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Referee Availability for League & Tournaments
As our local soccer community grows, the need for new and experienced referes continues. Join America’s Largest Soccer League. More details on referee meeting schedules, training, and education can be found on the Referee Classes page. Games are available at SCHEELS Overland Park Soccer Complex, Swope Soccer Village, Compass Mineral Sporting Youth Fields, and new GARMIN Olathe Soccer Complex.
Sign Up to Become a Referee.
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Heartland Soccer Association
Celebrates 45 Years of Soccer!
9161 W 133rd Street, Overland Park, KS 66213
Phone: 913-888-8768
Heartland Soccer Association is recognized as one of the
largest soccer leagues and tournament hosts in the country. We offer recreational to premier divisions,
ages U8 through U19.
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Heartland Spring League Registration Now Open
Nov 1- Jan 3
Registration closes at Noon on January 3rd
No late registrations accepted
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Heartland
Rainout Line:
(913) 307-3684
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Let Triffic Shirts & More provide all your custom apparel needs including Uniforms and Spirit Wear for your school, clubs, sports teams, family gatherings, and much more. We provide:
* Screen printing from 1 to 6 colors
* Custom art and design work
*Personalized names/numbers for your team spirit wear
*Embroidery
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This Month in History: December
25 December 1914
The Christmas Truce
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On 25 December 1914, British and German troops stationed on the front lines near Ypres, Belgium engaged in an impromptu football match in the no-man's land between their respective trenches. The match was part of the Christmas Truce that had begun the night before when the opposing sides took a break from hostilities to sing Christmas carols and exchange gifts.
On Christmas morning, the British Royal Welch Fusiliers left their trench to meet the German troops. Someone produced a football, though no one involved could later recall who provided it or where it was obtained, and the game began. According to Fusilier Corporal Bernie Felstead, "It was not a game as such--more of a kick-around and a free-for-all. There could have been 50 on each side for all I know." The game lasted about a half hour and no one kept score.
In most areas, the truce lasted through Christmas night, but it extended to New Year's Day in some spots.
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Go behind the scenes at Children's Mercy Park! Learn about the history of Sporting KC and take a look at the Pitch, Press Box, Broadcast Booth, Locker Room & more!
For more information contact
or 913-912-7578.
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2022 Tournament Team Numbers
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Border Battle '22 - 155
Midwest College Showcase '22 - 68
Heartland Spring Cup '22 - 139
KC Champions Cup '22 - 439
Mother's Day Classic '22 - 422
Kansas City Invitational '22 - 361
Heartland Open Cup '22 - 61
Fall Kick Off Challenge '22 - 252
Heartland Midwest Classic '22 - 171
Midwest All Boys '22- 209
Midwest All Girls '22 - 291
Heartland Invitational Girls '22 - 391
Heartland Invitational Boys '22 - 427
*In the last 12 months Heartland welcomed teams from a total of 17 states and Canada.
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2022 Heartland Numbers
Spring league teams '22 - 1,291
Fall league teams '22- 1,322
League players - 42,000
Tournament teams - 3,011
Tournament players - 46,000+
Referees - 2,000+
Coaches - 4,000
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Come ESCAPE with us!
Exercise your MIND
at one of KC’s most exciting
escape room adventures.
Lots of fun!
Soccer weekends sell out quickly
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Gather with friends and family where sophistication meets fun. Pinstripes combines Italian-American cuisine with the entertainment and excitement of bowling and bocce in Overland Park.
Athletes and Coaches get 20% off at Pinstripes.
Mention Heartland Soccer to redeem offer.
This offer is for dine-in only, valid through
Dec 2022. No minimum spend is required.
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Avoid Overeating During the Holidays
Navigating through holiday eating - from Christmas cookies at work to family dinners - can be difficult. Enjoy the holidays by not restricting yourself too much from enjoying your favorite holiday foods. Utilize the following tips to help you enjoy holiday food while still sticking with a healthy eating plan.
Remember to eat three meals per day. Do not skip meals as this can result in overeating later in the day; especially when combining being too hungry with delicious holiday food. Breakfast is especially important as research shows that those who eat breakfast tend to eat fewer calories throughout the rest of the day. Days around the holidays can be busy, chaotic and overscheduled but don’t let this get in your way of having regularly scheduled meals.
Eat until you are satisfied, not stuffed. Enjoy small portions and eat slowly so that you can savor every bite. Try to wait 10 minutes before having seconds to help determine if you are really still hungry. Choose foods that you know you will enjoy the most.
Slow down your eating. It takes about 20 minutes after we start eating for our stomach to talk to our brain to help us perceive when we are getting full. Slowing down eating can help keep our portions in check and allow us to know when to stop eating.
