Category: Law 1 – The Field

Law 1 – The Field

Law 1 - The Field

PURPOSE OF THE GOAL AREA

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Question:
Why is the “goal box” markings required, when all the rules that I’m aware of apply only to the “penalty area”? What special rules apply only to the “goal box”?

USSF answer (October 16, 2009):
There is no “goal box,” but there is a goal area within the penalty area. The goal area has changed shape, size, and role several times during its history. Nowadays its primary roles are to provide a place for the goal kick to be taken and to act as a buffer zone for dropped balls and for opposing indirect free kicks within six yards of the goal.

If play is stopped inside the goal area for some reason other than a foul or misconduct, the referee drops the ball on the goal area line parallel to the goal line at the point nearest to where the ball was located when play was stopped (Law 8).

A free kick awarded to the defending team within the goal area may be taken from any point inside that area (Law 13)

An indirect free kick awarded to the attacking team inside the goal area must be taken on the goal area line parallel to the goal line at the point nearest to where the infringement occurred (Law 13).

A goal kick is kicked from any point within the goal area by a player of the defending team.…

"Only in America!"

FIELD MARKING

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Question:
I was recently officiating a U8 game in a rec league when I encountered a few problems related to field markings. The biggest problem was that there were no penalty box markings on the field (but there were goal box markings). I received several complaints from coaches when goal kicks were being taken because (they said) players from the other team were too close to the ball while the kick was being taken. I am aware that fifa law requires opponents to remain outside the penalty box during the taking of a goal kick, however, due to the lack of a penalty box, I was uncertain what a fair distance would be. Another issue was when a goal keeper picked up the ball outside of the goal box, the coach of the opposing team thought that it should be a hand ball. The goal box however, was much too small an area to be the keeper’s handling area. The rules for the league were identical to Fifa law when it came to this situation, so I was confused on what course of action to take. In the end, In the end, I explained to the coaches that I would allow the keeper to handle the ball apx. 5 yards outside of the goal box, and I would place players from the opposing team 5 yards outside of the goal box during the taking of goal kicks. Please let me know if this was the appropriate action to take when I had a lack of information, or if I should have done something different.

USSF answer (October 8, 2009):
If the game was being played in accordance with the USYSA rules for small-sided soccer, then the field was actually marked correctly (at least in regard to the central question raised here). If your game was a full-sided game, then there is no doubt that problems would have arisen, as the U8 field you describe should not be used for full-sided games.

This situation should be covered in the rules of the competition, in this case the rec league. Most competitions, unless they are held at a neutral field, advise that the home team is responsible for proper preparation of the field. If the home team failed in its duty and you could not arrange for the markings to be correct, you had a choice: Inform the teams that nothing could be done and that they would have to take your decisions as fact — which the Law tells us they are — or abandon the game and report full details to the competition authority.

We suggest you check with your assignor for the rules of the competition before accepting any games you might not be prepared for. And it is the assignor’s job to ensure that you are in fact up to date on the rules for any game to which he or she assigns you.…

Advice to Referees

NON-REGULATION APPURTENANCES

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Question:
I was posed this question that I didn’t honestly have the answer to. This is in regards to the portable goals with the tires on the sides to make moving the goal easy.

Everything has been set properly but during the course of play ball seems to go over the touchline close to the uprights, but hits the tire of the goal and bounces back in to play without the entire ball crossing the line.

The question is: Do we consider the tire part of the goal and let play continue or do we treat it simular to football field goal that hangs over the goal and if that is hit, the ball is out regardless if it bounces back into play?

USSF answer (September 2, 2009):
You are correct! Wheeled goals fall under the same category as football goalposts. This is covered in the USSF publication “Advice to Referees on the Laws of the Game”:

(b) Non-regulation appurtenances (see 1.7)
These include superfluous items attached to the goal frame (such as the uprights on combination soccer/football goals) and not generally subject to movement. If the ball contacts these items, it is deemed to be automatically out of play and the restart is in accordance with the Law, based on which team last played the ball.

…
Law 1 - The Field

GOAL NETTING, ETC.

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Question:
I have been looking on the internet about soccer goals and the rules about other netting with posts sticking out of the ground and the posts and netting is in the goals is there some kind of rule that says that where there is a goal you have to have so many feet away from a goal for clearance do you understand what I am trying to say???

USSF answer (August 14, 2009):
We are not entirely certain that we understand your question, but here is what the Laws of the Game, the rules we play by, call for. Law 1 (The Field of Play) tells us:

Goals
A goal must be placed on the center of each goal line.
A goal consists of two upright posts equidistant from the corner flagposts and joined at the top by a horizontal crossbar. The goalposts and crossbar must be made of wood, metal or other approved material. They may be square, rectangular, round or elliptical in shape and must not be dangerous to players.

The distance between the posts is 7.32 m (8 yds) and the distance from the lower edge of the crossbar to the ground is 2.44 m (8 ft).

Both goalposts and the crossbar have the same width and depth, which do not exceed 12 cm (5 ins). The goal lines must be of the same width as the goalposts and the crossbar. Nets may be attached to the goals and the ground behind the goal, provided that they are properly supported and do not interfere with the goalkeeper.
The goalposts and crossbars must be white.

