From the U.S. Soccer Communications Center:
To: National Referees
National Instructors
National Assessors
State Referee Administrators
State Directors of Instruction
State Directors of Assessment
State Directors of Coaching
From: Paul Tamberino, Director of Referee Development
Alfred Kleinaitis, Manager of Referee Development and
Education
Subject: Interfering with the Goalkeeper’s Release of the Ball
Date: April 14, 2010
Law 12 (Fouls and Misconduct) includes the words “prevents the goalkeeper from
releasing the ball from his hands” as an offense punishable by an indirect free
kick. By tradition and interpretation, this violation is described more
generally as any action by a player which interferes with the opposing
goalkeeper’s ability to get the ball back into active play freely and quickly.
A goalkeeper is considered to be in the process of “releasing the ball” from the
first moment when he or she has clearly taken hand control of the ball until the
moment when the ball has been clearly released into play. This includes any
time when the goalkeeper is:
· bouncing the ball
· running with the ball
· in the process of dropping the ball in preparation for kicking it
· throwing the ball.
During the time the goalkeeper has control of the ball and is preparing to
release it into active play, an opponent may not stand or move so close as to
restrict the direction or distance of the goalkeeper’s release.
In the 70th minute of a match between D.C. United at Philadelphia Union on April
10, 2010 (clip
found here), D.C. forward Moreno followed, moved in closer to, waved arms
at, and made various head and body “movements” toward Philadelphia goalkeeper
Seitz while Seitz was holding the ball and preparing to distribute it. During
the course of this interference, Seitz dropped the ball and Moreno shot the ball
into the net. These actions by Moreno constituted a violation of Law 12. The
goal should not have been allowed and an indirect free kick should have been
given where Moreno interfered. Moreno’s behavior additionally could have been
cautioned as unsporting behavior.
Whenever a goalkeeper has taken possession of the ball and an opponent is either
nearby or begins moving toward the goalkeeper, referees and assistant referees
must recognize the possibility of interference and allow their attention to
continue to focus on the goalkeeper. More proactively, a quick word to the
opponent might well prevent this sort of offense.
Video clip can be found here.
Thank you.
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U.S. Soccer Federation, 1801 S. Prairie Ave, Chicago IL 60616
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From the U.S. Soccer Communications Center:
To: National Referees
National Instructors
National Assessors
State Referee Administrators
State Directors of Instruction
State Directors of Assessment
State Directors of Coaching
From: Paul Tamberino
Director of Referee Development
Alfred Kleinaitis
Manager of Referee Development and Education
Subject: Law 4 and Hair Control Devices
Date: June 8, 2009
Law 4 (The Players’ Equipment) requires that nothing be used or worn which is
dangerous, with certain limited exceptions (religious or medical items). It is
the responsibility of all members of the officiating team to ensure that this
requirement is enforced, not only at the start of play but throughout the entire
match.
Although ultimately it is the responsibility of the referee to decide if an item
of equipment or clothing presents a danger, an increasing number of hair control
devices are being seen which should not be allowed on the field. Referees
should take note of the following guidelines when evaluating such devices:
| Hair control devices which are elastic, flexible, and soft should be allowed. |
| Devices which are made of hard, sharp, edged, or breakable materials are not safe and may not be worn. |
| Beads or other similar decorative devices woven into or affixed on the hair are inherently dangerous and are not allowed. |
Referees are strongly urged to be diligent in enforcing these guidelines in the interest of player safety.
