Question Number: 16656

Law 8 - Start and Restart of Play 9/12/2007

RE: Competitive Under 15

Russ of Manchester, CT USA asks...

On a drop ball, how far away do other players have to be from the drop area? I don't see anything regarding how many people can be involved in a drop ball or if there is a 10yard rule.

Answer provided by Referee Steve Montanino

There is no minimum or maximum number of players who may participate at a dropped ball. There is no required distance for players to stand away from a dropped ball.

The referee may ask some players to give distance for practical reasons, 20 players can't occupy the space reasonably occupied by 2, for example.

Answer provided by Referee Michelle Maloney

As a coach, I would want some players further away from the drop site because invariably the ball will squirt out, and I needed someone to pick it off. But, all of them can stand around the ball if you like. The problem with that will be the issue of getting the ball to actually hit the ground before 22 feet kick it, so we'd have to do it over and over again. Sigh. Remember sometimes the referee will drop the ball to a specific player, like a goalkeeper, who had the ball when play was stopped, for an injury perhaps. This is done to restore the game to where it was before the stoppage. Is it required? Heavens, no. It is just the fair thing to do, that is all. Players do not have a right to participate in a dropped ball...it is simply a means of restarting play when neither team has the sole possession of the restart.