Question Number: 23253

Law 5 - The Referee 5/4/2010

RE: select Under 12

Crosland Doak of Whistler , BC Canada asks...

If a ref blows a whistle must the play stop or can he undo the whistle during play? What is the rule #?

Answer provided by Referee Gary Voshol

Play must stop. Law 9 says,
'The ball is out of play when:
- it has wholly crossed the goal line or touch line whether on the ground or in the air
- play has been stopped by the referee'
By blowing the whistle, the ref stopped play.

Law 8 gives the restart: 'If, while the ball is still in play, the referee is required to stop play temporarily for any reason not mentioned elsewhere in the Laws of the Game, the match is restarted with a dropped ball.' OK, so the ref wasn't 'required' to stop play; he did so inadvertently. But the remedy is the same - a dropped ball.

Answer provided by Referee Michelle Maloney

That's like asking if you can unbreak a vase after shattering it on the floor. The answer is no. Once the whistle is blown, even if by accident, play has stopped. Since there was no offense committed, play must be restarted with a dropped ball - the proscribed restart when nothing else is mandated.

Answer provided by Referee Dennis Wickham

A whistle cannot be undone.

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi
The whistle always stops play with the truism of the old adage 'Always play to the whistle'. If it is an inadvertant whistle the restart is a dropped ball from where the ball was when play was stopped. Even a whistle that is blown by a spectator etc that stops /interferes with play has to be dealt with by a restart and there is nothing that can be done to undo a 'whistle' signal.

Answer provided by Referee Gene Nagy

Crosland, in any sport where a whistle is used it means stop. It is a red light. In soccer, Law 9 says so.
I can think of a situation though where you need not stop. If the referee on an ADJACENT field blows the whistle, some players may stop play on the other field but of course the whistle was meant for the game next door. This happened to me once as a referee and from then on I carried two whistles with different sounds just in case there is a conflict. Unfortunately a goal was scored and I allowed it to stand. It was at Jericho Park, Vancouver.