14 Football rules you didn't know existed

Are you a football fan? There are many rules that you didn't know existed. There are still many rules FIFA is trying to implement in coming future. Find out the missing rules you were unknown about and get amazed. You can also check yourself by finding out how many of the rules you knew before this post. 

A squad must have at least 7 players on the field.

For a match to begin or continue, a team must have a minimum of seven players on the field. This means that a team's on-field players can only receive four red cards in a single match. A fifth one would bring the action to an end because one team would not have the required number of players on the field to continue.

During a penalty shoot-out, there are an equal number of players.

In penalty shootouts, both teams must have an equal number of players available to take the penalties. If a match between Team A and Team B concludes in a draw and goes to penalties, and one of Team A's players has already been sent off during the match, only 10 players from Team B will be available for the shoot-out.

You cannot be offside in your own half.

When a player gets the ball in his own half and is in an offside position at the time the pass is completed, it signifies that the team in his own half did not keep one of its players waiting near the opponent goal. So, even if the player receiving the ball is closer to the goal than the ball and second-last defender, not calling offside would not contradict the objective of the offside rule.

A goal is not awarded if the ball is stopped by an outside item.

If the ball is traveling towards the goal and no player can stop it, but an external item, such as a dog, streakers, other balls, or bottles, intervenes and prevents the goal, no goal can be awarded, no matter how near the ball is to the goal.

Any entrance into the field must be prevented by the referee.

As a result, it is usually up to him to attack any "streaker" who decides to cross the field undressed during a peak match. However, it is mostly security personnel who are chasing down pitch invaders.

The keeper has only 6 seconds to keep the ball.

According to FIFA rules, a goalkeeper can only keep possession of the ball for six seconds. So, once they've gathered it  whether through a shot, a cross, or any other method  they must release the ball in some fashion after six seconds to demonstrate that he isn't retaining it.

If the ball goes flat on its route to the net, there will be no goal. 

Although this is a highly rare event, it is not impossible to see. The ball must be fully pumped, or in other words, in perfect condition, according to FIFA standards, for a goal to count. 

Even if the goal is disallowed, you will still be carded for unauthorized celebration. 

After scoring a key goal, we've seen players' emotions get the best of them, which usually leads in an unlawful celebration such as taking off one's shirt or jumping into the crowd. Since the introduction of VAR, there is a considerable likelihood that a goal will be disallowed, and if this happens, the player will still be booked because the impact is the same as if the goal is awarded. 

You may be shown a red card before the game begins. 

Few people are aware that players can be banished to the showers even before the game begins if they break the rules. Players can be sent out before the game for indiscipline, therefore red cards aren't just for during the game. This is most typically the result of misconduct prior to the game, as was the case in 2017 with Patrice Evra, who was sent off before a game for kicking a supporter in frustration.

In penalty scenarios, goalkeepers are not permitted to disturb the crossbar.

This is quite straightforward, but it is still rare since in a penalty situation, it is prohibited for the goalkeeper to kick or swing at the goalposts. Why? Because the rulebooks say that the goalpost must be totally stationary before a penalty is taken. In other words, if the keeper is observed smacking the post to try to intimidate the penalty taker, the referee shall not dismiss the penalty. 

An own goal cannot be scored via a free-kick or a throw-in.

It is not an own goal if your player passes a free-kick or throw-in back to the keeper and the ball ends up in the goal. Instead, the opposing side is given a corner.

It doesn't happen frequently, but Aston Villa's Mellberg once threw the ball into his own net during a Midlands rivalry. It wouldn't have counted if Enckelman hadn't touched the ball before it went in, but he was judged to have mishit it off his laces.

Prior to penalties, a goalkeeper can be replaced.

Remember when Louis Van Gaal made headlines in 2014 by switching goalkeepers in the last minutes of a World Cup match? He predicted the penalty shootout would be won by the substitute goalkeeper. According to the rules of the game, he could have substituted his goalkeeper after the final whistle but before the penalty kicks. However, the subbed goalie must be injured in order for this rule to apply.

On a penalty kick, we can make a critical pass.

We can make a pass penalty like Messi and Suarez did against Celta Vigo in 2016, or we can muck it up as Pires and Henry did with Arsenal in 2005.

Goalkeepers are allowed to wear tracksuit bottoms, but not the rest of the team.

Rene Higuita, the former goalie of the Columbian national team, widely known as El Loco, must be mentioned when it comes to goalkeepers wearing tracksuit pants. He's currently most known for two things: his tracksuit bottom and a spectacular, audacious scorpion kick save against England in a friendly match. And he did it while wearing a pair of track pants!

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