Soccer Rule Referee Resources
Home
Ask a Question
Articles
Recent Questions
Search

You-Call-It
Previous You-Call-It's

VAR (Video Assistant Referee)

Q&A Quick Search
The Field of Play
The Ball
The Players
The Players Equipment
The Referee
The Other Match Officials
The Duration of the Match
The Start and Restart of Play
The Ball In and Out of Play
Determining the Outcome of a Match
Offside
Fouls and Misconduct
Free Kicks
Penalty kick
Throw In
Goal Kick
Corner Kick


Common Sense
Kicks - Penalty Mark
The Technical Area
The Fourth Official
Pre-Game
Fitness
Mechanics
Attitude and Control
League Specific
High School


Common Acronyms
Meet The Ref
Advertise
Contact AskTheRef
Help Wanted
About AskTheRef


Soccer Rules Changes 1580-2000


Panel Login


Soccer Referee Questions on Soccer Rules
Welcome to AskTheRef.com, a Soccer Law/Rules Question & Answer site!
Operating since October 11, 1999, that is 25 years as an independent, FREE, public service site. Dedicated to personally answering your questions regarding any Professional or Grassroots, FIFA, College, High school, or Youth soccer game situation. To ask a question simply click on Ask the Ref in the menu bar, post your question!

Please understand, we are comprised of strictly volunteers, thus lack the time required to review or alter the hundreds of thousands of previous questions & answers. The LOTG /RULES are constantly being tweaked, reevaluated and rewritten each year, often rendering previous answers as incorrect, partially true and/or portions no longer applicable! Our answers can only coincide within the changing LOTG/RULES time/frame of the date a question was asked! We feel it is essential you review & read the latest version of the always changing Laws/Rules of the Game.

The IFAB 2023 - 2024 LOTG Laws of the Game can be viewed here:

https://www.theifab.com/

The USA Highschool rules can be viewed here:
https://nfhs.org/nfhs-for-you/officials/

The NCAA rules can be viewed here:
Soccer Rules of the Game - NCAA.org

Those who have ideas or articles please feel free to contact the editor Richard Dawson at mrref@asktheref.com with suggestions. There are no costs involved to ask or have us respond to a question but we are not upset if you wished to donate or sponsor on the site as in todays world it is difficult to operate independently.

You Call It!

After two years and many request - You Call It is back! Now it's your turn to test your knowledge in a scenario created by our panel of referees. If your answer is spot on we will publish it on our site! Good luck click here!

Law 18 - Common Sense 10/4/2024

Petr of Prague, Czech Republic Czech Republic asks...

Hello,

one more special question please. :-)

The goalkeeper has the ball:

A. between the leg and ground
B. between the body and ground
C. between the leg and the body
D. between the legs above the ground

Can the opponent kick the ball?

Thank you very much!...

Read The Full Q & A

Law 14 - The Penalty kick 10/4/2024

Petr of Prague, Czech Republic Czech Republic asks...

Hello,

I'm annoying again. Two penalty kick questions please.

Question 1:

Part of Law 14:
- 'The defending goalkeeper must remain on the goal line, facing the kicker, between the goalposts, until the ball is kicked.'

- When the ball is kicked, the defending goalkeeper must have at least part of
one foot touching, in line with, or behind, the goal line.

It doesn't make sense to me. He must remain on the goal line. But he can also have both feet behind the goal line. So when can he move behind the line? After the whistle?

Note: Yesterday in the match Pilsen vs. Ludogorets goalkeeper Jedlicka stood behind the line almost the entire time. The referee didn't deal with ...

Read The Full Q & A

Law 5 - The Referee 10/2/2024

RE: High School

Matt of Gettysburg, PA USA asks...

In a recent game, the keeper for our team went down injured, do to a collision with a member of the opposite team. No foul was whistled. The refs allowed play to continue for probably 15-20 seconds, until the other team scored (with our keeper still down). Clearly, you can't say anything - without video - about whether or not a foul should have been called for the collision with the keeper. But shouldn't the refs have stopped play, or waved off the goal, because our keeper was down? The goal was allowed to stand, our keeper received treatment for a few minutes, but was able to keep playing. I know that for field players, if they go down injured, the ref typically waits until there's a natural stoppage of play (such as a ball going out o...

Read The Full Q & A

Mechanics 10/2/2024

Crebs Crem of Zagreb, Croatia asks...

