An Ottawa soccer league is enforcing a maximum five-goal victory to prevent blowout games among kids between five and 18 years old.
According to the rules, the winner becomes the loser if they beat their opponents by more than five goals.
The Gloucester Dragons say the rule helps promote participation for those who want to learn how to play the game. However, others argue the cap on goals prevents kids from learning how to lose.
"I don't think it's a good policy. I think you're teaching kids not to be able to lose. I think in life you win, you lose, you don't win everything, you don't lose all the time, but there is a balance," soccer mom Dianne Panarella told CTV Ottawa.
Other parents agree: "I don't think that would make me feel good about myself, and I don't see how the kids are going to feel great about winning just because the other team did so well," added soccer mom Cathy Hansen.
However, the chairman of the league argues there's no value in squashing your opponents.
"It's not meant to punish anybody. It's meant to give the coaches pause for thought when they're getting to that three to four goal spread to say, ‘OK, maybe I need to start thinking about re-adjusting the team to prevent this being a blowout,'" said Sean Cale.
The Gloucester Dragons operate under the Gloucester Soccer Association, which is recognized by the Eastern Ontario District Soccer Association and the Ontario Soccer Association.
With a report from CTV Ottawa's Norman Fetterley
