offside

Offside is Law 11 in association football. The law states that players in an offside position when the ball is touched or played by a teammate, may not become actively involved in the play. A player is in an offside position when he or she is in the opponents’ half of the pitch and closer to the opponents’ goal line than both the ball and the second-to-last opponent (usually the last defensive player in front of the goalkeeper). “Offside position” is a matter of fact, whereas an “offside offence” is purely subjective to the interpretation of the referee. If, in the opinion of the referee, a player in an offside position interferes with play, or gains an advantage from being in an offside position, the referee stops play and awards an indirect free kick to the defending team. This sanction nullifies any result that occurred during the play, including scored goals. The assistant referee communicates when an offside offence has occurred by raising a signal flag.