About
Questions posed to this website are answered by Jim Allen, National Instructor Staff and retired National Assessor.
Jim will seek assistance from other knowledgeable people if necessary.
If you have a question about the Laws of the Game, simply go to the Ask A Question page and fill in the form. All questions, published or not, will be answered privately. Some questions and answers will be posted on this page. If you wish more personal service, please direct your question to your State Director of Referee Instruction in writing (names and mailing addresses supplied upon request).
Answers posted here apply only to games played under the aegis of the United States Soccer Federation. Officials from other countries should not quote these answers as “proof” to authorities in their own national associations of “facts” about the Laws of the Game or referee procedures and mechanics. Neither will we post answers to questions involving high school rules or some procedural questions involving NCAA rules, as neither organization fully follows the Laws of the Game.
The Professional Soccer Referees Association (PSRA) has kindly offered to endorse the items we publish here. The accuracy of the responses to your questions will remain as it has been in the past, based on the Laws of the Game and the traditional and practical application of them.
