Question:
Team A is granted a direct free kick within shooting distance of the goal. Team A’s shooter asks for 10, the referee notifies the players that the restart is on his whistle and marks off the 10. The referee then gives the signal to start play. As Team A’s shooter begins running up to the ball but before she kicks it, a player in Team B’s wall moves toward the ball thinking, incorrectly of course, that the whistle made it good to go. Neither the kicker nor the kick is affected by the encroachment and the ball goes over the crossbar for what under normal circumstances would be a goal kick.

Should there be a rekick because there was encroachment or is it ignored when it has no effect on the play? If there must be a rekick, is that still true if the player had scored with the free kick?

USSF answer (November 3, 2008):
Our guidance to referees on this sort of situation is contained in the USSF publication “Advice to Referees on the Laws of the Game”:

13.3  ENFORCING THE REQUIRED DISTANCE
If the referee decides to delay the restart and to enforce the required minimum distance, the referee must quickly and emphatically indicate to the attackers that they may not restart play until given a clear signal to do so.  Under these circumstances, an attacker who restarts play without a signal should be verbally warned and, upon repetition, be cautioned for unsporting behavior.  The free kick in such cases must be retaken, regardless of the result of the original kick.  An opponent who moves closer to the spot of the kick (from any direction) before it is taken must be cautioned and shown the yellow card if the referee has delayed the restart to ensure that the opponents are at the minimum distance.

If one or more opponents fail to respect the required distance before the ball is properly put into play, the referee should stop the restart to deal with this infringement as required by the Law.  The free kick must be retaken even if the momentum of play causes the ball to be kicked before the referee signals.  The infringement plus the referee’s decision to deal with it cancel any apparent restart regardless of a delay in announcing the decision. However, referees are also expected to consider whether the infringement on the minimum distance was trifling (had no effect on the freedom of the attackers to restart) and, if so, to refrain from issuing a caution and to allow play to proceed.

The referee is expected to deal with opponents who fail to respect the required distance, even in situations in which they were induced to do so by attackers appearing to put the ball into play, but where the ball was not kicked (touched with the foot and moved).

An attacking team may exercise its right to take a free kick when the players see an advantage to do so even with an opponent closer than the minimum distance. However, they may not thereafter claim infringement of the distance requirement if the ball is kicked to an infringing opponent who is able to control the ball without moving toward it. In this case, because the attacking side has considered the encroachment trivial, the referee must accept what he or she has seen.
On the other hand, when the attacking team has exercised the option to restart play quickly and the opponent closer than the required distance moves toward the ball and performs an act that makes a difference in the play, such as blocking the kick, that player has committed an offense that must be dealt with firmly in accordance with the Law. After the referee has cautioned the failure to respect the required distance, the original free kick must be retaken as required by Law 13.

That citation contains all the information you need.…

Question:
We just returned from a tournament and my question is whether or not a ref has the right after a game to pull a player aside and talk to them. The other team had a player that made an allegation against our team for flipping them off at the end of the game. The coach said he did not know which player or if it had happenned for sure. After the players had left the field to leave. The ref placed their arm around the player and accused them off this with a finger pointed in their face. In the end the player was crying, not proud of the win and been accused of something. I would think a better option would have been to talk to the team as a whole as nobody had seen the player do this. Or if the other player was telling the truth. It almost seemed like an abuse of power.

USSF answer (November 3, 2008):
The referee certainly has the right to speak with any player after the game. The referee has the authority to deal with misconduct as long as the teams and the referee are still in the immediate vicinity of the field. — this could certainly include talking with a player regarding an actual, potential, or alleged act of misconduct. However, the referee does not have the right to grill the player or subject that player to the third degree.  After all, whatever misconduct may have occurred happened far enough back in time that the referee’s valid interest in the matter had long passed.  Either he dealt with it or not.  Normally, the extension of authority is assumed to cover acts of misconduct that occur during the post game period while the teams are in the process of exiting the field (or possibly that occurred immediately prior to the end of the match).  Anything earlier is simply rehashing old news, usually to no good end.

Report the referee to the tournament, local and state authorities.…

Question:
The player restarted with a throw-in. The referee made him redo the throw-in because he wasn’t close enough to where the ball went out. Can’t a player throw in the ball behind that point so he doesn’t get an advantage. Can’t it be 5, 10, 20 yards behind where it went out? Especially when he wants a quick restart instead of moving up to where the ball went out?

USSF answer (November 3, 2008):
No, the throw-in must be taken from within one yard/meter of the place where the ball left the field of play.

