Tournament Rules

Time for EL2010!

This is the rules for the EL2010 tournament.
The format is aligned with the EL2009 and the WL2010 formats and rules.

TEAMS

Teams participating in EL2010: 49 teams = 3 DIVISIONS á 12 TEAMS,
1 DIVISION á 9 TEAMS. We will also follow the progress on TM leaderboard for the European country teams that don't get a place in Division 1 to 4 this season.

There will be a EL2009 STANDINGS FINAL CUT-OFF by February 12, 2010.
PROMOTION FOR EL2010:

2 top teams of Division 1 - will stay in Division 1.

2 top teams per Division 2 to 5 – moves up to the inmediate superior Division.

Besides this will the best ranked teams on TM Leaderboard be divided into Divisions according to their ranking. Promoted teams could get a place in an even higher division due to their ranking instead of current standings in EL2009.  

Here's a list of invited/participating teams:
http://www.chess.com/groups/forumview/teams-in-european-league-2010

There will be a EL2010 STANDINGS FINAL CUT-OFF by December 31, 2010.
PROMOTION FOR EL2011:

3 top teams per DIVISION 2 to 4 – move up to the inmediate superior DIVISION.

3 teams at the bottom per DIVISION 1 to 3 move down to the inmediate lower DIVISION.

2 teams at the bottom of DIVISION 4 will be replaced by the three best ranked teams on TM leaderboard that not participated in EL2010 and the two teams in the bottom of the Division.

TEAM MATCH SETTINGS

- Time / move: 3 days

- Concurrent games: 2 games

- Rating: no limits

- Min Players:

• Division 1: 30 players
  

• Division 2: 20 players

• Division 3: 10 players

• Division 4: 1 player

- Standard Opening Position

- Games are Rated

TOURNAMENT FORMAT

- Tournament Format: Round-Robin / 7 ROUNDS

• Ranking: Teams Ranked by Team Match Leaderboard

• No two participants will be paired more than once.

- Scoring System: Win = 100 points / Tied = 50 points. Bonus = Share of won games (in percentage) (Unfinished individual games in the team matches are always counted as tied till they are finished. Snapshot scores are always calculated on basis of this but multiplied with the share of completed games. Final scores will be counted at cut-off by the 31^st of December 2010.)

- Tournament Schedule: Tournament start by March 1, and the tournament should be finished by December 31.

Start Dates:

R1 - March / R5 - August

R2 - April   / R6 - September

R3 - May   / R7 - October

R4 – June

For Division 1 to 3: One single game starts per team in May, June, and August. Two games per team starts in March, April, September, and October.
For Division 4: One single game starts per team in March, May, June, August, and October. Two games per team starts in April and September.

Already finished or currently ongoing WL2010-games within the World League OPEN CATEGORY (that fullfil the team match settings) will be counted as EL-2010 games.

TOURNAMENT GENERAL RULES

• One single country team per country are welcome register to European League.

• Country names and country flags must be applied to the team profiles.

• The teams are allowed and encouraged to insert following text into their profile descriptions: ”This team represent (Country) in the Chess.com European League.”

• At least two (2) team admins per team are encouraged to join the European League Headquarters in order to receive all relevant info.

• All team members are allowed to participate in European League team matches, as long as they fullfill current game settings and following the rules.

• Team members are allowed to join different groups and teams but they may represent and play with only one country team in the European League. It is recommended to do it for the Country corresponding to the member profile flag. If any player(s) were found participating repeteadly in more than one European League matches with different country teams, that (those) player(s) might even will get banned from the European League competitions and the teams the player(s) represent will loose the individual games the player(s) have played or playing.

• When creating a European League team match, should game settings and deadlines be applied according to guidelines that will be posted before any matches starts.

• Teamleaders are responsible to make sure that only players who are qualified according to the rules and guidelines have joined each match.

• When a match is started, current scoreboards and standings will be posted on the European League Headquarters forums. Teamleaders are encouraged to transmit this information to their team members.

• Team members may NOT help each other out or use any computer assistance during their individual games.

• If there is any suspected cheating or unfair play from the other side, should the teamleaders report this to the European League Headquarters. Teamleaders should not take matters into his own hands.

• Teamleaders should copy of the GENERAL RULES into the team forum's, so that all participants are aware of the rules.

• All participating country teams agree with these rules.

The rules: "Team members are allowed to join different groups and teams but they may represent and play with only one country team in the European League. It is recommended to do it for the Country corresponding to the member profile flag. If any player(s) were found participating repeteadly in more than one European League matches with different country teams, that (those) player(s) might even will get banned from the European League competitions and the teams the player(s) represent will loose the individual games the player(s) have played or playing."

It's ok, if a single or a few players having another flag than the team they representing, as long as they don't representing any other European Country team in the European League. It's not ok to let in a lot of players with other flags to the teams, but a few ones are ok.

These rule are aligned to the World League rules. If they change them in WL, then will be most probably change them i EL as well. And if this rule causes too heavy problems for the teams, then must we consider to change it.

Hi. I believe this issue will be gathered once again when it's time to prepare for WL2011. There was an vote session regarding this issue when we prepared for WL2010, but the current rule won that session. (The most country teams voted for this that time).

The basic idea is primarily that country teams with players that have applied their country flags onto their flags should play against each other in WL and EL. But the current rules have been applied since we neither want to make it unpossible for player to represent the countries they coming for or living in. Many players on chess.com is born in one country but living in other countries, and many of them want to represent both countries. Due to the current rules are they however only allowed to represent one country in the tournament.

So, this is a tricky case, but I'm pretty sure we perhaps need to consider  improve/change the rule for the next season.