Survey party buffets before filling your plate or wait until all of the food is on the table before making your selection. Start with filling half of your plate with fruits and vegetables. Pick the foods you think you will most enjoy and skip foods you might not enjoy as much. This can help reduce guilt and avoid overeating.
Take the focus off food. Remember to enjoy this time with family and friends and focus on the conversation and socializing. Consider planning holiday events with these people that don’t revolve around food. Turn a cookie baking day into a day to make holiday wreaths or gingerbread houses.
Plan time for exercise. Enjoy sledding or ice skating for fun family time outdoors.
Don’t forget self-care during the holidays. Holidays are a joyful time, but can come with a fair amount of stress and emotional triggers. Make sure you have plenty of time for physical activities that you enjoy, sleep and other activities like meditation or journaling to de-stress.
Make your weight loss resolution a reality this year. Read more about our surgical and non-surgical weight loss programs here.
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Speed Across The Field
This practice develops team defending and counter attacking themes:
Defending as a team unit
Blocking the middle of the pitch
Forcing play to the sides
Speed across the field to press and cover
Regaining possession
Counter attacking to score
Building to score via possession
1 x 20 mins
Offside rules apply
2 x Goalkeepers
20 x Field Players
Set up
The pitch is set up as shown in the diagram. Big goals are placed on the edge of each penalty area and target goals placed in the middle of the angled lines. The angled line begins from the width of the penalty area and then 18yds forward.
Play an 11v11 game with each team attacking and defending three goals (one big goal and two wide goals) When defending, you must slide across the pitch to defend the goals, to cover teammates and to track runners. As a team, you can decide to pressure and force outside towards the line or press from outside to inside and forcing opponents into the middle.
In possession, you have the option to attack through, around or over the opponents defensive organization.
Rules
2 points are awarded for goals scored in the big goal
1 point is score for goals scored in the wide goals
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Become a Soccer Referee! Give back to the Soccer Community!
Do you enjoy exercise & fitness? Do you enjoy making your own schedule? Are you interested in making some extra money during your soccer weekends? Are you someone wanting to give back to your soccer community?
Become a Soccer Referee! Our soccer community is in search of more Referees so our players can play the beautiful game.
Click the below link 👇🏽 and follow the specific instruction to register for an Entry Level Referee Clinic.
CLINICS AVAILABLE IN OVERLAND PARK, WICHITA & TOPEKA!!!
Join the Referee Team this coming Fall soccer season and be a part of the Beautiful Game!
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The Referee Corner:
Honoring a person who had a major impact on today’s Heartland Referee pool…. Gordon Crape…
Gordon Crape was more than “just an Assignor” for Heartland. He invested in getting to know his Referees both on and off the pitch. His passion was to give the Referees the opportunity to work matches, to grow in their skills and maturity, and to develop their very best self. He set a standard for Assignors On Site. This column is a tribute to Gordon’s impact on young Referees and Assignors On Site at Heartland.
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Our own Kyle Atkins was assigned as the Assistant Referee on the team bench side (AR1) in the World Cup pool match of Portugal versus Ghana. We can all agree that being part of the U.S. crew at the World Cup is a major accomplishment. Kyle is the first official from Kansas to be invited to the World Cup. He worked hard to get to this stage of his career. Kyle sent his dad this picture to honor GC (Gordon Crape). Yes, Kyle, and his mentor Gordon, shared a journey: from Heritage Soccer Park working small sided recreational matches to the World Cup in Qatar working with legends like Cristiano Ronaldo. What can we learn from this?
Heartland Assignors On Site are developing young adults: While their primary job is to make sure that Referees are there to officiate Heartland League matches, the Assignors On Site understand that they are developing young boys and girls to take their place as adults in the future. This means they listen and understand what makes the Referees tick – what is affecting them today and how their decisions today can shape a young person’s future. Gordon always said that he knew too much about too many people. How they were doing in school, how their family was, and what their next step in life might be. Gordon not only knew these things. He cared about the people.
The Assignors On Site that are filling Gordon’s shoes share the same interest in the Referees. They too are a tribute to Gordon’s legacy.
Heartland Assignors On Site love the game of soccer: Gordon didn’t worry about who won or lost on any given weekend. He knew that was the coaches’ and players’ focus. He did care that the games were officiated in a fair and a safe manner. He did care that the Referees knew the Laws of the Game and applied them effectively so the beautiful game of soccer could be played at Heartland.
Heartland Assignors On Site have a tough job: Gordon was measured in multiple ways. First, did he have certified Referees to cover each match from the recreational small-sided matches to Premier Division 1 full sided matches. Then, did he have the right people assigned so they could be successful for the game, for the customers and for the Referees/Assistant Referees. With a pool of new Referees every season, he wanted to make sure the people he assigned could do the job, could do it well, and would come back the next week.
