Argentinean soccer legend Diego Maradona famously attributed his controversial handball goal that helped eliminate England from the 1986 World Cup to “the Hand of God.”

It remains to be seen if any similar “divine intervention” will occur in this year’s Clericus Cup, the annual soccer tournament in Rome between teams representing Catholic seminaries and universities.

But for the sake of harmony among the clerical competitors, let’s hope the tournament is decided by the footballers’ feet, not their hands.

This year’s Clericus Cup kicks off tomorrow, with a game between the Brazilian College and cupholders Mater Ecclesiae. According to this report by the Italian news agency ANSA, the fixture will be officiated by a referee drawn from Italy’s Serie A, one of the world’s most prestigious soccer leagues.

And officials from FIFA, soccer’s international regulatory body, are monitoring the competition as well. That’s because one of the innovations of the Clericus Cup is the use of “blue cards,” which referees can show to players who commit fouls.

The penalty for receiving a blue card is a five-minute timeout in the “sin bin,” a punishment modeled on ice hockey’s penalty box. FIFA is now discussing whether the blue cards — which are used in addition to the standard yellow cards given as warnings for bad conduct and red cards given for egregious offenses that mandate immediate expulsion from the rest of the game — should be used to regulate all soccer matches, ANSA reports.

That remains to be seen, but the blue cards do provide a way to help ensure that the contests between Clericus Cup teams are contested in the proper fraternal spirit.

So let the games begin at the Clericus Cup, and may the best feet win!