Question Number: 16194

Law 11 - Offside 8/2/2007

Mike of Barrie, Ontario Canada asks...

Hi, my question pertains to offsides.

If a defender, who is currently the second last defender, intentionally leaves the field of play in order to put the attacking team in an offside position, do we call the attacker offside (assuming he is involved in active play)?

I get different answers for this question. Since the player left the field of play purposely to put the attacker in an offside position, we allow the advantage to the attacking team and then caution the defender who left the field of play. The logic behind this would be an indirect free kick can be awarded to the attacking team for the defender leaving the field of play; but the advantage clause allows play to continue.

On the flip side some say we would call the offside because the player is no longer on the field of play. Once play is stopped, the defender is cautioned. I wonder though, if the offside is called, are we giving the advantage to the defending team by calling offside?

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

The answer you seek may be found in the 2006 Advice to Referees that's available at ussoccer.org. You allow play to continue as the attacker has been put offside unfairly. At the next stoppage of play, you caution the defender for leaving the field without permission of the referee. Sorry, didn't see you were Canadian when I first answered this. Same instructions also available in new LOTG at fifa.com

Answer provided by Referee Chuck Fleischer

This is also mentioned on page 102 of the 0708 Laws of the Game. [available at FIFA.com]. What additional instruction says is the referee allows play to continue and cautions the player, at the next stoppage, for leaving the field without permission. The defender illegally off the field is treated as if he were still on the field at the point he left. If this line is the goal line one can easily see this is a huge advantage to the attacking side. In America we won't play advantage because the infringed Law is not Law 12 though what we do is say Law 11 is not infringed and carry on. Almost the same thing EXCEPT no one knows we do it...

Regards,

Answer provided by Referee Ben Mueller

If a player deliberatly leaves field to deceive referee, then the guilty player is cautioned and shown the yellow card. The player that left field is deemed to be at the point on field where he left it.

Answer provided by Referee Jon Sommer

Firstly it is offside, not offsides...sorry but its a pet hate of all referees and particularly ones from the other side of the pond!! The answer you are looking for is that the defender is veiwed as being on the field of play where he left it, therefore the attacker is onside. At the next stoppage we caution the defender for leaving the field of play without our permission.

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

Hi Mike,
We ignore this ploy for the moment and consider the offside as if he was ON the field from where he stepped out. If it is a calulated deliberate ploy to decieve it is USB but we are requested to call it
deliberately leaving the field of play without the referee?s permission
Caution show the yellow card at the next stoppage is the correct action to take.

If it is of an accidental nature through momentume by say running over the goal line while covering an attacker no caution even if we are fooled into a wrong call if it was not intentional do not caution! If it started as a natural momentume but the defender realizes by staying there he might create a call of offside again it is USB and worthy of a caution.

I have seen some strange calls but none as weird than a good goal called back because the defender off the field had tripped and was fully 5 yards out of the picture. The goal SHOULD be allowed.
Once it became clear the defender was there through momentume, not a trick we could choose NOT to caution.
But instead we had a goal kick out with a caution to the defender. Now in all likely hood the defender was glad to have the caution as no goal resulted never mind the bonus of ball possession as a goal kick not a kick off!
Good goal, no caution, kick off was the ideal solution but not everything follows the right path!
Cheers