Are you new to this sport? That’s okay! We all have to start somewhere, right? To get the hang of how this sport is played, it’s important to know all the basics.
Soccer, also known as football in other countries, is one of the world’s most popular sports. The number of players on a soccer team is 11. There should be 10 outfield players and 1 goalkeeper. Each team is allowed to have three substitutes on the bench.
Now let’s move on to more interesting parts. In this article, we have listed all the things you need to know about soccer.
#1: The Laws of the Game
While some sports change their rules almost every season, soccer, on the other hand, has remained conservative. The rules of soccer are called The Laws of the Game, which can only be changed by the International Football Association Board or IFAB.
This board has eight members—four of them come from FIFA, and the other four are representatives from England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. These four countries have contributed to the sport’s development.
Currently, there are 17 laws of soccer that the IFAB acknowledges as the standard rules for any professional matches.
If you ask which sport has the most rules, the answer is soccer. If having the most rules was a competition among sports, soccer wins by a landslide. This is because FIFA has recently released a rule book with 140 pages!
#2: Aim of soccer
The objective of this game is to make a goal by moving the soccer ball up the pitch over the goal line and finally into the goal net. Players must also defend the goal from their opponents and must keep them from scoring.
#3: The pitch
We are actually talking about the soccer field here. The rectangular field where the game is played is called a pitch. For international games, the size of the pitch should be somewhere between 110-120 yards long and between 70-80 yards wide. The goal at both ends of the pitch should be 8 yards wide by 8 feet high.
#4: The 18-yard box
By the Laws of the Game, only one player per team is allowed to touch and use the ball with their hands, and that is the team’s goalkeeper. But, here’s the catch: a goalkeeper can use their hands only if they’re in the penalty area. Of course, if the goalkeeper moves away from the penalty area, then the rules for the outfield players should also be applied to them.
A penalty kick is given against the team who committed an offense or foul play within twelve yards of the goal line or the penalty area. The awarded team is allowed to take one shot at the goal that is being defended only by their opponent’s goalkeeper.
#5: Direct and indirect free kicks
Direct free-kick is awarded to the fouled team if a player has committed these offenses: tripping or pushing an opponent and deliberately handling the ball. The fouled team can then take the shot immediately, provided that the referee signals for the game to continue. The shot should be taken from the spot where the foul or offense has been committed.
Other offenses such as playing in a dangerous manner, using offensive and insulting words or actions, and obstructing or hindering the advancing of an opponent with no contact being made are punishable by an indirect free-kick. This means that another player from the attacking team has to pass the ball to the player who takes the shot.
#6: Yellow vs. red card
On the field, there’s only one referee who’s given the honor of blowing the whistle and flashing cards. In the game of soccer, punishment is given through the raising of a yellow or red card by the referee.
How these cards came about in the world of soccer traces back to 1966 when a referee named Ken Aston thought that the player did not realize he was being warned because of the language barrier. He then realized that regardless of language, everyone can understand what yellow and red meant in a set of traffic lights.
So, Ken Aston pitched the idea of using yellow and red cards to the soccer league, and his idea was then introduced to the 1970 World Cup in Mexico and has since been used and still continues to be part of the game.
What does it mean when a player gets a yellow card?
A yellow card means “booking,” so when a player is booked, they are shown with a yellow card for their actions or behavior during the game, such as delaying the restart of the play by walking slowly to the ball that goes outside the lines; and unsporting behavior like having no respect for others and faking an injury.
Getting two yellow cards is equivalent to red cards, and a player is sent off the pitch immediately.
What does a red card mean?
This card means “sending off” and is used by a referee to send the player off from the match when they get two yellow cards. This also means the player can no longer continue playing throughout the match, and the team will remain shorthanded.
Conclusion
Soccer is played by two teams, each having 11 players, including a goalkeeper. In most countries, soccer is called football. But whether you call them soccer or football, the same rules and regulations apply.