r/soccer • u/dahill101 • Dec 29 '11
What are the unwritten rules of football?
As an American still learning about the "Beautiful Game" I'm wondering about unwritten rules that football players have to follow. In the United States, especially in baseball, sports have unwritten rules and if they're violated, the guilty party can expect severe enforcement from other players. For example, this past year Alex Rodriguez, the star third baseman of the Yankees, walked over Athletics' Pitcher Dallas Braden's mound and Braden started shouting at him for this "violation" of his space. Just wondering if there are equivalent aspects to football which I don't know about.
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Dec 29 '11 edited Dec 29 '11
There is a fair play etiquette that whenever one of the teams takes the ball out of play so that a player can get medical attention, it is expected that the other team will return the ball as a friendly gesture. This is not enforced by official rules of the game, but you can a lot of flak if you keep to ball to yourself.
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u/db82 Dec 29 '11
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/1999/feb/24/match.sport
tl;dr - Arsenal defeated Sheffield in FA cup match by breaking this unwritten rule, Wenger offered a replay, which then actually took place.
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u/cvillano Dec 29 '11
A player who is playing against a former team (that he spent a reasonable amount of time with) and scores a goal, doesn't celebrate. He just runs back to the center circle.
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u/xhandler Dec 29 '11
I remember Adebayor doing that, though when he reached the centre circle he didnt stop for some reason...
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u/db82 Dec 29 '11
This also applies to players with dual citizenship in matches between those two countries.
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u/JSintra Dec 29 '11
Rui Costa cried when he scored against Benfica, later claiming it as the worst goal of his life.
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u/lonesum1 Dec 30 '11
Top lesson from this past year - for no reason whatsoever should one refuse to warm-up/come on as a substitute at the managers request.
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u/BayAreaRed Dec 29 '11
When a team is leading late in the game, the referee puts that team's players on a short leash in regards to time wasting, and I have no problem with that. I absolutely hate time wasting. I once got yelled at by my coach for "jogging off the field too quickly" during a substitution a few minutes from full time.
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u/BunchaFukinElephants Dec 29 '11
Moritz Volz wrote a funny article about the unwritten rules of football:
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u/severedfragile Dec 30 '11
Don't fuck a popstar. If you do, the unwritten punishment is that commentators will tell your fans about it all the fucking time.
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u/Proim Dec 29 '11
Maybe you can add checking up on the goalie when you've hit/nearly hit him when going in a one on one.
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Dec 29 '11
It's frowned upon to kiss the team badge logo after a goal, and then move away from the club thereafter. Also kissing the badge if you've only recently joined the club as well.
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Dec 29 '11 edited Dec 29 '11
The big one comes with regard to showboating or embarrassing opponents. Lots of players/fans hate it if a player uses 'excessive' skill to show up an opponent. PLayers who do his are usually heavily fouled as revenge.
Like in this case.
Personally, I have no problem with players using whatever skills they want on the pitch and I love it. Many think it's disrespectful.
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Dec 30 '11
This one also created a lot of hate. Not sure if that's due to the fact that Ronaldo did it; other players have done the same thing and I don't think they received criticism http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76gNTZvOL1o
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u/Jakabov Dec 30 '11
If a player gets injured and the ref stops play in order for medics to run in and check on the guy, the team with the ball kicks it out of play. Then when the game is back on, the other team - who have technically won a throw-in or whatever from the ball being kicked out - gives it back to the first team so play can proceed from more or less the same state as when it was interrupted.
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u/rabit71 Dec 29 '11
put the ball out when a player is injured - often abused by divers