In response to various questions, the following are the responses from the National Referee Program Office:

Player Deliberately Leaves Field

Question:
A defender attempted to play a forward offside by deliberately stepping off the field of play (into his own goal). The referee & assistant referee, realizing what he was up to, allowed play to continue, the forward then shoots at goal, beating the goal keeper heading straight into the goal. The defender now runs back on field, clearing the ball. What punishment if any, and if so how would you restart play?

Answer:
The defender must be cautioned for unsporting behavior for leaving the field in his attempt to put the opponent in an offside position, but in this case the referee should allow play to continue and reserve the caution for the next stoppage. As soon as the defender returns to the field and plays the ball, play must be stopped and the caution and yellow card must then be administered. Restart with an indirect free kick on the spot on the goal area line (parallel to the goal line) nearest to the place where the defender played the ball upon returning to the field.

Referee Uniform

Question:
I recently had a knee injury, and currently wear a rubberized knee brace for support and prevention. The brace is black, soft, with velcro closure. What are the rules regarding referees wearing such devices?

Answer:
Knee braces are not part of the authorized referee uniform. Under normal circumstances, it is not acceptable for a game official to wear a knee brace, and it would never be seen on a high-level regional, national or international competition. However, there may be rare circumstances in local competitions where knee protection might sensibly be tolerated for the good of the game.

Purpose of the Goal Area

Question:
The significance of the Penalty Area with respect to the goalkeeper, direct free kick fouls, and ball-in-play is generally well understood. However, the significance of the Goal Area is less well understood. Would you please explain the special significance of the Goal Area and how that may affect play?

Answer:
The goal area is used to define the location for the taking of goal kicks. It also serves as a location for restarts for free kicks awarded to the defending team inside its own goal area, which may be taken from any point in the goal area. The line parallel to the goal line and defining the goal area (the "six-yard line") is used as the location for indirect free kicks to the attacking team for infringements occurring inside the goal area or for dropped balls for stoppages inside the goal area after temporary stoppages. In both the latter cases the restart is taken from the point on the line nearest to where the ball was located when play was stopped.

Prior to the Law changes of 1997, the goal area was also used to define a region in which the goalkeeper could be charged fairly while holding the ball, but now referees must observe carefully any charge against the goalkeeper, regardless of the circumstances, location of the action, or presence of the ball, and penalize the action only if it is committed carelessly, recklessly, or with excessive force (direct free kick) or is performed in a dangerous manner (indirect free kick).