Question Number: 17986

Law 11 - Offside 11/23/2007

RE: Adult

Can Evren of Istanbul, Turkey asks...

Hi Ref,

When a defender is behind the baseline, is he active or passive in terms of the offside line? Can he move behind the baseline in order to put the attacker in an offside position?

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

Hello there. Try to get the term "passive offside" out of your head. It's something announcers made up and is nonsensical and meaningless. In answer to your questions, a player off the field of play is considered to be on the line where he would be if ON the field of play when considering offside. So if he steps over the baseline, he is considered on the baseline and would keep any opponents from being offside by being there. If a player steps off the field of play to try to put an opponent in offside position, he will be cautioned for unsporting behavior and shown the yellow card.

Answer provided by Referee Chuck Fleischer

When the referee sees this misconduct he allows play to continue if it is to the advantage of the attacking side to do so. The advantage is self evident because in leaving the field where he has the defender has placed himself as the last opponent and on the goal line until he returns to the field. It is nearly impossible to be found in an offside position unless the attacker is beyond the goalkeeper. At the next stoppage the referee will caution and show the yellow card to the defender leaving the park, in an attempt to place an opponent in an offside position, for unsporting behaviour.

Regards,

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

As to baseline I assume you refer to the goal line that stretches sideways across the field from corner flag to corner flag? A defender who chooses to be into touch or there accidentally say through momentum, is considered to be ON the goal line thus determined as the last opponent or one of the two last opponents assuming the keeper or any other defender may or may not be also on the goal line.

Passive is a word that has been attributed to active or non active considerations to some degree by some who try to explain that position alone may or may not be conditional to offside. IN truth it is a yes or no positional circumstance (who is where, when ball is played?), passive has nothing to do with it!

In direct answer to your question, NO! An opponent cannot leave the field of play trying to trick the AR or referee into observing an offside. If a referee considers such an act as deceitful or on purpose it is a cautionable event. If it was accidental but the referee failed to note and realized oh oh there was no offside it could be a drop ball for an inadvertent whistle.
Cheers

Answer provided by Referee Ben Mueller

If a defender is outside the field of play, then he is considered to be at the point where he left the field. If he leaves the field of play from the goal line, then the defender is considered to be on the goal line. Also, a caution needs to be administered if the defender left the field to deceive the referee into calling offside.