Free kick (association football)
method of restarting play in association football
A free kick is a method of restarting play in association football. It is awarded after an infringement of the laws by the opposing team.
Direct and indirect free kicks
Free kicks may be either direct or indirect, distinguished as follows:
An attacking goal may be scored directly from a direct free kick, but not from an indirect free kick (i.e., the ball must touch another player first).
Direct free kicks are awarded for more serious offences (handball and most types of foul play – see below for a complete list), while indirect free kicks are awarded for less serious offences.
A direct free kick cannot be awarded in the offending team's penalty area: if a team in its own penalty area commits an offence normally punished by a direct free kick, a penalty kick is awarded instead. An indirect free kick may be awarded for an offence committed anywhere.
Procedure
Signal
The referee signals an indirect free kick by raising the arm vertically above the head; a direct free kick is signalled by extending the arm horizontally. A mnemonic is that the referee's raised arm resembles the letter "I", for "indirect".
Location
The free kick is taken from the place where the infringement occurred, with the following exceptions:
if the offence was within the kicking team's own goal area, the free kick may be taken from anywhere within the goal area.
if an indirect free kick is awarded for an offence within the offending team's own goal area, the kick is taken from the nearest point on the goal area line which runs parallel to the goal line.
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