=========================================
From the
To: SRCs, SRAs, SYRAs, SDIs, SDAs
National Referees, National Instructors, National Assessors
From: Paul Tamberino
Director of Referee Development
Alfred Kleinaitis
Manager of Referee Development and Education
Re: Memorandum of Laws Changes
Date: May 21, 2009
The
123rd Annual General Meeting of the International Football Association Board (IFAB)
took place in
From the
To:
State Referee Administrators
State Youth Referee Administrators
State Referee Committee
State Directors of Instruction
National Instructors
National Referees
National Assessors
From: Paul Tamberino, Director of Referee Development
Alfred Kleinaitis, Manager of Referee Development and Education
Re:
Cautionable and Sending-off Offenses
Date: May 14, 2009
The
2009 version of the “7 + 7 Cautionable and Sending-Off
Offenses” position paper covering professional, youth and adult competitions
is attached. There are no changes or any modifications of the Law in this year's
memorandum. The paper is offered so you will have a currently dated memo on hand
for the start of the tournament season. If you have any questions, please
contact our office.
Paul
Tamberino
Director of Referee Development
Alfred Kleinaitis
Manager of Referee Development and Education
From the U.S. Soccer Communications Center:
To: National Referees
National Instructors
National Assessors
State Referee Administrators
State Directors of Instruction
State Directors of Assessment
State Youth Referee Administrators
From: Paul Tamberino
Director of Referee Development
Alfred Kleinaitis
Manager of Referee Development and Education
Subject: Guide to Procedures, 2009-2010 Edition
Date: May 8, 2009
A new and slightly revised edition of the long-standing USSF publication,
Guide to Procedures for Referees, Assistant Referees and 4th Officials,
will become available this month. Only two changes will be found in the
2009-2010 edition:
| Page 37 (Penalty Kick, Indicated By The Assistant Referee). The fourth bullet point has been modified as follows: “If referee stops game, assistant referee first indicates penalty kick by holding flag across the lower body and then begins walking toward the corner flag |
| Page 40 (Substitutions, Referee procedure). The first bullet point has been modified to be consistent with International Board guidelines mandating the use of the whistle to restart play after the referee has delayed the restart for a substitution. The revised bullet item now makes it clear that a whistle is required in all such cases. |
Until the new edition of the Guide becomes
more widely distributed, you are asked to begin immediately in your respective
capacities to pass the above procedure changes along to other referees,
instructors, and assessors so that they may begin implementing these
modifications as quickly as possible.
****************************************************************
U.S. Soccer Federation, 1801 S. Prairie Ave, Chicago IL 60616
****************************************************************
From the U.S. Soccer Communications Center:
To: National Referees
National Instructors
National Assessors
State Referee Administrators
State Youth Referee Administrators
State Directors of Instruction
State Directors of Assessment
State Directors of Coaching
From: Alfred Kleinaitis
Manager of Referee Development and Education
Subject: Kicks from the Penalty Mark Checklist
Date: April 2, 2009
In many parts of the country, tournaments are starting to occur and often their
rules include requirements for breaking ties. However, information about the
mechanics and procedures involved in taking kicks from the penalty mark to break
a tie is spread across several sources:
| the Laws of the Game, |
| the new “Interpretation and Guidelines” section of the Laws of the Game published by FIFA (and available on the USSF website under “Laws of the Game”), |
| Advice to Referees, and |
| earlier memoranda distributed by U.S. Soccer Referee Department. |
The following checklist of responsibilities, guidelines, and procedures is provided as a useful single source of guidance for referees who need to conduct this process. The checklist is attached to facilitate printing out just the checklist.
===================
From the U.S. Soccer Communications Center:
To: National Referees
National Instructors
National Assessors
State Referee Administrators
State Youth Referee Administrators
State Directors of Instruction
State Directors of Assessment
State Directors of Coaching
From: Alfred Kleinaitis
Manager of Referee Development and Education
Subject: Head Injuries
Date: March 31, 2009
USSF guidance for referees at all levels has always emphasized the importance of
responding appropriately to serious player injuries. National Referee clinics
in the past have dealt with this matter in no uncertain terms. A specific
directive was issued this year in advance of the 2009 MLS season, and entry
level USSF referee training materials have reminded all officials that the
seriousness of an injury is more liberally defined for youth players.
In the DC United - LA Galaxy game (March 22), two players collided while
attempting to jump for the ball. As a result, both suffered head injuries, with
bleeding, that required stitches or staples to close the wounds.
