Question Number: 35686

Law 18 - Common Sense 9/8/2024

RE: Travel/Select Under 14

Ed Rex of Camp Hill, PA United States asks...

If a coach is called onto a field for an injured player, must that player leave the field or can they stay on?

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

HI Ed,
the rule about an injured player leaving the field after receiving treatment generally applies across different levels of soccer, including professional, high school, and youth games.

(Although there is some discussion that injury substitutions might be granted in the future or that the player responsible for causing the injury must also exit but that is not yet applied in todays football. Generally if a coach or any first aid responder pulled out of the team's technical area to assess a players' injury on the FOP, that player must exist said FOP and return only with the referees permission once play has restarted. However, there can be some variations or exceptions! )

At the pro levels this rule is currently strictly enforced. Players must leave the field upon receiving treatment and can only return with the referee’s permission.

Exceptions are there but if the assessment/treatment is completed quickly but there is a limit, at the referees discretion. In some cases the referee might allow a bit of time to recover and should ask the player do you REQUIRE treatment?
The exceptions are if it is the keeper receiving treatment, teammates collide, or like if a PK was granted and that injured player was going to take it or a SFP/VC or reckless incident where an opponent is sanctioned with a send off or caution for the challenge to that injured player. As long as it has a reasonable time to be sorted allowances might be made!

High School Soccer (USA): The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) governs high school soccer rules in the USA. The rule is similar, but there might be slight variations depending on the state or specific league regulations.
Hopefully our local expert Ref Majone weighs in.

Youth Soccer: Generally, the rule about leaving the field after treatment is followed, but some leagues might have more lenient policies to ensure the safety and well-being of young players. The ROC (rules of competition) or depending on the organization general league bylaws might factor in?

Cheers

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Ed
Thanks for the question.

Once a physio / coach is called on to the field of play to assess an injury the player is required under the Laws of the Game to leave the field of play. It is spelt out clearly in Law 5.
There are exceptions set out in Law 5 where the player is not required to leave such as
# a goalkeeper is injured
# a goalkeeper and an outfield player have collided and need attention
# players from the same team have collided and need attention
# a player is injured as the result of a physical offence for which the opponent is cautioned or sent off (e.g. reckless or serious foul challenge), if the assessment/treatment is completed quickly
# a penalty kick has been awarded and the injured player will be the kicker.

If an exception does not apply then the player must leave the field of play.

Treatment is expected to happen off the field of play yet we know that does not always happen as in many instance we see some forms of treatment on the field with players ready to return when play restarts. A player can only return after play has restarted.

I advise referees to ask the *injured* player if they need treatment. A yes results in the physio / coach being beckoned on. No answer is also a yes in my book and the player is required to leave in both instances. If the answer is no then a signal not to enter is made to the technical area and play resumes.

I advise referees that once the physio / coach comes on to the field of play which in some instances can be without permission the player MUST leave even if no treatment is required. I advise referees to look on the no request entry as an implied permission for injury assessment otherwise it is a caution for entering without permission.

Answer provided by Referee Joe Manjone

Ed,
In youth soccer if the referee believes the injury to be sufficient enough to call the coach onto the field, I believe removing the player from the game for attention by a trainer, the coach, or even the parent would be prudent.

However, as pointed out by Referee McHugh, Law 5 does require the player to leave the field when the coach is beckoned on except in certain situations. In high school soccer, where player safety is a major concern, the player must be removed from the game and there are no exceptions. This is stated in high school rule NFHS Rule 3.3.2b2.

I hope your team has a very successful fall season.