Safety
Goals must be anchored securely to the ground. Portable goals may only be used if they satisfy this requirement.

The Law does not require netting on the goals. The net is something required by the rules of the competition (league, tournament, etc.).

Other than the corner flag posts (and the optional posts 1 yard/meter from the halfway line, no other posts are allowed anywhere near the field and certainly no netting would be allowed anywhere but on the goals themselves.

If you are asking how far back from the goal frame the netting must be secured — whether “staked back” or hung on a frame, the answer is the same — there is nothing in the Laws of the Game about any of this. The primary emphasis in dealing with equipment the referee finds at any given field is on the safety of that equipment.…

"Only in America!"

BALL AND PENALTY AREA (WHICH INCLUDES THE LINE)

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Question:
In one of last year’s ‘week in review’ articles (and in one of the DVDs provided this year to the SDIs), there is a statement that says, “the goalkeeper may legally handle the ball as long as any part of the ball is crossing the penalty area line whether on the ground or in the air. The position of the goalkeeper’s body plays no role in determining the handling offense.”

Now I ask you to consider a situation in which part of the ball is within the penalty area, but the rest of the ball is geometrically outside of the penalty area. The week-in-review statement suggests that it would be legal for a goalkeeper to deliberately touch (with his hands) that portion of the ball, even if the goalkeeper’s body were geometrically located entirely outside of the penalty area.

I have four questions.

First, is what I just said true? That is, is it legal for a goalkeeper (irrespective of his location) to use his hands and deliberately touch the red portion of the ball in Fig 1a?

Second, if the above is true, how is the ruling reconciled with the Law, which tells us to award a direct free kick to the opposing team where the offense occurred unless the goalkeeper is within his own penalty area? Do we simply say that, if a player touches a ball and if the ball is in the penalty area, the touch (by definition?) occurs within the penalty area?

Third, if a field player uses his hands deliberately to touch the red portion of the ball, do we award a PK?

My fourth question is this: If a player is off the field of play and deliberately touches the red portion of the ball with his hands, is the offence considered handling? That is, would we stop play and restart with a DFK?

USSF answer (July 27, 2009):
Let’s look at it in increments.  If any part of the ball is on the line, the ball is within the penalty area.  At no time in this situation did the ball leave the penalty area.  The fact that part of the ball was outside the penalty area is irrelevant.  The BALL was still in the penalty area and, accordingly, it can still be handled by the goalkeeper, and that includes ANY PART of the ball.  The BALL is a whole thing and either is or is not in the penalty area.  If it is, it can be handled by the goalkeeper.  If it is not, it cannot be handled by the ‘keeper.  Thus the WIR article is in complete agreement with the Law.…

Law 1 - The Field

DIGGING HOLES AND MAKING KICKING TEES

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Question:
game u13g a player is desinated to kick all free and goal kicks. in doing so she constanly would use her heel of her boot to dig a hole so she would place the ball next to the hole so she would get a good lift on the ball
I could not find any thing on the FIFA rule book that is ok, or not.

USSF answer (July 15, 2009):
Creating a hole either behind the ball or to mound up dirt to create a “tee” is illegal.  While you will find nothing specific to this particular situation in the Laws of the Game, it must not be permitted, and there a number of reasons for that.

The first is the established principle that players may not make unauthorized marks on the field.  Although this is aimed mostly at goalkeepers who scuff lines around their area to assist them in “locating” themselves, there is no functional difference between scuffing lines and digging holes.  Second, digging a hole is potentially dangerous, unless one assumes that the player becomes responsible for immediately “replacing the divot” after the kick is taken.  So for safety reasons this is not allowed.  Third, creating such a hole and tee is a form of “artificial aid” to assist play — and that is considered misconduct (using a teammate’s shoulders, hanging on the crossbar to make the save, trapping the ball with the shirt, etc.).  Fourth, though a bit more of a stretch of logic, if a player cannot move or remove a corner flag for the taking of a corner kick, why would we allow the digging of a hole (or stubbing the toe into the dirt to create a “tee”) for the taking of a free kick?  Fifth, would we allow this for the taking of a penalty kick?  If not, then why would it be allowed for other kicking restarts?…

Kicks from the Mark

COACH’S COMPLAINTS VS. REFEREE’S DERELICTION OF DUTY

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Question:
In a penalty shoot out the referee places the ball for the first kick, blows the whistle, the kick is taken and saved. The field is muddied up and the penalty spot is not clearly marked. One coach complains that the ball was not placed in the correct position, the referee paces out and finds the correct spot is actually 1 yard closer to the goal. He makes the first kicker retake the kick. 1) Should the first kick have counted – if not what if the complaint about the ball position been made after, say, 3 kicks, would all 3 kicks have to be retaken. Perhaps the referee should have had the opposing player take from the incorrect spot to equalize the situation and then all other kicks should have been from the correct position.

My sons team lost on the penalty shoot out, it is too late now but I was curious what the correct decision should have been.

