New Fan Guide: Soccer 201

Positions

The basic positions of soccer are goalkeeper, defender, midfielder, and forward. Each team plays with 11 players on the field, including the one goalkeeper per team. Within those categories you have specific positions, such as center backs, left and right backs for defenders; defensive and attacking midfielders, left and right midfielders; strikers and wingers for forwards. These are all dependent on the team’s formation.  

Goalkeeper: One goalkeeper who uses their hands inside of the 18-yard box (the larger box in front of the goal). They can have the ball in their hands for 6 seconds and cannot pick up the ball if passed back by a teammate intentionally with their foot; goalkeepers may pick up the ball if it is passed back by a teammate if they use their head, chest, shoulder, midsection, or upper legs. 

Defenders: Typically, there are three to four and sometimes five defenders lined up in a team’s formation. There are two to three center backs who generally stay back in defense while a right and left back along the outside (sometimes called wing backs, outside backs, or full backs) move further up the field while in possession.  

Midfielders: There are several types of midfielders. Center midfielders vary as defensive and attacking. Some do both, commonly called the Number 8, which originates from traditional position roles with numerical associations. The No. 10 is the creative attacker and the No. 6 is the defensive midfielder.  

Forwards: The No. 9 is the main striker who plays through the midfielder. There are generally two wingers who play alongside the No. 9 who may feed passes to the striker but also are responsible for many shots and goals.

Substitutions

Each team can make a total of five substitutions over three in-game periods as well as at the start of the second half. Players who leave the match cannot be substituted back in at the professional level. 

Time

The clock doesn’t stop! At the end of each 45-minute half, stoppage time determined by the referees are added to the half. These numbers are a minimum amount of added time to each half.  

Offside

When in the attacking half of the field, attacking players need to be behind the last defender when the ball is passed to be deemed onside. If they are past the last defender when the last touch of the ball is played by a teammate, they are offside. An offside call results in a free kick.  

A player is NOT offside on throw ins or if they are in their own defensive half when the ball is played.  

Restart of play

After stoppages in the game, there are different ways the game resumes. A throw in is used when the ball goes out on the sidelines of the field. A goal kick, one team kicks the ball from inside of their own goal area from a standstill, is used when the attacking team touches the ball last before the ball goes out of play behind the goal-line. A corner kick is taken by the attacking team in the corner on the side the ball has gone out of play along the goal-line after being last touched by the defensive team. For a ball to go out of play, it must entirely cross the line. Similarly, the ball must go entirely over the goal-line for a goal to stand.   

A free kick is taken if a foul is committed in the field of play, while a penalty kick is taken if the foul is committed in the penalty area, which extends 18-yards in each direction from the goal. A kickoff is taken at the middle of the field at the start of each half and after every goal.  

Referees

There are four referees on or around the field of play. The center official is the main referee while the field is flanked by two assistant referees monitoring the ball going out of play, offside, and calling fouls. There is also a fourth official who holds up the substitute and stoppage time board and permits substitutes to enter the field.  

VAR: Video Assistant Referee

Every goal is checked by  the video assistant referee, or VAR, who is watching on monitors with various camera angles to see if any infringements have occurred. They determine if there are any fouls, an offside in the buildup to a goal, or if the ball has fully crossed the line. VAR is also used to determine a red card offense that may have been made by a player and missed by the on-field officials, or to reverse a red card given. The VAR can also send the center official to a monitor on the side of the field to further assess and make a final decision. Unlike many other sports, teams cannot initiate a VAR review through a challenge.  

Goalie hand usage

Goalkeepers can use their hands only inside the penalty area, the 18-yard box in front of their goals. The goalie cannot pick up the ball if intentionally passed to them by a teammate. Goalkeepers may pick up the ball if it is passed back by a teammate using anything other than their feet and lower legs intentionally.  

Yellow and Red Cards

Yellow cards are cautions for foul play. If a player receives two in the same match, they get a red card and have to leave the game. No replacement for the player is allowed, and the team must play with 10 players. A straight red card can be issued for more serious offenses.