Question Number: 24827

Law 9 - The Ball in and out of Play 4/17/2011

RE: U6 Under 7

Mario of El Paso , TX United States asks...

Does a ref need to blow the whistle everytime the ball is brought into play from the sideline?

Answer provided by Referee Gary Voshol

No. Referees are reminded to use their whistles sparingly, so that when it sounds the players will pay attention to it.

A whistle is needed on a restart only when that start has been held up for some reason. Examples would be for substitutions, dealing with misconduct or when the referee has to enforce the minimum distance on a free kick. Other times, players are free to restart as soon as they have the ball.

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Mario
A whistle is not need to signal when the ball has gone out of play or for a throw in to be taken. It would only be used to stop play where the ball has narrowly crossed the line and players have continued to play.

Answer provided by Referee Michelle Maloney

No, but at the age in question, the referees are rarely any more experienced at what they do than the kids themselves.

The referee may have been trying to help the kids understand it was time for the game to start again, but normally and as they grow older and more experienced, the kids (and the ref) will know when the whistle should sound and when not. They will also learn that the whistle means stop if play is going on, and start if play is stopped. Not at all confusing, I know...