Questions tagged [football]
Questions about the sport of football, also known as soccer, futbol, association football, etc. Not to be confused with "American football" which is contained under the [american-football] tag.
142
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How is offside determined in football?
The offside rule on the pitch is often unclear and called suddenly. How do I know if a player is offside?
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75
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8
answers
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Why is FIFA against adding instant replay to the game?
Is there any evidence or reason why FIFA is so against adding instant replay to soccer? I find myself seeing many unlucky or just plain wrong decisions made by refs that could be corrected with ...
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3
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Why do players enter with children on the ground?
I have seen many soccer matches. I often see that players enter the field with children. Why do they enter with the children?
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4
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Why was offside introduced, and are there reasons for keeping it?
The offside rule in football ( How is offside determined in soccer?) is the source of a large amount of goal-related controvesy, and is argued by some to diminish the entertainment value of the game.
...
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Are players allowed to pass a penalty kick?
I saw a video of Johann Cruyff passing a penalty kick, isn't that against the rules?
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Squeezing the ball between two feet and hopping across the field
On occasion you see sometimes players try this tactic where they squeeze the ball between two feet and hop across the goal line in an attempt to score. This is usually kids learning the game or adults ...
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11
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1
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Is there offside when the ball deflects off an opponent?
I was refereeing a 10 year old's junior game today and this situation happened. The home team's defender attempted to pass from their own half to their forward who was in an offside position beyond ...
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2
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Is a match forfeit always scored as 3-0 regardless of situation?
A match forfeit is usually scored as a 3-0 loss to the team forfeiting the game.
But, could a team use this to your advantage by forfeiting a game in which they could potentially lose by more?
For eg:...
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5
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2
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Players with 300 or more goals for a single team in top flight domestic league (European clubs)
When Messi passed 300 goals for Barcelona, I asked this question, but couldn't find an answer anywhere. Who has scored more goals than Messi for a single club?
Edit:
I was specifically asking for the ...
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16
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3
answers
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Qualification decision in group stages when everything is equal
Consider a football (soccer) tournament has a group stage, where for example teams are divided into groups of four and the first and second teams will qualify to the next round. If all games end with ...
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13
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1
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Is it a goal if, during kicks from the penalty mark, the ball goes outside the penalty area and then into the goal?
If, during kicks from the penalty mark, the ball hits the goalpost and lobs outside the penalty area and then returns back into the goal without touching any player, will it be considered a goal or ...
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Can a soccer player steal the ball while the goalkeeper bounces it on the ground?
When the ball is being bounced by the goalkeeper from his hands and a player steals it without touching the goalkeeper (while the goalkeeper is not touching the ball) and scores, is it legal or not?
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3
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Who wins a league (EPL) if two teams have the same number of points? [duplicate]
Is there any rule defined by UEFA or FIFA?
If more teams have the same number of points in a league after the finishing game, what is the rule to declare a winner??
Were there any rule updates by ...
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9
votes
1
answer
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How detailed is penalty kick encroachment in football
The laws of the game prohibit encroaching on a penalty kick whether it is an attacking player or defending player. The keeper is supposed to remain on the line until the kick is taken but in practice ...
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What factors give a "Home Advantage" and how big is it?
Often you hear about the team whose ground the match is being played at having a "home advantage".
During a discussion with a friend they said teams go as far as to style the opposing teams changing ...
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23
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1
answer
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What actions are taken by FIFA/UEFA against what's known as filming or diving
It seems to me that modern football is suffering from the kind of unsportsmanly behavior of diving which became all the more common, perhaps with the recent success of southern European teams/nations. ...
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22
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4
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Which offences result in indirect free kicks?
If a player commits a direct free kick offence in their own penalty area, this results in a penalty kick instead of a direct free kick. However, if the offence is an indirect free kick offence, it ...
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FIFA World Cup 2014 Tie Breaker Rules: "Between the teams concerned"?
Here is the rule for the ranking of the teams in the Group Stage of the World Cup, from Article 41 of the Regulations, 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil (PDF):
The ranking of each team in each group shall ...
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1
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Rules around shepherding in football
In many ball sports played in Australia there is a familiar term "shepherding". Wikipedia describes it as this:
"Shepherding is the act of legally pushing, bumping or blocking an opposing player ...
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18
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3
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Can a player receive two yellow cards if advantage is played?
If a football player A fouls player B in a manner such that they will receive a yellow card, but the referee plays the advantage rule, and subsequently player A fouls another player, can the referee ...
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2
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Is hiding the ball allowed in football?
Imagine all our football team except one player form a tight circle, with our hands on the shoulders of the people next to us.
Inside the circle there is the eleventh person with the ball. The whole "...
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Tiebreakers to decide league position in football (soccer)?
In the English Premier League, the league standing is decided using total points scored over the season, then goal difference, then goals scored - in that order.
What happens if two (or more) teams ...
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9
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3
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Does stoppage time actually equal all non-playing time during a half?
After every half during a football (soccer) game, the refs add stoppage time to the clock to compensate for lost time due to injuries and penalties.
But how closely does stoppage time equal real game ...
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What do careless, reckless and excessive force mean when referring to fouls?
In Law 12 (Fouls and Misconduct) of the IFAB Laws of the Game, it states that:
A direct free kick is awarded if a player commits any of the following offences against an opponent in a manner ...
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1
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Players with 300 or more goals for a single team in all competitions (European clubs)
Having already started a discussion for the players that has 300 or more goals in top flight domestic league for an European club let's distinguish a question for players with more than 400 goals in ...
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5
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How is the "best loser" determined in football?