When one of the Referees had a bad experience (anyone who has worked as a soccer Referee or Assistant Referee has had that kind of a match), what could he do to build them back? Was it his fault? Was there too much going on in the Referee’s life? Did he assign the Referee too many matches? He always asked himself what he could do to impact the experience.
Yes, Gordon took the job personally. Those people who are following him as Assignors On Site are doing the same thing. The tribute lives in decisions made every weekend at every complex by the Assignors who started their journey under Gordon Crape. The next time you go by their weekend office, stop in, and tell them thank you. We won’t all make it to the World Cup. But we can all make each weekend and each match a positive experience in the same way that Gordon showed us.
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And, if you are interested in becoming a Referee, please check out the Entry Level Clinics that are posted on www.kansasreferee.org. There are many ways to create successful young adults in our game. You can build up players. You can support the coaches. You can congratulate Referees on their efforts. You can thank the assignors on site for their contributions. All of us can enjoy the opportunity that we have to enjoy the beautiful game in the Heartland Soccer Association. Remember, this foundation was not created by accident. A lot of committed people spent a lot of their time making this happen. Thank them.
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The Referee Blog
The Fall Season is almost over. Thank you for your passion as fans and for your support of the Referees …
The Fall Season concluded with the Girl’s U15-U19 State Cup Tournament which was played at the Compass Mineral Sporting Facility. The players braved the weather and as expected gave their all in their pursuit of winning the Championship match and having the opportunity to represent Kansas in the 2023 Regionals.
The State Cup Tournament is also an opportunity for young Kansas Referees. Senior Referees and Mentors spend the season watching Referee performances to see which young officials are consistently working hard and getting better. These people provide input to the assignors who schedule the State Cup Tournament. This is a final opportunity to see how we are doing in developing our Referees into effective match managers and creating the next generation of Referee leaders.
I had the opportunity to assess the U19 Championship match. The teams played with passion for the full 90 minutes. The score was 0-0 after regulation time. Action went from end to end challenging the Referee crew’s fitness and ability to read the game and the players. There were fouls, but they were all in the “careless” category which meant there were no cards issued during the regulation time. The stakes grew when the extra time periods started (in this tournament, just like in the World Cup, the teams play two 15 minute overtime periods to determine the winner). Again, action went from end to end challenging the teams to defend and the Referee team to be in an effective position to make correct calls. At the end of the 2nd overtime period, the score remained 0-0. The winner would be determined by Kicks from the Mark. This meant the Referee team needed to understand the mechanics of managing this phase of the match (something you don’t see very often during the regular season or in pool matches). Once again, each of the players taking a Penalty Kick felt the extra pressure of wanting to be successful. Everything was on the line for the players. The same was true for the Referees.
One of the players hit the cross bar. The ball came straight down to the ground. Did the whole of the ball go over the line (which would be a goal) or did it hit on the line (which would not be a goal). The decision of the 17 year old Assistant Referee was that the ball did not wholly cross the line. No goal! This was pressure on her ability to make a decision and she passed the test.
The team with the most successful Kicks from the Mark kicks won the State Championship and will represent Kansas at the 2023 Regional Tournament. The team that had fewer successful kicks knew they had given their all in this match and contemplated their future as a team and as individual players. And, the Referee team went back to the tent to review what they did well and how they could learn from what happened in this match. Three teams who grew and learned from this Championship match. This is soccer.
The Referee team was made up of three “Grassroots” level Referees. This is the level at which all Referees start their careers. The U18 Championship Final Referee team was also made up of three “Grassroots” level Referees. Several “Regional” level Referees were assigned to other matches. A Regional level Referee must be 18 years old or older, have completed a number of youth and Adult matches, received passing assessments in 3 matches, and have successfully completed the FIFA Fitness Test. This means that the pipeline is producing results (we still have a shortage in numbers but are developing quality Referees which is key to the growth of soccer in Kansas).
The Referee teams for these highlighted Championship matches have multiple candidates for advancing to the next level. In the U19 match, the Center has met the qualifications to become a Regional Referee for 2023. In the U18 match, the Center, both of the Assistant Referees, and the 4th Official will pursue advancement in 2023.
We had a number of additional younger officials who performed admirably during this tournament. The program to develop our Referees continues to work. How can you help? We need to grow the numbers and then help the newer Referees develop their skills so they can manage the matches in the next tournament. You will benefit from their performances as they ascend up the ladder. Please recognize that learning is a process. There will be matches that go well, and there will be matches that feature opportunities to learn. Encourage the younger Referees so they will come back and give the efforts required to advance to higher level matches and Referee grades.