USSF answer (June 25, 2009):
The coach has no right to complain about the distance of the kick. But the referee bears the responsibility — under the Laws and in the spirit of the Game — to ensure that the distance is correct. Yes, the decision to retake the kick was correct, but it would not have been necessary if the referee had done his job correctly.…

Advice to Referees

CORNER KICK AND THE FLAG

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Question:
An attacking team is awarded a corner kick.
As the attacker approaches to take the kick ,she pushes the corner flag aside to give her ample room to strike the ball.
Should play immediately be stopped while the ball is still in play, give the player a yellow card for unsporting behavior and award a rekick of the corner kick?

USSF answer (May 21, 2009):
The following excerpt from the “Advice to Referees on the Laws of the Game” is applicable here:

1.6 NO PLAYER MODIFICATIONS TO THE FIELD
“Goalkeepers or other players may not make unauthorized marks on the field of play. The player who makes such marks or alterations on the field to gain an unfair advantage may be cautioned for unsporting behavior. Players may return bent or leaning corner flags to the upright position, but they may not bend or lean them away from the upright position to take a corner kick, nor may the corner flag be removed for any reason.

Accordingly, what the player did was, indeed, a violation of the Law.  If you decide that the action warrants a caution for misconduct (unsporting behavior), then you would stop play, show the yellow card, and restart with the corner kick (because the misconduct occurred while the ball was not in play).  However, you could also be proactive, if possible, by anticipating the player’s action and advising her not to move the flag before she actually commits the infraction.  Finally, you could decide that the violation was trifling, allow the corner kick to be taken, and give her a formal warning not to move the flag in the future.…

Law 1 - The Field

NO CORNER FLAGS; DELIBERATE PASS TO GOALKEEPER MISSED

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Question:
1. in a game played where corner flags were not available…if the ball goes out of play from an attacker’s foot and travels directly over where the corner flag would have been, is it restarted with a goal kick or a throw in?  Are corner flags required for a game? must they actually be a flag or can they be just a post (flag on one that was provided had torn off)?

2. keeper commits a passback violation that was not obvious to all players (or to the referee) but was to the two attacking strikers.  Immediately following the keeper picking up the ball but before the referee had blown his whistle, the striker pulled the ball out of the keeper’s hands (not unsportingly though), placed it on the ground, passed it backward to the other striker who taps it into the goal.  The referee agreed that it was a passback violation, but took a second or two to fully process it and decide that it was an infraction.  The whistle was never blown, even after the ball went into the net.

question…is the infraction enough for the foul to occur, or must the referee blow his whistle to award the foul? since the foul and misconduct situations do not require there to be a whistle, would this situation require one?  is this a goal?  What about less controversial ones..is the whistle the device that awards the foul or communicates it?

it goes without saying that the crew got in a lot of trouble (with the players) for allowing this to happen.

USSF answer (April 10, 2009):
1. Yes, corner flags and posts are required. However, if they are not available, the referee must make certain that he or she can judge where the corner is. The final decision in your question is up to the referee.

2. It’s difficult to determine in which instance the referee made himself look more foolish: (a) in missing the goalkeeper picking up the deliberate pass from his teammate (?!?!?!) or (b) in allowing the striker to pull the ball from the goalkeeper’s hands while the ball was still in play, at least in the eyes of the referee. Where was the assistant referee? Where was the referee? Neither one was anywhere near the field of play, right?

Fact 1: The players (through the IFAB) make the Laws of the Game, but it’s the referee who enforces them, not the players.

Fact 2: The whistle is needed to stop play for a free kick or penalty kick. (See Interpretations, use of the whistle.)…

"Only in America!"

THROW-INS AND LINES

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Question:
I have a question that I’m hoping that you can answer on both a practical basis, and a historical basis.

If the lines are part of the area that they surround, and the ball is out of play when the whole ball crosses the whole line, then why is it that a player can stand on the line while taking a throw-in? It doesn’t seem to make any sense. I would think that if the ball is out of play over the touch line, that the thrower would have to stand completely off the field, and then throw the ball back onto the field.

I’m sure that there is a practical and historical reason for this, I just don’t know what it could be.

USSF answer (March 30, 2009):
We, too, are intrigued to know the answer, but we were unable to find anything in writing. However, a noted historian of the Laws of the Game suggests that a practical reason for requiring the thrower to stand on or outside the touch line is to help localize the point where the ball left the field. It is intended to discourage a throw from several yards away from the line and the ball entering the field far from the correct entry point.

As a further contribution to the historical side, the two-handed throw-in from the touchline developed after a compromise settlement between varying sets of rules, some of which allowed single-handed throws. This occurred at the first IFAB meeting in December 1882, and resulted in a two-handed throw in any direction. In 1895 throwing distance was restricted by a rule compelling the thrower to stand with part of both feet on the touchline. The rule was changed so that the thrower’s foot had to be outside the touchline (1925) or on or outside the touchline (1932), which is the rule today.

For further information on the throw-in and other items related to the Laws and customs of the game, see “Ward’s Soccerpedia,” a history of The Lore and Laws of the Beautiful Game, by Andrew Ward.…