We have played a 7-team competition, all seven teams met, we eliminated the team with the lowest points. After that the remaining six teams played knock out games and the three winning teams will go ...
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Players with 400 or more goals in all club competitions (European clubs)
Who are the players that has more than 400 goals in all club competitions, combined for all the teams that they have played. Excluding friendly matches and counting only domestic cups, the domestic ...
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2
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Confusion on offside rule
While watching the Liverpool vs Manchester United Premier League game in January 2020, I got confused on the offside rule when Salah scored a goal.
Salah was well offside when Allison passed the ball ...
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Players with 300 or more goals in top flight domestic league (European clubs)
Who are the players that has more than 300 goals in top flight domestic league, combined for all the teams that they have played.
Related questions:
Players with 300 or more goals for a single team ...
- 1,259
41
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4
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Can a football team force its defeat, e.g. via own goals?
On Thursday at 2pm GMT, the football matches for group H of the World Cup 2018 will begin. By 4 pm GMT, the fate of that group will be decided.
Let us assume that Japan comes first and Colombia ...
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What is the maximum number of red cards that a referee can give in a football match?
What is the greatest possible number of red cards that a referee can give in a football match?
Does such a limit even exist?
If so, does it vary from league to league and tournament to tournament?
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1
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Can the second-to-last defender cause an offside by leaving the field of play?
I had a little conversation one of my football friends and we had this interesting situation come up during the conversation.
As I understand the offside rule, the offending player should not be ...
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3
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Can you hit a football when the goalkeeper is touching it?
When the ball is on the ground and goalkeeper has put a hand on top of the ball, can the attacker hit the ball away from under the goalkeeper's hand?
The goalkeeper just got to the ball. They aren't ...
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If you can't change an injured goalkeeper, what can you do?
In football (or soccer for NA people), I wonder what would you be able to do if the following scenario was to happen:
All 3 player substitutions are used.
The Goalkeeper is made unable to continue ...
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13
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3
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How does the referee communicate with players in football(soccer) matches, when they are from different countries?
I always see in TV referees communicating with the players in international football matches(both club and national competitions). It seems to be universal: not only in European matches, but also in ...
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2
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Do teams announce their exact formations before a match?
Before football matches they usually show the formations of both teams, including who plays where, on TV.
As far as I am aware, according to the rules teams only have to provide the names and shirt ...
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How are the uniform colours determined in the World Cup?
Choosing jersey and shorts colours for all concerned seems to be a reasonably complicated process:
each team has a set of colours they consider theirs (from their flag, or associated with them)
any ...
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3
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2k
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How can I improve my ball handling?
I play football (soccer) for my community traveling team. Our usual ball handling exercise is getting the ball around a course of cones.
What other ways can I improve my ball handling abilities?
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1
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What do football (soccer) referees do during halftime?
What do football referees do and where do they go during halftime?
Is there a protocol or are there particular rules they have to obey during that time, like restrictions who to communicate with? Is ...
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1
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Football Field Size
Just the other day I was talking to a colleague and he was telling me soccer fields can differ in size, up to 20 meters in width.
Can somebody give me the exact word on this?
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1
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How to find "distance covered" for players during the World Cup?
I was curious about the in-depth player stats from yesterdays game, Brazil - Croatia (specifically to assess Ivan Perisic's impact in the game) and came across a bunch of sites that provide basic ...
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The difference between top goalscorer and golden boot winner
My bookmaker has prices for the golden boot winner and the top tournament goal scorer in the World Cup. What is the difference between the two awards?
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Why FIFA didn't prevent the potential cheating that may arise when the lasts of group matches are not played simultaneously?
Referring to the question here, the first and second paragraph.
On Thursday at 2pm GMT, the football matches for group H of the World Cup 2018 will begin. By 4 pm GMT, the fate of that group will
...
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1
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Highest Points to finish Runner-Up in Champions League Group? Lowest points to win Champions League Group?
Theoretically, you could finish second even with 15 points. And win the group with just 5 points. But, in reality what are the records?
Is it Arsenal (with 13 points) this season and Monaco (with 11 ...
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8
votes
2
answers
731
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Greatest comeback in 2nd leg match
In sports (particularly football), the knockout stage has a contest between two teams which comprises two matches or "legs", with each team as the home team in one leg. The winning team is usually ...
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If Liverpool FC win the Champions League does that mean Coutinho wins it as well or if FC Barcelona win Champions league will Coutinho win it as well?
I mean anything is possible in football and I was reading an article about how Coutinho can help FCB in terms of attacking football etc.
When I saw
With Coutinho ineligible to play in Europe for ...
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1
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What is the distance allowed for the goalkeeper to be off the line during penalty kick? [duplicate]
Recently, I saw a video showing a penalty kick replayed twice because the goalkeeper advanced from the goal line.
My question is: what is the distance allowed for the goalkeeper to be off the line ...
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2
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Why was Japan's second goal in the WC 2022 Japan-Spain match deemed to be valid?
During the 2022 FIFA World Cup match between Japan and Spain, Japan's second goal, scored by Ao Tanaka, was scored after the ball had seemingly gone out of play and been dragged back in by Kaoru ...
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4
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When can a goalkeeper take the ball into their hands?
A goalkeeper cannot handle the ball if a teammate passes ball to them.
But can the goalkeeper take the ball into their hands if it is deflected from the leg? Also, can they take the ball in their ...
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2
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Who is the best striker (best goals/appearances ratio) with 25/50/100+ national caps?
Zlatan Ibrahimovic recently had his 50 goals milestone (also a national record for Sweden) prior to with 100 appearance for the team. With 50 goals in 100 games he's averaging a goal in every second ...
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