Commonly Misunderstood Referee Calls:
There are some soccer rules that are not well understood, especially if you're new to soccer.  The following are explanations for the most commonly misunderstood rules. In any case Law 5 Paragraph 2 states, "Decisions will be made to the best of the referee’s ability according to the Laws of the Game and the ‘spirit of the game’ and will be based on the opinion of the referee, who has the discretion to take appropriate action within the framework of the Laws of the Game."

For more information: IFAB Laws of the Game 

HANDBALL (Law 12 - Fouls and Misconduct)
HANDBALL is when, in the referee's judgement, a player uses his/her arms deliberately intending to control the ball or has placed his/her arms up where contact with the ball is likely.  The key word is deliberate.
•'Hand' includes all of the arm from the fingers to just below the armpit.  
•Does not apply to goalkeeper in own penalty area.
•Instinctive, self-protection reactions are not penalized in younger players.  
•Accidental contact - ball striking hand or arm so long as the arm is not in an out reached position - is not an offense, even if a benefit is realized.  

The Referee is the sole judge of whether or not a player deliberately handles the ball.

A DFK (Direct Free Kick) is awarded when a handball foul is committed. 


OFFSIDE (Law 11): Remember - it's 'Offside' not 'Offsides'.
This is a hard to understand rule as it involves multiple parts.  A player is offside when:
1.  They are past the second-to-last defender (goalie could be considered the last defender) and;
2.  The attacker is in the opposing half or, in younger ages the build out line (the attacker with ball possession does not need to be in the opponents half) and;
3.  The player is involved in active play.
4.  The call is made based on the players position at the moment the ball was kicked from a teammate or touched by a teammate (i.e. deflection)

OFFSIDE POSITION and OFFSIDE are not the same.  It is not against the rules to be in an offside position.  It is against the rules to be offside.

OFFSIDE POSITION - A player is in an offside position if:
•the player is in the opponents' half of the field and;
•the player is closer to the opponents' goal line than both the ball and the second last opponent.

A player is not in an offside position if the player is:
•in his or her own half of the field of play, or
•even with or behind the ball, or
•even with the second-to-last opponent, or the last two opponents.

OFFSIDE - With certain exceptions, a player in an offside position becomes offside if, at the moment the ball touches or is played by a teammate, the player, in the opinion of the referee, is involved in active play by:
•interfering with play, or
•interfering with an opponent, or
•gaining an advantage by being in an offside position

EXCEPTIONS - Although in an offside position, a player is not offside if the player receives the ball directly from a:
•goal kick, or
•throw-in, or
•corner kick

The position of the player at the moment the ball is played by a teammate determines whether the player may be called offside.  For example, a player positioned onside at the moment the ball is played by a teammate does not become offside by running to an offside position while the ball is in flight.

The Referee may or may not declare a violation of the Offside Law depending upon his/her judgement of the circumstances.


BALL OUT of PLAY (Law 9):
The ball is out of play when: 
•it has wholly passed over the goal line or touchline on the ground or in the air or; 
•play has been stopped by the referee.  

The ball is in play at all other times, including when it rebounds off a match official, goalpost, crossbar or corner flag post and remains in the field of play.

It is the position of the ball, and not that of the player, which determines when the ball is out of play.  This concept is somewhat foreign since the reverse is true in other popular sports such as football and basketball.  It is also sometimes difficult to resist the temptation to think that ball is out of play when it touches a goal line or touch line but we need to remember that the entire ball must cross the line before it is out.  

The ball is out of bounds on the person it touches last, not the last person to kick it. 
The throw in goes to the opposing team.


SHOULDER TACKLE (Charging):
Soccer is a contact sport and sometime physical contact is specifically allowed.  A shoulder tackle is where two opposing players are running near a playable ball and one uses shoulder-to-shoulder contact to push his opponent off the ball.  This is a non-reckless "fair charge" and perfectly legal.


ADVANTAGE RULE:
The advantage rule is when the referee allows play to go on despite a minor foul, when it's to the advantage of the team in possession.  This is sometimes confused with the referee missing a foul.  

An example would be where a defender pushes an attacking player who then falls, but the attacking team keeps the ball and is in position to score.  Calling the foul would actually hurt the attacking team.


INDIRECT KICK:
In a game, a foul is called and players set up for a free kick.  The attacking team shoots and the ball goes directly into the net.  The referee indicates "No Goal" and the defending team gets the ball.  What happened?

An indirect free kick is given generally for non-reckless fouls or rule violations.  The free kick is awarded but in this case must touch another player before a goal can be scored.


SLIDE TACKLE:
A slide tackle is a perfectly legal play in 10U and up divisions (PORT HURON REGION 161 SLIDE TACKLING IS ONLY PERMITTED AT 12U or ABOVE).  A foul can be called when the play is dangerous, like when the defender makes contact with the opponent before he/she makes contact with the ball, or make the tackle 'cleats up'.

Region 161 does not allow slide tackling in 5U, 6U or 8U because players in these younger age groups lack the skills to consistently do it the correct way, and have increased risk of injury.