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Soccer rules committee adopts new advantage rule for 1996

Change reflects new rule that FIFA implemented at earlier meeting in March

The NCAA Men's and Women's Soccer Rules Committee adopted new rules language during a May 14 telephone conference that will allow referees who invoke the advantage rule and choose to continue play to change their mind if the advantage does not develop.

The new advantage rule was first adopted by FIFA, soccer's international governing body, during its annual meeting in March.

"We felt that FIFA had implemented a significant change," said Chris Petrucelli, women's soccer coach at the University of Notre Dame and chair of the Men's and Women's Soccer Rules Committee.

"The committee wanted to align the advantage rule as closely as possible with FIFA so that referees who call both international and collegiate games would operate under a uniform rule."

Specifically, language has been added to Rule 3-3-c in the 1996 NCAA Men's and Women's Soccer Rules, which will be available in June.

The rule now states: "The referee's power of penalizing shall extend to offenses committed when play has been suspended or when the ball is out of play. The referee shall, however, refrain from penalizing in cases where he or she is satisfied that by doing so an advantage would be given to the offending team.

"When the referee observes a foul that is not to be penalized, the referee shall call out the words 'play on' and signal accordingly to indicate that the foul has been acknowledged.

"However, if the advantage does not materialize, the referee may then blow the whistle and award a direct free kick to the nonoffending team."

The new rule will be in effect for the 1996 playing season.

In other action during the committee's telephone conference, the committee voted to change all references to linesman or linesmen in the rules book to assistant referee(s).