Question Number: 30428

Law 12 - Fouls and Misconduct 5/19/2016

RE: rereational Adult

peter babbage of hjørring, Denmark asks...

I'm a little puzzled regarding the keeper handling outside the area. If for instance he deliberately comes out of his area, handles the ball to stop a shot on goal, this seems clearly a sending off. If say it is just a long ball upfield with no attacker in sight, he may misjudge where the line is and handle it just outside the area. Then again he might come to punch it clear from an attack and do this outside the line. My thoughts are that if you feel it is a case of genuinely misjudging where the line is, it isn't deliberate, so therefore there has been no offence. So is it just something that goes by insticnt or is any handball outsiude the box a red card?

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Peter
Misjudgement is not a defence in Law. If the goalkeeper handles the ball outside the penalty area it is deliberate handling and a direct free kick.
Now the referee has to judge whether the actions of the goalkeeper required further additional sanction. On the misjudgement one with no impact on opponents it can be a DFK only. If the GKs actions denied a goal or goal scoring opportunity then it is a sending off offence. The referee considers the 4Ds when arriving at that decision in the same way as any foul by a defender would be considered. If it is just a tactical foul then it is a caution and a DFK.

Answer provided by Referee Gary Voshol

The keeper deliberately handled the ball. He didn't do it by accident. He made a deliberate conscious action to get to the ball.

Now if he was not aware enough of his position to realize that he would contact the ball outside the penalty area, that's his problem.

The results of that handling is at least a direct free kick. The referee will need to evaluate whether the actions took away an obvious goal scoring opportunity, or if it broke up an attacking play. If so, red card or yellow card.

Answer provided by Referee Jason Wright

Hi Peter,
The 'deliberate' part comes in the handling. When the keeper catches the ball inside his PA he is deliberately handling the ball - but this isn't an offence. If he steps outside he is still deliberately handling the ball. He may not have meant to do so in a particular field position but that part of it is irrelevant in the question of 'deliberate'. Same with punching the ball - the handling was deliberate, the location of the handling was accidental. But only the first matters.

These are treated no differently to any defender handling the ball in terms of any cards. There is no mandatory card here - the referee needs to judge whether it was denying an opponent possession, or denying an obvious goal or goalscoring opportunity (including denying an opponent possession when they would have had a goalscoring opportunity).