Play should have been stopped immediately. Whenever a player's head is
injured -- regardless of whether the collision was with an opponent, a teammate,
or an object on the field such as a goal post -- the safety of that player is of
prime concern. There is no higher priority.
Instructors, assessors, match inspectors, and others involved with referee
training and administration must take every opportunity to remind referees of
this requirement, if such a reminder is needed.
Viewing U.S. Soccer's Referee Position Papers:
To view the video related to this email and others like it from the U.S. Soccer
Referee Department, log onto ussoccer.com's YouTube page and go to "Playlists"
and then to "Playlist Name: U.S. Soccer Referee Department" or click one of the
links below. This recent addition to the ussoccer.com's YouTube page is the
place to get caught up on all of U.S. Soccer's rule interpretations.
| ussoccer.com YouTube Page (front page) |
| U.S. Soccer Referee Department Playlist (all referee videos) |
| U.S. Soccer Referee Position Paper: March 26, 2009 (Serious Injuries) |
If you would like a copy of this video clip to download (file size: 8 MB), please reply to this email or send an email to communications@ussoccer.org.
===============================
From the U.S. Soccer Communications Center:
To: National Referees
National Instructors
National Assessors
State Referee Administrators
State Youth Referee Administrators
State Directors of Instruction
State Directors of Assessment
State Directors of Coaching
From: Alfred Kleinaitis
Manager of Referee Development and Education
Subject: Offside – Interfering with Play
Date: March 25, 2009
The first goal scored in the new MLS season (New York Red Bulls at Seattle
Sounders, March 19,
see accompanying clip) was the subject of controversy based on the argument
that a teammate of the scorer was in an offside position at the time and had
become involved in active play by interfering with play. The goal was from
Sounder #17 (Montero) against the Red Bull goalkeeper #1 (Cepero) and the
Sounder forward alleged to have been offside was #23 (Nyassi).
The following facts are not in dispute:
| Nyassi was in an offside position. |
| Nyassi did not become involved in active play by gaining an advantage (historically, this is only an issue if the ball has rebounded from the crossbar, a goalpost, or a defender, which it did not in this case). |
| Nyassi did not interfere with an opponent. He did not get in the way of a defender, make any movement or gesture which deceived or distracted an opponent, and, most importantly, did not block the goalkeeper’s line of sight (the attack came in from the goalkeeper’s left whereas the attacker ran from the goalkeeper’s right and was at least several yards away from the goalkeeper when the shot on goal was made). |
| Nyassi did not interfere with play (no contact with the ball). |
The assistant referee was well placed, in line with the
second to last defender, to confirm these essential elements in deciding for an
offside violation. Accordingly, there was no offside violation and the goal
was valid.
The debate has been vigorous over the last several years regarding the way in
which an attacker in an offside position can be involved in active play. The
definition provided by the International Board regarding “gaining an advantage”
is clear and based on concrete observable facts. The definition of “interfering
with an opponent” involves various judgments but is generally clear in its
application since the primary issue here is whether the interference results
from blocking paths and/or lines of sight.
This memorandum confirms that “interfering with play” cannot be decided unless
the attacker in an offside position makes contact with the ball.
Viewing U.S. Soccer's Referee Position Papers:
To view the video related to this email and others like it from the U.S. Soccer
Referee Department, log onto ussoccer.com's YouTube page and go to "Playlists"
and then to "Playlist Name: U.S. Soccer Referee Department" or click one of the
links below. This recent addition to the ussoccer.com's YouTube page is the
place to get caught up on all of U.S. Soccer's rule interpretations.
| ussoccer.com YouTube Page (front page) |
| U.S. Soccer Referee Department Playlist (all referee videos) |
| U.S. Soccer Referee Position Paper: March 25, 2009 (Offside - Interfering with Play) |
If you would like a copy of this video clip to download (file size: 5 MB), please reply to this email or send an email to communications@ussoccer.org.