Hello,

In a game where VAR exists, player A4 commits a serious foul on player B9 when B9 is one on one with the goalkeeper. However, there was a foul by player B5 on player A10 in the attacking phase of play. In this case, should VAR intervene and let the CR watch the foul of player B5 on player A10?


...

Read The Full Q & A

Law 6 - The Other Match Oficials 10/1/2024

Tyler of Vancouver, Bc Canada asks...

Hello,

The other day while I was reffing I noticed one of my ARs using his hand (the hand free of his flag) to signal towards the goal line. I’ve seen this signal before, but I’ve never seen or heard anything of what it actually means. I can’t find anything either while searching online.

There seems to be a pattern every time I see it, it looks like maybe they’re signalling to show that a player is onside. Every time I look over at my AR to see if they’re signalling for offside, when there was a close offside, they’re doing this signal.

But I’m not too sure, and would also like to know if I should be doing this while ARing, so I would really appreciate if you could clarify this for me. Thanks. ...

Read The Full Q & A

Law 7 - The Duration of the Match 9/29/2024

RE: Competitive Adult

David Little of Milton Keynes , Bucks UK asks...

Saw a match this afternoon. In the last minute the goalkeeper elbows an opposition player in the face. Referee gives the goalie a red card. He doesn't award a penalty but instead blows the final whistle to end the match.
His explanation was that the time on his watch had run out.
Should he have awarded a penalty?
Dave...

Read The Full Q & A

Law 3 - The Players 9/27/2024

RE: Rec Adult

Doug Crawford of Folsom, CA U.S. asks...

Extra player on the field:
2024-25 LOTG says in case a goal is scored, and an extra attacking player interfered then the goal is disallowed.
If the extra player did not interfere then the goal is good.
In U.S. youth soccer (and adult rec) with unlimited subs (not NPL, ECNL, etc) we often have multiple players entering at the same time.
I do not generally keep track of which players come on after the sub is over.
I don’t know if any of the new players (after the last sub) interfered and cannot say one particular player is the extra.
I am tempted to disallow any goal w an extra attacker on field.
Your advice? Thanks as always!...

Read The Full Q & A

Law 12 - Fouls and Misconduct 9/26/2024

RE: Comp. Under 17

Larry of Danville, CA United States asks...

Imagine a DOGSO situation where the attacker is near goal, heading to goal, in possession or likely to be in possession of the ball, and no other defenders between them and the goalkeeper. A defender comes in and does a slide tackle and takes out the legs of the attacker. Straight forward DOGSO. Now the exact same situation, but the defender makes contact with the ball first, knocking it away, and then wipes out the attacker with a high leg, which you decide is a carless or reckless foul. The fairly common “I got the ball first foul”. Does the fact that the defender got the ball first and then fouls the attacker remove the possibility of DOGSO?...

Read The Full Q & A

Mechanics 9/25/2024

RE: Adult

Raphael of Motnreal, QC Canada asks...

Hey! A question regarding the game's rules:

A referee signals a fault for a handball outside the penalty area. The VAR asks for a review because both a) the handball was INSIDE the penalty area and b) the ball didn't touch the hand. So, fault signalling would result in a penalty kick, but reviewing would interfere with a not-reviewable incident. What would be the correct choice?

a) The referee must abide by his original decision, as the VAR would interfere with a not-reviewable incident.
b) The referee can review and decide on "no-fault."
c) Something else?

To make the question a little wider: Can the VAR end up reviewing a not-reviewable incident, even if the call was made for a reviewable one?<...

Read The Full Q & A

Law 8 - The Start and Restart of Play 9/24/2024

RE: Rec Adult

Doug Crawford of Folsom, CA U.S. asks...

Hi there- If a player is injured by an impact with the ball, such as ball to head, and play is stopped outside the penalty area, play is restarted with a Dropped Ball to the team who last touched the ball.
Does the restart go to the team that kicked (and possessed) the ball before it struck the player in the head, or to the team of the player who received the head impact with the ball (assuming they are of opposing teams).
- Or is this a matter for referee judgement...
It seems unfair to give it to the player injured by the ball, taking it away from the team that had possession.
Thanks!...

Read The Full Q & A

AskTheref.com Educating and Amusing The Soccer Referee Since October 11, 1999

<-->
Soccer Referee Extras
Sunday, October 6, 2024

Recent Questions



Click Go to view all recently posted questions

Offside Question?

Offside Explained by Chuck Fleischer & Richard Dawson, Former & Current Editor of AskTheRef

<>

Did you Ask the Ref? Find your answer here.


Enter Question Number

If you received a response regarding a submitted question enter your question number above to find the answer