Penalty kick: The referee points to the penalty spot with one arm.Indirect free kick: The referee raises one arm straight up and keeps it there until the ball is kicked.Direct free kick: The referee points with one arm in the direction of the opposing team’s goal.Some of the most common hand signals include: The referee uses hand signals to indicate various decisions during the game. The AR raises the flag straight up to signal that the ball has gone out of bounds and waves the flag back and forth to indicate a foul or an offside infraction. The assistant referee (AR) uses a flag to signal to the referee when the ball has gone out of bounds, when a player is offside, or when there has been a foul. End of Regulation: The ref will blow their whistle three times (the last one is usually longer) to signal the end of regulation.Half-time: The referee will blow their whistle twice to indicate the end of the half.This is usually given for a serious foul committed by a defending player inside their own penalty area. Penalty kick: The referee blows the whistle to indicate that a penalty kick has been awarded to a team.Prior to the whistle, the AR typically holds the flag out where the offside occurred. This happens when an attacking player is in an offside position when the ball is played to them. Offside: The referee blows the whistle to signal that an offside offense has occurred.This can be for a variety of reasons, such as dangerous play, tripping, pushing, or handball. Foul: The referee blows the whistle to indicate that a foul has been committed.Start of play: The referee blows the whistle to signal the beginning of the match, the start of each half, and after each goal.It is used to start and stop play, signal fouls, and indicate the end of a half or the game. The whistle is the most basic and important tool for a soccer referee. Let’s explore the most common soccer referee signals and the meaning behind them. While some of the signals used by referees are straightforward, others may be more complex or less common. These could be for offsides, out-of-bounds, goal kicks, etc. These signals are used to indicate various decisions made by the referee during the game. Whatever the case may be, having a good understanding of each signal will help you see the game better. Depending on who you are rooting for, you’ll often hear “yes!” or “terrible call”.
Getting to know the signals is important so you can understand them quickly and continue playing.įor referees, hand signals are used to communicate with players, coaches, and spectators.Each hand signal represents different calls (we’ve listed them below).They usually include signals using a flag, hand, or whistle. There are various referee signals from the head referee and the assistant referees.Simply understanding them will help keep the flow of the game going without the need to stop and explain every situation. Understanding the basic soccer referee signals in a game is important for coaches, players, parents, and fans.