CAUTIONABLE AND SENDING OFF OFFENSES 

  •     Direct Free-Kick – (PENALTY KICK IF INSIDE PENALTY AREA)

    • A direct free kick is awarded if a player commits any of the following offences against an opponent in a manner considered by the referee to be careless, reckless or using excessive force:

      • charges*

      • jumps at*

      • kicks or attempts to kick*

      • pushes*

      • strikes or attempts to strike (including head-butt)*

      • tackles or challenges*

      • trips or attempts to trip*

      • a handball offence (except for the goalkeeper within their penalty area)

      • holds an opponent

      • impedes an opponent with contact

      • bites or spits at someone on the team lists or a match official

      • throws an object at the ball, an opponent or a match official, or makes contact with the ball with a held object

    • If an offence involves contact, it is penalized by a direct free kick.

    • (*) For these offences the following applies

      • Careless is when a player shows a lack of attention or consideration when making a challenge or acts without precaution. No disciplinary sanction is needed

      • RECKLESS is when a player acts with disregard to the danger to, or consequences for, an opponent and must be cautioned

      • USING EXCESSIVE FORCE is when a player exceeds the necessary use of force and/or endangers the safety of an opponent and must be sent off

  • Indirect Free-Kick – (NOT A PENALTY KICK INSIDE PA)

  • An indirect free kick is awarded if a player:

    • plays in a dangerous manner

    • impedes the progress of an opponent without any contact being made

    • is guilty of dissent, using offensive, insulting or abusive language and/or action(s) or other verbal offences

    • prevents the goalkeeper from releasing the ball from the hands or kicks or attempts to kick the ball when the goalkeeper is in the process of releasing it

    • initiates a deliberate trick for the ball to be passed (including from a free kick or goal kick) to the goalkeeper with the head, chest, knee etc. to circumvent the Law, whether or not the goalkeeper touches the ball with the hands; the goalkeeper is penalised if responsible for initiating the deliberate trick

    • commits any other offence, not mentioned in the Laws, for which play is stopped to caution or send off a player

    An indirect free kick is awarded if a goalkeeper, inside their penalty area, commits any of the following offences:

    • controls the ball with the hand/arm for more than six seconds before releasing it

    • touches the ball with the hand/arm after releasing it and before it has touched another player

    • touches the ball with the hand/arm, unless the goalkeeper has clearly kicked or attempted to kick the ball to release it into play, after:

    • it has been deliberately kicked to the goalkeeper by a team-mate

    • receiving it directly from a throw-in taken by a team-mate

 

 

 

 

  • Cautionable offences (YELLOW CARD)

    A player is cautioned if guilty of:

    • Delaying the restart of play

    • Dissent by word or action

    • Entering, re-entering or deliberately leaving the field of play without the referee’s permission

    • Failing to respect the required distance when play is restarted with a dropped ball, corner kick, free kick or throw-in

    • Persistent offences (no specific number or pattern of offences constitutes ‘persistent’)

    • Unsporting behaviour

    • Entering the referee review area (RRA)

    • Excessively using the ‘review’ (TV screen) signal

  • Sending-off offences (RED CARD)

    A player, substitute or substituted player who commits any of the following offences is sent off:

    • denying the opposing team a goal or an obvious goal-scoring opportunity by a handball offence (except a goalkeeper within their penalty area)

    • denying a goal or an obvious goal-scoring opportunity to an opponent whose overall movement is towards the offender’s goal by an offence punishable by a free kick (unless as outlined below)

    • serious foul play

    • biting or spitting at someone

    • violent conduct

    • using offensive, insulting or abusive language and/or action(s)

    • receiving a second caution in the same match

    • entering the video operation room (VOR)

    A player, substitute or substituted player who has been sent off must leave the vicinity of the field of play and the technical area.

Denying a goal or an Obvious Goal-Scoring Opportunity (DOGSO)

Where a player denies the opposing team a goal or an obvious goal-scoring opportunity by a handball offence, the player is sent off wherever the offence occurs.
Where a player commits an offence against an opponent within their own penalty area which denies an opponent an obvious goal-scoring opportunity and the referee awards a penalty kick, the offender is cautioned if the offence was an attempt to play the ball; in all other circumstances (e.g. holding, pulling, pushing, no possibility to play the ball etc.) the offending player must be sent off.

A player, sent-off player, substitute or substituted player who enters the field of play without the required referee’s permission and interferes with play or an opponent and denies the opposing team a goal or an obvious goal-scoring opportunity is guilty of a sending-off offence.

The following must be considered:
• distance between the offence and the goal           (Distance from Goal)
• general direction of the play                                   (Direction of play)
• likelihood of keeping or gaining control of the ball (Distance from Ball)
• location and number of defenders                         (Defenders)