Question Number: 28953

Law 9 - The Ball in and out of Play 11/7/2014

RE: competive Under 16

Fido of jagadhri, Haryana India asks...

This question is a follow up to question 3827

hello,
What if my one leg is outside the touchline and one inside the field and my inside leg is touching the ball(i am protecting the ball).will it be counted as throw in,a foul, or is this legal.

Answer provided by Referee Jason Wright

Hi Fido,

It doesn't matter where the body is - all that matters is the ball. I know some sports consider it to be 'out' if the player has a foot on the ground outside the field and is touching the ball, but this is not one of those sports. So until the ball completely crosses the line to go out, it's still in play.

There's no problem with being partially outside the field - or even completely stepping off the field to run around a player.

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi
As Referee Wright states it is the position of the ball that counts not the position of the body. So if part of the ball in on the field of play it it is still in play and it may be played., shielded by a player partially standing off the field of play. The player can go completely off the field of play say to go around an opponent to come back on to play a ball on the field of play.
Some sports make the ball out of play if the player touches a sideline. Soccer is not one of those.