Question:
I was reading the Position Paper of November 18, 2008 regarding Player-Coaches. The second to last paragraph states in part “It states ” a player-coach who has been red carded can not be present at the team’s next match in either a player or any team official capacity”.
I always thought a send off only applied to the remainder of the current match being played and that further suspension, including the team’s “next match”, was at the discretion of the competition authority.
USSF answer (December 22, 2008):
Aha! Well, now you have learned something, coach. The suspension mandated by the IFAB and FIFA is for the remainder of the game from which the player or team official is removed and for one game beyond that. And, if the competition authority (the people who run the league, cup, tournament, whatever) have it in their rules, that person may also have to sit more than one extra game.
And of course what the competition authority can do is not limited to a lengthier suspension. They can add whatever penalties are allowed for in their own rules, and they can, in the case of a player-coach, differentiate between the two roles in applying additional penalties.
