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Teach Me About Soccer

The Rules of Soccer

Soccer is one of the most popular sports activities in the world. Like all other games, soccer is governed by rules and regulations upon which the players are expected to abide when playing the game. The laws governing the games of soccer, also called football, were drawn up by Ebenezer Cobb Morley and were approved by the Football Association (FA) on December 1863. From the time the rules were drawn up to now, they have undergone several revisions and changes. From the 13 rules originally drawn up by Morley, the game of soccer evolved and at present, the rules of the game have reached 17. The 119th international Football Association Board (IFAB) made the latest revision of the Laws of the Game during a meeting in London, England last February 26, 2005. This latest revision of the laws of the game is now in full force and in effect.

The present rules of the game now have 17 laws where all the important things that should be remembered when playing soccer are defined. To understand these laws better, let us look at them one by one. Law 1 governs the field of play. Under this law, the dimension of the playing field is defined together with all the markings on the field. There are at least four significant areas, which are given emphasis under this law. First is the pitch dimension and marking, second is the location and dimension of the goals, the penalty and goal areas, and the associated areas. Law 2 governs the type of ball that should be used in the game. Under this law, the types of balls and the materials that are used in making the balls are defined.

Law 3 on the Laws of the Game of soccer or football governs the number of players in a team. According to the rules, a maximum of 11 players can play at one time in a team. Out of the 11 players, one should be the goalkeeper. On the other hand, law 4 of the game defines the equipment that must be used by the players in a team. According to this rule, a player must wear a shirt or jersey, shorts, footwear, shin pads, and stockings or socks. The goalkeeper shall wear different attire, which can make her or him distinguishable from the other players and the officials of the game.

The law 5 of soccer defines the role of the referee. According to this rule, the referee shall preside over the game and shall determine whether or not there have been violations to the rules of the game. All players are expected to abide by the rulings of the referee.

As for law 6, the rule defines the roles of the assistant referees. Law 7 on the other hand, defines the duration of the match. Adult success generally has two periods where each period shall consist of 45 minutes. These two halves are known as halves. A 15-minute halftime is usually given in between the two periods. Law 8 determines the start and the restart of the play. Generally, this law defines the time when the game is to start and when it shall end. Law 9 is the ball in and ball out of play rule. Note that during the whole game, the ball is supposed to be inside the play field except for instances where the referee stops the game. However, where the ball is accidentally or intentional thrown out of the field, a restart of the game shall be administered by the referee.

The method of scoring of the game is defined under law 10 of the Laws of the game. This law clearly defines what constitute a score and which does not constitute a score. As for the rules on offside, this defined under law 11. The law on offside defines the distance of a player from the goal during the game. Players are not allowed to wait up for the ball near the goal during the game. Where player violate rules and regulations, the referee may declare a foul. The rules governing foul and misconduct is clearly stated in law 12 of the rules of the game. Rules on free kicks such indirect kicks, direct kicks, and penalty kicks are clearly outlined on law 13. Free kicks are usually given to restart a game after a safety and in some cases, after a field goal attempt after a fair catch. Law 14, 15, 16, and 17 on the other hand defines the rules on penalty kick, the thrown-in, the goal kick and the corner kick respectively.

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