Laws of the Game need overhaul

[Unregistered]

https://www.fifa.com/news/ten-dates-...-present-90935

fifa.com refers to offsides. If Symantec’s bother you that much, then channel that wnergy into reshaping the LOTG.

Wrong. Please point to where it says “offsides” in Law 11.
https://resources.fifa.com/image/upl...dsi8jrrd3e4imp

[Unregistered]

I’d be happy just getting refs to apply the LOTG consistently and fairly, especially offsides. Had the winning goal taken away this weekend on a very poor offsides call with only 1 center ref for U15 Boys. Veo video shows the player clearly onsides. Tored of refs changing the outcome of games with incorrect calls.. not the first time this happened, won’t be the last. If it isn’t clearly a violation, why make the call? If there is any doubt, why make the call? If you’re alone in the center, why risk a bad offsides call when you don’t have a good view and admit afteards that the play happened very quickly? Refs have a tough job, but they aren’t doing themselves any favors making incorrect calls. Better to make no call then a bad one...

Soccer would be almost unplayable if you removed judgement from the referee decisions. And as long as there are judgement calls, there will be people bitching about their calls.

[Unregistered]

Soccer would be almost unplayable if you removed judgement from the referee decisions. And as long as there are judgement calls, there will be people bitching about their calls.

Yes, let's ruin soccer the same way other sports are ruining themselves by trying to get everything perfect with video replay and crafting rules that leave zero judgment?

[Unregistered]

Yes, let's ruin soccer the same way other sports are ruining themselves by trying to get everything perfect with video replay and crafting rules that leave zero judgment?

Not my intent at all. I will be the first to say the ref did a good job overall, especially since he was alone. I agree with the poster above that it seems he was in an impossible situation to be able to accurately call the player offside without a line ref. I generally don’t say anything to refs regardless and we just moved on from the call.

The issue I have is the “judgement” part you mention. Too much inconsistency in how the laws of the game are applied regarding fouls and physical contact and obviously the offside rule. Here’s one that catches my team all the time, including this match: a 6ft 180lb forward is dribbling and is being pushed shoulder to shoulder, arm to arm (not fully extended, but out for balance) by a smaller defender. Forward leans into the defender while still in full possession and dribbling, the defender falls. Foul called on the forward. Seems to me the forward shouldn’t be penalized because the defenser is smaller and lighter and both are making physical contact, but one falls. Am I wrong in my interpretation of the law or is the ref? Seems black and white to me.

[Unregistered]

Serious foul play - a tackle or challenge that endangers the safety of an opponent or uses excessive force or brutality must be sanctioned as serious foul play. Any player who lunges at an opponent from the front, side or behind using one or both legs, with excessive force or endangers the safety of an opponent is guilty of serious foul play. Why not include the slide tackle here? What’s clean and what is not? I see nothing about getting ball first and then making contact anymore being legal, yet I see referees make this decision.

[Unregistered]

Having a single ref calling fouls and touchlines and end lines and offside all game, and the limitations that causes...has nothing to do with a LOTG discussion.

It's a manpower issue. That's what your discussion should be about.

[Unregistered]

Not my intent at all. I will be the first to say the ref did a good job overall, especially since he was alone. I agree with the poster above that it seems he was in an impossible situation to be able to accurately call the player offside without a line ref. I generally don’t say anything to refs regardless and we just moved on from the call.

The issue I have is the “judgement” part you mention. Too much inconsistency in how the laws of the game are applied regarding fouls and physical contact and obviously the offside rule. Here’s one that catches my team all the time, including this match: a 6ft 180lb forward is dribbling and is being pushed shoulder to shoulder, arm to arm (not fully extended, but out for balance) by a smaller defender. Forward leans into the defender while still in full possession and dribbling, the defender falls. Foul called on the forward. Seems to me the forward shouldn’t be penalized because the defenser is smaller and lighter and both are making physical contact, but one falls. Am I wrong in my interpretation of the law or is the ref? Seems black and white to me.

It seems you have an issue with judgements not going your way and a lack of understanding of LOTG. First it’s a bad understanding of offside, then handballs, now serious fouls. In your example, size has no bearing on the call. The forward could be 3 ft tall and the defender could be 7 ft tall, but once the forward decides to change their focus from the attack to knocking the defender over (forward “leans into the defender”), then they are committing a serious foul. The defender has the right to challenge for the ball so long as it’s not a reckless challenge. If your forward had continued on toward the goal without veering off (leaning into) to challenge the defender and knocking them over, then there wouldn’t be a foul.

[Unregistered]

It seems you have an issue with judgements not going your way and a lack of understanding of LOTG. First it’s a bad understanding of offside, then handballs, now serious fouls. In your example, size has no bearing on the call. The forward could be 3 ft tall and the defender could be 7 ft tall, but once the forward decides to change their focus from the attack to knocking the defender over (forward “leans into the defender”), then they are committing a serious foul. The defender has the right to challenge for the ball so long as it’s not a reckless challenge. If your forward had continued on toward the goal without veering off (leaning into) to challenge the defender and knocking them over, then there wouldn’t be a foul.

Here is the problem with what you said. The forward leaned in because the defender was physically pushing the forward while the forward is dribbling and the defender had no way to win the ball otherwise because the ball was on the right foot of the forward and the defender was pressuring from the forward’s left side. The forward had to lean in, it’s physics, or they fall/get knocked off the ball. That isn’t a foul, it’s staying physically strong on the ball. Again, the LOTG need to be understood in the context of playing the game... if you allow a defender to physically push an attacker with the ball while making zero attempt to play the ball, you also have to allow the attacker to compensate for the physical push. No hands or extended arms were involved so, no this wasn’t a foul based on my underatanding of the LOTG.

