Question Number: 35859

Law 14 - The Penalty kick 1/11/2025

David Howard of WETHERBY West Yorkshire , United Kingdom asks...

This question is a follow up to question 35851

Thanks for the answers.
Just a couple of follow ups if I may.
Q3. At the point where a penalty is taken, can someone be offside?
Q1. It is a really muddy day. Just the goalkeeper and the centre forward are left chasing a long ball that is about to go in the goal, when it sticks in the mud. However due to the conditions they both slide over the line into the back of the net. The centre forward is 1st to get up but is held down by the goalkeeper which allows his defender to get back and clear the ball. Is it a penalty?

Answer provided by Referee Peter Grove

Hi David,

Q3. No, a player cannot be offside at the moment the penalty kick is taken. At least not if the referee has ensured that all the correct conditions are met, for the taking of the kick.

This is because Law 14 states:

"The players other than the kicker and goalkeeper must be ... behind the penalty mark"

Clearly, if this provision is enforced by the referee as it always should be then no player can be in an offside position when the penalty kick is taken.

Q1. Yes, this is a penalty. Law 12 says that:

"If, when the ball is in play: a player commits an offence against .. an opposing player ... outside the field of play ... play is restarted with a free kick on the boundary line nearest to where the offence/interference occurred: for direct free kick offences, a penalty kick is awarded if this is within the offender’s penalty area."

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

HI David
I reread your original 3 part question

Your 1st question was: Could a penalty kick be awarded if a DFK (direct free kick) penal foul did not occur within or on the boundary lines of the PA ( Penalty area)?
The correct answer is NO -BUT- with a proviso!

During a soccer match it is conceivable that players can, while the ball is in play, exit the FOP (field of Play) into touch, accidently via momentum or on purpose, say to avoid a collision and commit misconduct!

For the purposes of a decision, these players off the FOP (Field of Play) into touch are considered as if their actions are occurring -on- the nearest point to the closest boundary line. If this action would be a DFK ( direct free kick ) penal foul on the FOP, given no free kick restart occurs OFF the FOP the ball in fact is brought to the nearest boundary line, in this case the PA ( penalty are).

Because it is a DFK offence now located on the penalty area boundary line that restart is now upgraded to be a penalty kick. Any additional misconduct related to that foul is shown as a yellow card caution or red card send off.

With regard to your second question if the ball is, not in play, that means there is a stoppage of some sort. Thee restart would be for whatever that original stoppage was, the actions of the player are now considered to be solely misconduct and as such are cardable and subject to discipline. Given you said it was a right hook that flattened the opposing player that would be considered VC (violent conduct)! as a result that player would be shown a red card, dismissed from the field and his team would play a man short. The restart could be in his team's favor team or against his team whatever it is does not change!

Your third question is interesting a penalty kick cannot be disallowed because of offside principally because the referee will not start a penalty kick until all players are in their proper position behind the kicker and the ball.

However if a penalty kick was initially awarded and then the attacking player that was fouled was deemed a restricted PIOP (Player in an Offside Position) offside it could be an INDFK ( indirect free kick ) out is awarded in favour of the defence because that FOUL is only misconduct and adjudged appropriately to its merits!
Cheers

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi David
Thanks for the follow up.
Law 14 as quoted by Referee Grove requires that all players other than the kicker and the goalkeeper are outside the penalty area and arc and behind the ball. So it is not possible for an attacker to be in an offside position ahead of the ball.
In the unusual situation of a player being to the side of the penalty area before the kick the referee should ensure that player is behind the ball on the penalty mark so offside is not possible.

On your second one the correct decision is a penalty kick. The Law was amended a few seasons ago to what is quoted by my colleague Referee Grove so that any offence now committed off the field of play is punished by a free kick on the field of play. As this is holding which is a direct free kick offence and as it happened nearest to the penalty area a penalty kick is awarded.