Card System in Soccer

Since I mentioned red cards in my last post I figured I should actually explain what the cards mean in soccer... Or should I say... steal the information from a web site and post it here.

There are 2 colors of "cards" which the referee will hold up to indicate serious fouls or behavior which won't be tolerated. He carries these cards in his shirt pocket, so if he reaches for his pocket it's a bad sign for the player who committed the foul. These cards are about the size of a playing card and one is yellow and the other is red. When a card is to be given (it isn't actually given to the offending player, it is actually just shown to him and to everyone else) the referee will stop the game, call the player over, hold up the card and write the player's name in his notebook. This is called "booking" the player and when it happens the player has been "booked", (e.g., "she was booked"). Any time a Yellow or Red Card is shown, a "direct" or "indirect kick" will also be awarded.

Yellow Card - Indicates a formal "caution" for any of the following 7 offenses:

1. "unsporting behavior" - this includes hard fouls; holding an opponent or deliberately handling the ball for the purpose of preventing an opponent from gaining possession of the ball; faking an injury; saying things that are designed to confuse or distract an opponent; harassment (such as jumping around, shouting or making gestures to intentionally distract an opponent; jumping in front of a corner kick, free kick or throw-in; worrying the goalkeeper or trying to prevent him from putting the ball into play; & adopting a threatening posture), gaining an unfair advantage by leaning on, climbing on the back of, or holding a teammate or the goal; blatant cases of holding and pulling an opposing player or his uniform; any action designed to deceive the Referee; and behavior which in the Referee's judgment is unsporting or causes an unfair advantage,

2. dissent by word or actions,

3. persistently breaking the rules,

4. delaying the restart of play,

5. defenders failing to stay the proper distance away from the kicker on a corner kick or free kick (see" Corner Kick" & "Free Kick"),

6. entering the field without the referee's permission

7. deliberately leaving the field without the referees permission.

A player who receives 2 Yellow Cards is given a Red Card & ejected. FIFA rules do not require a player to leave the field for the first yellow card. However, some leagues' rules do. You must go by your league's rules.

Red Card - A player must be shown a Red Card and "sent off" (i.e., made to leave the field) for the 7 offenses listed below. A player shown a "Red Card" & sent off may not be replaced during that game (i.e., his team must play a player "short" for the rest of the game; however, in some leagues a player may be replaced if he is ejected for receiving a second Yellow Card). The 7 offenses for which a player must be shown a Red Card and sent off are:

1. serious foul play (includes any use of excessive force or brutality against an opponent when challenging for the ball. Examples include a dangerous slide tackle from behind, or an "over the top tackle" in which a player raises his foot so the cleats could hit a player, or a two footed tackle that takes down the opponent. FIFA has broadened this definition by saying that "Any player who lunges at an opponent in challenging for the ball from the front, from the side or from behind using one or both legs, with excessive force and endangering the safety of an opponent is guilty of serious foul play. For current rules visit www.fifa.com, Laws of the Game. The above quote is from Questions and Answers, Additional Instructions for Referees).

2. violent conduct,

3. spitting at anyone,

4. a deliberate hand ball to deny an obvious goal scoring opportunity,

5. fouling an opponent to prevent an obvious goal scoring opportunity (e.g., holding to stop a breakaway),

6. using offensive or threatening language,

7. or receiving a second yellow card in one game.

As a side note a US player just received a red card as well for the slide tackle on an Italian player. So at the end of the first half it is still 1-1 and as the commentor just said "Wonder if it will end with 10 on 10 or if more will be ejected from the game" Guess the answer to that would be 9. As the second half started another US player got a red card.