And, if you are a fan or a player, consider becoming a Referee. Entry Level Classes will be posted for the Spring season at www.kansasreferee.org
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Monthly Referee Meetings
Are you wanting to improve as a referee? How about get less grief? What about being considered for higher level games and state cup? Attending monthly Kansas Referee Program meetings is a great step to help all of that happen! Don't miss opportunities to hone your craft, win some fun prizes, make new friends and elevate your game as an elite Kansas soccer referee! Referees of all ages and experience levels are encouraged to attend!
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2023 Referee Meeting Dates
Feb 13
March 13
April 10
May 8
Meetings will be hosted at the SCHEELS Overland Park Soccer Complex Field House meeting room, 13700 Switzer Rd, Overland Park KS 66213
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Q & A with Seth
When did you start reffing? 4 years ago
What made you decide to get certified to referee? I played the game and wanted to make some money. I have saved the money and also invested. I like to pick stocks based on my use of the product or if I like the company.
What is your favorite part about reffing? Being a part of the game and learning more about the game each time I ref.
What is a life lesson you feel you have learned from reffing? Learning to be professional. Show up on time. Look the part by pulling up your socks and tucking your shirt in.
What level of referee to you aspire to be? I would like to get to the State Cup and maybe do ECNL as an AR before centering.
Do you play soccer? I just finished the high school season at Olathe South. I have played for Sporting Blue Valley. I have played soccer for 9 years.
Do you participate in any other activities? I am involved with Colonial Presbyterian Youth group. I also like to go to FCA at Olathe South. During the Summer I go to Kanakuk for a month.
Do you have any hobbies? I am learning to kick a football
What was the last book you read? Harry Potter books. My favorite part if when Harry fakes being dead to only come back and save the world.
What types of movies do you like? Action movies. I just watched Top Gun Maverick. My favorite part was when Tom Cruise stole a plane and showed the recruits the mission could be completed.
What is your favorite sports team? Sporting KC
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AB May
Academy Sports and Outdoors
AC Print
Barley's Kitchen and Tap
Burger Shed
Capelli Sport
Chick-fil-A 7500 W 135th St
Chick-Fil-A 15919 W 87th St Pkwy
Chicken N Pickle
CH Roofing And Exteriors
City Thrift
\Connelly Plumbing Solutions
Dick's Sporting Goods
Drs. Hawks, Besler, Rogers & Stoppel
Easton Roofing
Fearless & Capable
GameChanger
Goodcents
Grimaldi's
Hasty Awards
Hawaiian Bros
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HCA Midwest Health
Hy-Vee
KC Current
Kansas City Comets
K.C. Hopps
Krusich Dental
Land of Paws
Levine Advertising
McShane & Brady Law
Menorah Medical Center
Molle Automotive Group
Museum at Prairiefire
Orange Leaf Frozen Yogurt
Overland Park Regional Medical Center
Papa John's
PinStripes
Pittcraft Printing
Raising Cane's
Rob Ellerman and
Reece Nichols Real Estate
Renewal by Andersen
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Research Medical Center
Salty Iguana
Security Bank
Soccer Master
Sporting Kansas City
Sporting Kansas City II
Starting Point Pediatric Dentistry and Orthodontics
State Farm-Harlan Parker
The Merchant Fitness (Julah)
The Rub Bar-B-Que
Tick Tock Escape Rooms KC
Trace (Alpine Replay, Inc.)
Tropical Smoothie Cafe
T-riffic Shirts & More
Urban Air
US Awards
Xfinity
Yokohama
Zaxby's
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Heartland Soccer Association is seeking action photo shots of kids of all ages and abilities playing soccer in Heartland League Games or Tournaments. Submitted photos may be included in Heartland Tournament, League and other promotional materials as well as social media posts.
Instructions for submitting photos:
All submitted photo files must be .jpg format, must be a minimum of 1,200 x 1,600 pixels, and no larger than 2 MB in size. Submitting a photo doesn't guarantee that it will be used.
By submitting a photo for consideration for use in Heartland Soccer Association promotional materials, you agree that:
1. You are the sole author of the photograph and control all rights for its use. The photograph is original. You have the rights to grant usage of the photograph as stated below. There has been no prior sale, publication or transfer of rights to the photograph. The photograph shall not contain any libelous or scandalous matter. To the best of your knowledge, the photograph's creation, publication and use shall not infringe any copyright, right of privacy or right of publicity, or infringe or violate any right of any third party.
2. You grant to Heartland Soccer Association all rights to use the photograph in any and all forms of media, including but not limited to electronic, digital media and print.
3. You allow Heartland Soccer Association the right to edit, revise, adapt and crop the photo as necessary.
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