[Unregistered]

Here is the problem with what you said. The forward leaned in because the defender was physically pushing the forward while the forward is dribbling and the defender had no way to win the ball otherwise because the ball was on the right foot of the forward and the defender was pressuring from the forward’s left side. The forward had to lean in, it’s physics, or they fall/get knocked off the ball. That isn’t a foul, it’s staying physically strong on the ball. Again, the LOTG need to be understood in the context of playing the game... if you allow a defender to physically push an attacker with the ball while making zero attempt to play the ball, you also have to allow the attacker to compensate for the physical push. No hands or extended arms were involved so, no this wasn’t a foul based on my underatanding of the LOTG.

If this is happening consistently as you suggest I suspect the forward is doing more than you characterize - maybe more than you are even aware of.

[Unregistered]

Here is the problem with what you said. The forward leaned in because the defender was physically pushing the forward while the forward is dribbling and the defender had no way to win the ball otherwise because the ball was on the right foot of the forward and the defender was pressuring from the forward’s left side. The forward had to lean in, it’s physics, or they fall/get knocked off the ball. That isn’t a foul, it’s staying physically strong on the ball. Again, the LOTG need to be understood in the context of playing the game... if you allow a defender to physically push an attacker with the ball while making zero attempt to play the ball, you also have to allow the attacker to compensate for the physical push. No hands or extended arms were involved so, no this wasn’t a foul based on my underatanding of the LOTG.

There is no way your description can match what the referee saw. You are seeing things from your perspective and trying to paint a scenario that makes no sense. If an attacker is dribbling the ball toward the goal (which means the ball is in front of his body as he kicks it along), then how is the ball only on “the right foot”? It sounds from your previous description that the ref saw a valid challenge (“shoulder to shoulder, arm to arm”) as the defender ran alongside the attacker trying to get the ball.

And no, because a defender does something that doesn’t entitle the attacker to respond in kind. This isn’t tit for tat. So a shoulder contact push from the defender doesn’t deserve a shove from the attacker to knock them down.

[Unregistered]

Big kid and little kid collide, little kid falls down. Foul on big kid.

100% of the time.

No, it's not right.

[Unregistered]

Referee interpretation should be as limited as possible. LOTG lists types of fouls resulting in direct free kicks. Why not provide context for kicking a player, pushes, trips, and holding.

Kicking a player/ trips - see no mention of getting ball first, so contact or contact after ball is a foul. Should be defined more clearly if I am misinterpreting.

Pushing - Happens all the time and often does not get called. You can knock a player off balance without excessive force. Needs more context in LOTG.

Trips - If I get ball first and then my foot carried through and trips a player it is a foul. If the opponent’s momentum carries through over my foot I would see no call. I don’t see enough explanation in LOTG. Saw a missed call recently on this.

Holding - this happens all of the time. Nothing in LOTG about shirt pulling. Braithewaite was held in the box. Need more in LOTG.

[Unregistered]

Skillful player jumps up to avoid contact from out of control, sliding defender, falls down in the process, loses possession. No contact is made. Is that a foul? Is it a yellow for embellishment?

Tall player raises arm in running motion, slightly (less than 6") away from body, hits small player in the face. Is that a foul? Tall player does the exact same thing, hits another tall player in the bicep, is that a foul?

Two players both go to kick at the same time. Once gets there slightly before the other and hits the bottom of the other player's boot. Breaks foot. Is that a foul?

[Unregistered]

I will take a stab at it.

First scenario could be charging or jumping at a player. I don’t see that being embellishment. I doubt anything in LOTG are specific to these situations so good question.

I would say hit to face if a foul. Probably no foul called on hit to bicep because not as consequential. Sounds unintentional to the face but need to be aware. Another good question, I like it.

Foul on #3 but probably not called.

Skillful player jumps up to avoid contact from out of control, sliding defender, falls down in the process, loses possession. No contact is made. Is that a foul? Is it a yellow for embellishment?

Tall player raises arm in running motion, slightly (less than 6") away from body, hits small player in the face. Is that a foul? Tall player does the exact same thing, hits another tall player in the bicep, is that a foul?

Two players both go to kick at the same time. Once gets there slightly before the other and hits the bottom of the other player's boot. Breaks foot. Is that a foul?

[Unregistered]

I will take a stab at it.

First scenario could be charging or jumping at a player. I don’t see that being embellishment. I doubt anything in LOTG are specific to these situations so good question.

I would say hit to face if a foul. Probably no foul called on hit to bicep because not as consequential. Sounds unintentional to the face but need to be aware. Another good question, I like it.

Foul on #3 but probably not called.

Fair replies on all, but why there always need to be interpretation and context as part of the game.

For #1, I played with a player who would do that. Rarely was it ever called, and he always thought it should be. "Why stand there and get taken out? At least if I'm airborne I won't blow my knees out." It was a valid point; by avoiding contact he lost possession, so he was in fact penalized. He was also given a yellow once over it.

#2, this troubles me. Again, I agree with you, but if you are doing the same thing and not making any aggressive motions, in essence that player is being penalized due to his genetics.

#3, that one gets called all the time. Mostly, because the one who was kicked is writhing in pain because it hurts like hell (had a kid break her foot that way). I always viewed it as a 50-50, but since one was damaged it's not called that way.