The offside rule in soccer can be confusing, especially with the use of Video Assisted Referee (VAR) technology. To clarify, a player is considered offside if they are in the defending half of the field and have any part of their head, body, or feet beyond the backmost opposing player. However, hands and arms are allowed to be across the offside line, as long as the armpit is not across the line.

How Offside Works

A player can be in an offside position without it being a foul, but if they become an active player by touching the ball or interfering with the defending player, it becomes a foul. Additionally, a player can receive a pass that would normally be considered offside if the ball came to them directly from a throw-in, free kick, or corner kick.

The VAR system uses cameras and sensors to provide more accurate positional information, allowing referees to make more informed decisions. If the referee finds that a player was offside, the defending team will be awarded an indirect free kick to restart play.

VAR and Offside

VAR has more power when it comes to offside plays, and referees in charge of running VAR may notify the head referee on the field if they notice a goal was scored or disallowed due to a missed offside call or an incorrectly called offside. While VAR technology aims to ensure accurate offside calls, there are still occasions where the call may be uncertain due to limited angles or narrow margins.

Original reporting: All Sports Feed (HLL/CB) — read the source article.