Home > Coaches > Rules > Assistant Referee Signals
Assistant Referee Signals
May 1, 2009 | Rules | Add a comment
The assistant referee’s flag must always be visible to the referee, unfurled and still whilst running. When making a signal, the assistant referee must stop running, face the field of play, make eye contact with the referee and raise the flag with deliberate (not hasty or exaggerated) motions. The flag should be like an extension of the arm.
The assistant referees must raise the flag using the hand that will also be used for the next signal in a sequence. If circumstances change and the other hand must be used for the next signal, the assistant referee should move his flag to the opposite hand below the waist.
 |
Throw-In
When the ball crosses the touch line near to the assistant referee’s position, the assistant referee must make a direct signal to indicate the direction of the throw-in. When the ball crosses the touch line far from the assistant referee’s position and the throw-in decision is an obvious one, the assistant referee must also make a direct signal to indicate the direction of the throw-in. When the ball crosses the touch line far from the assistant referee’s position but the ball appears still to be in play or if the assistant referee is in any doubt, the assistant referee must raise his flag to inform the referee that the ball is out of play, make eye contact with the referee and follow the referee’s signal. |
 |
Goal Kick
When the ball crosses the goal line near to the assistant referee’s position, the assistant referee must make a direct signal with his/her right hand (better line of vision) to indicate a goal kick. When the ball crosses the goal line near to the assistant referee’s position but the ball appears still to be in play, the assistant referee must first raise his/her flag to inform the referee that the ball is out of play, then indicate it is a goal kick. When the ball crosses the goal line far from the assistant referee’s position, the assistant referee must raise his/her flag to inform the referee that the ball is out of play, make eye contact and follow the referee’s decision. The assistant referee may also make a direct signal if the decision is an obvious one. |
 |
Corner Kick
When the ball crosses the goal line near to the assistant referee’s position, the assistant referee must make a direct signal with his right hand (better line of vision) to indicate a corner kick. When the ball crosses the goal line near to the assistant referee’s position but the ball appears still to be in play, the assistant referee must first raise his/her flag to inform the referee that the ball is out of play, then indicate it is a corner kick. When the ball crosses the goal line far from the assistant referee’s position, the assistant referee must raise his/her flag to inform the referee that the ball is out of play, make eye contact and follow the referee’s decision. The assistant referee may also make a direct signal if the decision is an obvious one. |
 |
Offside
The first action the assistant referee makes after an offside decision is to raise his/her flag. He/She then uses his/her flag to indicate the area of the pitch in which the offence occurred. If the flag is not immediately seen by the referee, the assistant referee must keep signalling until it has been acknowledged or the ball is clearly in the control of the defending team. The flag must be raised using the right hand, giving the assistant referee a better line of vision. |
 |
Substitution
When dealing with substitutions, the assistant referee must first be informed by the fourth official. The assistant referee must then signal to the referee at the next stoppage in the match. The assistant referee does not need to move to the halfway line as the fourth official carries out the substitution procedure. If there is no fourth official, the assistant referee must assist with substitution procedures. In this case, the referee must wait until the assistant referee is back in position before restarting play. |
 |
Fouls
The assistant referee must raise his/her flag when a foul or misconduct is committed in his/her immediate vicinity or out of the referee’s vision. In all other situations, he/she must wait and offer his/her opinion if it is required. If this is the case, the assistant referee must report what he/she has seen and heard and which players are involved to the referee. Before signalling for an offence, the assistant referee must determine that:
When a foul or misconduct is committed, the assistant referee must:
The assistant referee must use the “wait and see technique” in order to allow play to continue and not raise his/her flag when the team against which an offence has been committed will benefit from the advantage. In this case, it is very important for the assistant referee to make eye contact with the referee. |
NOTE: Information found in this article was cited from the official “Laws of the Game” which can be found on FIFA.com.
Similar Articles
12 Commentators
when part of the ball crosses the touch line what is the referee’s decision supposed to be?
On July 6, 2010 Victor Isaac said
The rule is that the whole ball needs to cross the touch line for it to be considered out of play. Read my article on “When is the ball is out of play?” for more details.
On July 6, 2010 Joshua said
When only part of the ball crosses the touch line, the ball is still “on the field” and play continues normally. The referee or A/R does nothing.
If players stop, the referee can signal “play on”, and of course if a player thought it was out and picks it up, then it is a handball.On September 29, 2010 Edith said
for the goal kick and corner kick do all u do is make the hand signals and point to it or do u run over and point to it by there
On April 22, 2011 Breezy said
Assistant referees should raise the flag when the ball is out of bounds and then point toward the goal if it is a goal kick or to the corner flag if it is a corner kick.
On April 22, 2011 Joshua said
During a recent game the ball did not fully cross the line which the Ref did not see. He chose to ask his Linesman who said yes it was a goal via the head piece comms device. He did not seem to make any flag signal. What is the flag signal for a goal?
On May 1, 2011 Tim said
Tim, usually the linesman runs to the center of the field when a goal is scored.
On May 2, 2011 Joshua said
josh, this might seem like a very basic question but does the assistant referee work on half the field of the whole field?
On July 2, 2011 sophie said
Hi Sophie, the assistant referees each take half the field, with the main referee responsible for running the whole field.
On July 14, 2011 Joshua said
What do you do when you see a foul? Do you follow the play or do you stay where the offence was commited?
On July 16, 2011 Alec said
Alec:
If you’re the referee you’ll run (or walk hastily) to the spot where the free kick has been committed and will point at the spot and the direction of where the ball should be played. Though if it is a smaller freekick near the center, most players would like to take it quickly and therefore there is no need to go to the spot.. Hope that was understandable lol
On August 30, 2011 Thomas from Denmark :D said
oh never mind the post above.. sorry i misunderstood you.. D:
On August 30, 2011 Thomas from Denmark :D said
