. Maybe one could help your club with the details of running your event.