Question Number: 26494

Law 1- The Field 6/24/2012

RE: competive Professional

Dorian of knysna, capetown south africa asks...

what happens when the lights go off during a match,must the match be replayed or must the time remained before the lights went off be finished

Answer provided by Referee Jason Wright

This will be written into your local competition rules. Often, such rules state that if the match has passed a certain point then the result will stand, otherwise it will be replayed.

This assumes that the lights aren't able to be turned back on that same night and the match completed then and there.

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Dorian
Each situation will be different. The referee will take advice from the stadium officials who will inform the referee whether the problem can be fixed in a timely fashion. At the Pro level spectator safety is an issue and the police will have advice to give in the matter.
If the problem cannot be fixed in a timely fashion the match is abandoned and the referee informs the competition organisers who will decide based on the competition rules.
At professional level the matches are generally replayed in full whereas at lower levels the result may stand if the game has passed a certain time limit such as 75/80 minutes.