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The use of
this material is purely for the benefit of improving refereeing
standards and is not to be used for any commercial purposes.
Disclaimer:
The information
contained on this page is to be used as a general guide only as the laws
undergo review from time to time. Reference should always be made
to
FIFA
for the most up to
date laws and decisions.
| Official
Information |
| General
Pre - Match Instructions |
A
Guide to Misconduct Report Writing
2016/2017 Laws of the Game Amendments |
|
The
Laws Of Football |
The History of the IFAB
The IFAB is the universal decision-making body
for the Laws of the Game of association football. Its
objectives are to safeguard, compile and amend the Laws as they
apply within the scope of world football as organised by FIFA,
which includes ensuring that the Laws are uniformly applied
worldwide and monitored accordingly, and that organised football
is practised consistently.
The IFAB was formed when two representatives from each of the
football associations of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern
Ireland met on 2 June 1886. The brainchild of the English
FA, the new body was created to draw up an uniform set of Laws
at a time when each country applied different rules. Once
established as the guardians of the Laws of the Game, The IFAB’s
role was and remains to preserve, monitor, study and where
appropriate improve the Laws.
The game of football spread rapidly and in 1904 seven nations
met in Paris to form FIFA, Fédération Internationale de Football
Associations, which joined The IFAB in 1913.
The IFAB has overseen many Law changes since the creation of the
first set of official Laws in 1863. For example, offside
is probably the most amended Law e.g. originally a player in
front of the ball was offside. The goal area first
appeared in 1869, followed by corner kicks in 1872, and the
first penalty kick was awarded in 1891 - until 1902 it could be
taken from any point along a line 12 yards from the goal.
The 1912 decision to prohibit goalkeepers from handling the ball
outside the penalty area led to an increase in the number of
goals and from 1920 players could not be offside from throw-ins.
Steadily, The IFAB changed the game and the mind-set of those
who played and watched it. The change prohibiting
goalkeepers from handling deliberate ‘back-passes’, introduced
after the 1990 FIFA World Cup Italy™, and the 1998 ruling that
red cards be awarded for serious tackles from behind are good
examples of that shift in attitude.
In October 2010 The IFAB reconsidered the introduction of goal
linetechnology (GLT) and agreed to a two-year period of
comprehensive testing. InJuly 2012 The IFAB made the
historic decisions to approve GLT and the use of Additional
Assistant Referees.
March 2016 was also an historic AGM when a testing phase for
Video Assistant Referees was approved along with the most
comprehensive revision of the Laws of the Game in The IFAB’s
history. |
Structure and Working of the IFAB
In 2012 The IFAB started a reform process
which concluded on 13 January 2014 when The IFAB became an
autonomous association under Swiss Law and approved the statutes
that define the purpose, structure and responsibilities of The
IFAB and its bodies. To ensure the work of The IFAB is
transparent, democratic and modern, an executive secretariat,
led by the Secretary of The IFAB, was introduced.
Whilst The IFAB composition remained unchanged, the reform saw
the formation of the Football Advisory Panel and Technical
Advisory Panel consisting of experts from across the world of
football. These panels aim to improve the consultation
process and foster a more proactive approach to the development
of the Laws.
Annual General Meeting (AGM)
The AGM takes place in February or March in England, Scotland,
Wales and Northern Ireland in strict rotation, as well as a
location decided by FIFA in FIFA World Cup™ years. AGM
decisions on the Laws of the Game are binding on confederations
and national football associations as from 1 June. However,
confederations and national football associations whose current
season or competition has not ended by 1 June may delay the
change(s) until the beginning of their next season or end of the
competition; those which start before 1 June may apply them once
The IFAB has issued the official circular announcing any
changes.
No alteration to the Laws of the Game can be made by
any confederation or national football association (including
competitions) unless it has been passed by The IFAB. |
Annual Business Meeting (ABM)
The ABM is the preparatory meeting for the AGM and is held in
November. The ABM can consider items submitted by any
confederation or national football association and may approved
experiments and trials. However, changes to the Laws must
be approved at the AGM.
Technical Subcommittee (TSC)
The IFAB TSC consists of experts from the four British FAs, FIFA
and The IFAB and is responsible for considering potential Law
changes and overseeing trials approved by the ABM and AGM.
Advisory Panels
The Football Advisory Panel (FAP) and Technical Advisory Panel
(TAP) consist of experts from across the world of football, who
support The IFAB’s work on the Laws of the Game. They
include former players, coaches and referees from different
confederations and football bodies . FAP provides perspectives
from players and coaches while TAP assesses technical details
and possible impacts on refereeing of any Law changes. |
Background to the Current Law Revision
The authority for the current revision of
the Laws of the Game is found in the minutes of the 127th, 128th
and 129th AGMs. The TSC started work in autumn 2014 and
the minutes of the 129th AGM on 28th February 2015 record that:
“...the aim of the revision is to make the Laws of the
Game more accessible and more easily understood by everyone in
football and increase consistency of understanding,
interpretation and application.”
The revision has focussed on making the Laws appropriate for the
modern game at all levels. The major areas of change are:
• More simple structure – Law and Law
Interpretation have been combined so all the information for each
Law is in the same place
• Updated titles – some Laws have been renamed
to reflect their content and allow inclusion of text not
previously assigned to a Law e.g. Law 6: ‘The Assistant
Referees’ has become ‘The Other Match Officials’ to allow
inclusion of Fourth Officials, Additional Assistant Referees
etc.
• English and phraseology – unnecessary words
have been removed and a more consistent use of words and phrases
makes the Laws more readable, helps translation and reduces
confusion and misunderstandings. Contradictions and unnecessary
repetitions have been removed. The Laws are now ‘gender
neutral’, reflecting the importance of women in football today.
• Updated content – some changes bring the Laws
up to date with modern football e.g. the increased number of
substitutes.
Two important ‘new’ sections have been introduced:
• Law changes explained – this section gives
the ‘old’ text, the ‘new’ text and an explanation for each Law
change.
• Glossary – this is a list of definitions of
important words/phrases which are sometimes misunderstood and/or
difficult to translate.
The IFAB believes that this revision makes the Laws of the Game
more accessible and more easily understood by everyone involved
or interested in football. This should lead to increased
consistency of understanding, interpretation and application so
there are fewer disputes and controversies resulting from
conflicting interpretations.
The IFAB acknowledges with grateful thanks the work on this
revision by the Technical Subcommittee:
• David Elleray (Project lead, The IFAB)
• Neale Barry (The FA)
• Jean-Paul Brigger (FIFA)
• Massimo Busacca (FIFA)
• William Campbell (Irish FA)
• Ray Ellingham (FA of Wales)
• John Fleming (Scottish FA)
• Fernando Tresaco Gracia (FIFA) |
Notes of the Laws of the Game
Modifications
Subject to the agreement of the national football association
concerned and provided the principles of these Laws are
maintained, the Laws may be modified in their application for
matches for players of under 16 years of age, for women
footballers, for veteran footballers (over 35 years of age) and
for
players with disabilities, in any or all of the following ways:
• size of the field of play
• size, weight and material of the ball
• width between the goalposts and height of the crossbar from
the ground
• duration of the periods of play
• substitutions
Further modifications are only allowed with the consent of The
IFAB.
Official languages
The IFAB publishes the Laws of the Game in English, French,
German and Spanish. If there is any divergence in the
wording, the English text is authoritative.
Key
The main Law changes are underlined and highlighted in the
margin. |
Un-official
Information
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| Formations
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