Hi! We have the same situation in the following match http://www.chess.com/groups/team_match.html?id=33885. Most of the players signed for the match are either Greeks and playing in official matches for Greece, or Cypriots but playing for Greece at the same time. The rule that permits playing only for one team in official matches still applies? We, for example, have Romanian players in the team, but we are removing them from the official matches. 

We need some clarification for this and future matches. 

Thanks!

I've checked this, and it seem like at least one player (but most probably more guys) representing both Team Cyprus and Team Greece in the EL-games.
Here's one guy: http://www.chess.com/echess/profile/tigris8 .
He representing Team Cyprus in this game: http://www.chess.com/echess/game.html?id=31217343 , and Team Greece in this game: http://www.chess.com/echess/game.html?id=31264381 . He've applied the Greece flag onto his profile.

The current tournament rules state following: "Team members are allowed to join different groups and teams but they may represent and play with only one country team in the European League. It is recommended to do it for the Country corresponding to the member profile flag. If any player(s) were found participating repeteadly in more than one European League matches with different country teams, that (those) player(s) might even will get banned from the European League competitions and the teams the player(s) represent will loose the individual games the player(s) have played or playing." (Source: http://www.chess.com/groups/forumview/tournament-rules3)

This means: the single individual games this guy (and other guys in simular cases) are playing for Team Greece and Team Cyprus should be counted at losed single games for Team Greece and Team Cyprus independantly upon any upcoming results in these games. And, if the specified player(s) proceed join to new games for the both teams will they be banned from the European League competition. This rules are of course applicable for other players from other countries in simular cases!

However, it's up to you to properly complaint about this and list all such players that faulty representing two (or more) countries. Please investigate which opponent players in your game that representing two (or more) European country teams, and send in a evident complaint.

The basic idea behind this rule, is that players only should representing one country team in the team tournament. We want to ensure that players don't fake up, and losing games only to make it possible for other teams to win the tournaments or vice versa. This rules are mainly aligned with the WL-rules, and the target is to keep the rule aligned forwardly as well. If the WL-rules changing, then will we most probably keep on align to that as well.

Hope this is clear enough.

OK, thanks a lot for the information.

I will first contact their admins and explain the issue and if they don't solve it internally we will check their players and post a list here.

Regards!

Hi!

Coming back again to the situation regarding the EL match between Team Moldova and Team Cyprus. I have tried to contact all their admins and my messages were ignored, therefore I'm posting the list with players from our match (http://www.chess.com/groups/team_match.html?id=33885 which are playing for 2 teams in EL (since they already play for Cyprus in EL I'll just give one example of an EL match played for another country):

PYRRIHIOS - playing for Greece (http://www.chess.com/echess/game.html?id=31212269);

3EC - playing for Greece (http://www.chess.com/echess/game.html?id=31212273);

louitzi - playing for Greece (http://www.chess.com/echess/game.html?id=31264283);

tsindim7 - playing for Greece (http://www.chess.com/echess/game.html?id=30984899);

KOTINOSCH - playing for Greece (http://www.chess.com/echess/game.html?id=31264307);

nemoc23 - OK;

iliasst - playing for Greece (http://www.chess.com/echess/game.html?id=31264334);

costas10 - OK;

BPR - OK;

cr4nkie - playing for Greece (http://www.chess.com/echess/game.html?id=31264364);

palatas - playing for Greece (http://www.chess.com/echess/game.html?id=30941353);

AirChess - playing for Greece (http://www.chess.com/echess/game.html?id=31264370);

BADSTONITHS - OK.

Basically, they have only 4 players out of 13 which are OK with their matches, which means that according to the previously mentioned rules this match should already have the score 18 - 0 for Moldova. We of course will play all the games, but in the official standings we want to have the results to be considered with this 18 by default wins plus the real results of the 4 pairs which are OK.

Waiting for comments regarding this situation.

Regards!

Tnx for a your input. Regarding to the EL-rules (that are aligned to the WL-rules) will Team Moldova win all the single indidual games against these players in their team match against Team Cyprus. This will be applied when it's time to update the current results and standings (i.e. within a few weeks).

The players above will also be added to a warning list. They must be informed by their group leaders that they aren't allowed represent more than one country in the EL-games, and that they must be aware of that when new challenges occur in upcoming rounds.

A announcement will be published so that all teams in all division will get aware of this decision at the same moment. It's important that the group leaders inform their members about the rules and follow these.

Sorry for being annoying with this issue again, but I was questioned again by my team mates about the match with Team Cyprus. So, we (Team Moldova) would like to know if you have updated the results of this match according to the rules (regarding the players who are playing simultaneously for 2 countries in EL).

Thanks!

 I'll do that next time I update the results. Tnx for the reminder.

I am doing a Copy & Paste from the thread regarding Division I, because this is related both to the Rules and to the Division I.

<<  The Rules in place are allowing a WL game to be counted for EL. However I would suggest for the next season to change this rule: "Already finished or currently ongoing WL2010-games within the World League OPEN CATEGORY (that fulfill the team match settings) will be counted as EL-2010 games, if both teams agree upon."
I am pretty sure Team Russia will beat everybody every year, but I would still want to have the pleasure of competing with them, unless both of us agree on not playing one more game.  >>

Hi

If any admins of Team Armenia read this, please be informed that Tam Catalonia awaits your challenge for round 5. Thanks in advance.

Xavi_P

I want to ask for help regarding calculating scores in EL, 'cause I don't understand the system. In the Rules it is published that "Scoring System: Win = 100 points / Tied = 50 points. Bonus = Share of won games (in percentage)", but if I check some published standings I can see the following example"

" where Team Romania won less than 100 points ?!?  I thought that the winner will receive 100 point plus a share percentage of the won game and the loser will receive nothing ...

So what is "puishment" for Those Teams that dont start matches on time and keep joining players after other side has locked?