Question Number: 23140

Law 11 - Offside 4/18/2010

RE: competitive Under 18

Darren Boynton of Saco, Maine USA asks...

For offside, does the Law 'STATE' that the ball must be touched for that player to be called for offside?

Answer provided by Referee Michelle Maloney

If the player who was in the offside position when his teammate played the ball to him then touched the ball, he would be called offside for interfering with play. This is the only form of involvement where referees are supposed to always wait for the contact - after all, it is not an offense to be in an offside position - it's only an offense when the attacking player gets involved in the play.

One can also be called for offside for interfering with an opponent (deceiving him, blocking his line of sight, or otherwise reducing his ability to respond to the ball and play) and for gaining an advantage from his position (playing a ball rebounded/deflected to him by a defender or some part of the goal off a touch or play by a teammate). Neither of these forms of involvement require the player in an offside position to touch the ball. That player will need to be near enough to attempt to play the ball before an onside player can.

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Darren
In Law 11 'interfering with play' requires that the ball is touched by the player in an offside position for the infraction to be called. There is however a provision in the Law in respect of the lone attacker, who is an offside position, chasing the ball with the intention of playing it, which allows for the offside to be called without meeting the requirement of touching the ball. That provision is also used in regard to the danger of a collision between the offside positioned player and an opponent, say the goalkeeper, while chasing towards the ball. It makes sense in those occasions to call the offside before the offside positioned player has interfered with play or interfered with an opponent.
In respect of 'interfering with an opponent' that does not require that the player in an offside position touches the ball either just that he has, in the opinion of the referee, interfered with an opponent's ability to play or see the ball.
So in summary a touch is now a part of the Law but it is not necessary in every situation and the referee has discretion in certain circumstances to call the infraction as set out in Law 11.

Answer provided by Referee Dennis Wickham

Law 11 states that the attacker must be involved in active play by: (a) intefering with play; (b) interfering with an opponent; or (c) gaining an advantage.

The FIFA Interpretations, annexed to the laws, define the first and third forms of active play in the context of an attacker touching the ball. The USSF is specific: the referee must wait for an attacker to touch the ball (opining this as the only way to know that another attacker can not play the ball from an onside position. Other federations permit the referee to stop play early if the referee believes no other attacker can.)

The second form of active play does not require touching the ball. A player is guilty of offside for interfering with an opponent by doing something that interferes with an opponent's ability to see or play the ball.