Beyond that, the referee’s action was entirely and grievously wrong.  A throw-in cannot be redone because the referee is not satisfied with some technical requirement such as location — although some local rules do allow a retake of an improperly-performed throw-in for very young players.  If the throw-in was not satisfactory and the referee stops play, the ball must be given to the opposing team.  If the referee doesn’t want to do this, the only proper action is to let the infringement of Law 15 go as doubtful or trifling and, at most, warn the player about doing better next time.  In short, if the throw-in is “good enough,” the restart is allowed; if it is not “good enough,” it has to go to the other team.…

Question:
I’m an AR in a U17 match. Defending team is pushed up in an offside trap. Offensive team plays a long ball behind the defense. Two offensive players — one in offside position when the ball is played, the other not — chase the ball. The “onside” player is a step or two ahead of the “offside” player, and will probably get there first.

1) Is the player in an offside position “actively involved in the play” if he is chasing a ball a teammate will reach legally before he does?

2) As the AR, where do I go? Do I follow the ball, or do I hold my spot just in case the “offside” attacker becomes “actively involved” so the restart can be placed properly?

3) When do I raise my flag? Do I wait the three to five seconds it will take to determine whether the offside player plays the ball, or does it go up immediately?

USSF answer (November 3, 2008):
1) No.
2) Remember the spot and follow the ball.
3) Raise your flag ONLY if is clear that the player who was in the offside position will beat his teammate to the ball. If there is any doubt as to which will get to the ball first, you must keep the flag down.…

Question:
I was an AR in a three man system game last week. Several players try to score-clear in the goal area. During the play, an attacking player kicks ball into the goal (2 feet over the goal line, but did not touch the net) and was kicked back to the field by a defense player. I was on the goal line and clear see what happened, but no whistle. I try to make eye contact with referee but he was not face to me. I put the flag straight up and hold. As the players shout “flag”, the referee whistled. I lowed down my flag and immediately run up on the touch line. As I run, the referee puts up his hand up and indicates the offside. As I sew his hand, I use my other hand point to the center. He then changed his hand and point to the center and goal was award. My question is how can we avoid this

USSF answer (October 23, 2008):
Such problems can be easily avoided through good communication between the referee and the assistant referees. The best way to bring this about is to cover such things in the pregame conference among the officials, where all communication should be discussed. The correct procedures are outlined in the USSF publication “Guide to Procedures for Referees, Assistant Referees and Fourth Officials.”

What you did was correct. What the referee did was wrong: (a) The referee must look first to the AR and (b) there is no way that dropping the flag and moving up field should be interpreted as an offside decision.…

Question:
Men’s amateur match, free kick 35 yards from goal. The attacker is getting in position to kick the ball. There is no indication of a ceremonial kick (ie whistle held high with “my whistle” command). Two defending players are 6-7 yards from ball. The referee is encouraging them to retire. “Get back, get back” with appropriate hand gesture. Quick kick is taken and a goal results. Defenders including goalkeeper are “frozen” and do not move appropriately to the ball. In this case should the goal be allowed or kick recalled? Did the referee involvement constitute indicating a ceremonial kick?

USSF answer (October 22, 2008):
The Advice to Referees tells us:

13.4 QUICK FREE KICK
Law 13 requires all opponents to be at least ten yards away in all directions from the location of any free kick and it is the duty of these opponents to retreat the required distance as quickly as possible without being directed by the referee to do so.  It is also the right of the team which has been given the free kick to start play quickly even if one or more opponents have not yet moved back the required distance, provided the other requirements of Law 13 have been met.

The referee should move quickly out of the way after indicating the approximate area of the restart and should do nothing to interfere with the kicking team’s right to an immediate free kick.  At competitive levels of play, referees should not automatically “manage the wall,” but should allow the ball to be put back into play as quickly as possible, unless the kicking team requests help in dealing with opponents infringing on the minimum distance.

However, it also mentions in 13.3:

13.3  ENFORCING THE REQUIRED DISTANCE
If the referee decides to delay the restart and to enforce the required minimum distance, the referee must quickly and emphatically indicate to the attackers that they may not restart play until given a clear signal to do so.

If the referee in your case interfered with the defending team’s sole right in a free kick, not to be confused by the referee, then the goal does not count and the kick must be retaken.

We feel that the referee’s action did NOT constitute turning the free kick into a ceremony.  His fussbudgety verbalizations were poor mechanics.  Our advice: Do one thing (make it a ceremony and quickly declare that the kick may not be taken without a whistle) or the other (shut up), but not both.…