Question Number: 22840

Law 8 - Start and Restart of Play 2/18/2010

RE: Travel Under 15

Gwyn Williams of Bridgewater, NJ USA asks...

A simple question.
Does the game start when the referee's whistle is blown or when the ball is put into play (kicked and moves forward)?
It would make little difference most times but if a player commits a red card action after the whistle is blown but before the ball is in play then the team would play with ten players or eleven depending on the answer.
I'm leaning towards the whistle as the start but wanted confirmation

Answer provided by Referee Michelle Maloney

The ball is in play, and the game begins, when it is kicked and moves forward. The referee's whistle is simply telling the teams they can commence playing.

Most teams are focused on starting to play, and any nastiness will come after. But, if the whistle has blown, and in that nth of a second before the ball is contacted, a sending off offense occurs, the team would not play short. I suspect the wise referee would think the ball was already in play, and it is the referee's opinion that matters.

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Referee Williams
You would be wrong to lean towards the whistle. The ball is in play when it is kicked and moved. The whistle is only the signal that play can/should start not that it has started.
As regards a team playing short or not, the only time it would make a difference is at the kick off. If the whistle is blown at the kick off and before the ball is kicked a player commits violent conduct then the team would not play short. It would however be a very unusual incident as usually the whistle and kick happen quite close together. After the KO even if the ball is out of play a team would still play short for any red card offence.

Answer provided by Referee Gene Nagy

Gwyn, the whistle indicates that the game can start. The game starts when the ball is play.

Think of it this way: the referee blows the whistle to start the game but the ball is kicked backwards therefore not in play. Well, the game has not started. Now the kicker swears at the ref and he gets sent off. The player goes off and there is an argument. The referee theoretically has not started his watch yet. Just like in injury stoppage the time is started when the ball is play again.

In this scenario the team does NOT play short.