Corner Kick - Using Corner Kicks As A Tie-breaker

Using Corner Kicks As A Tie-breaker

The number of corner kicks awarded to each team has been suggested as an alternative method of tie-breaking to the current penalty shootout method. The theory behind this suggestion is that the team which during the course of play has been awarded the most corner kicks is likely to have dominated play, forcing their opponents to make more high-risk tackles and their goalkeeper to make more saves in which he was not able to gain possession of the ball but rather merely deflect it across the line outside of the goal or over the crossbar. The use of corner-kick counts as a tie-breaker has not been approved by the International Football Association Board, and as such is not used in any high-level competition. Furthermore, this method should never be used at any level of eleven-a-side football due to Law 10 (The Method of Scoring); only the methods stated there are allowed to determine the result of a game.

A major critique in the suggestion to use corner kicks as a tie-breaker is the influence it could have on the game. In matches that are tied with time running out, players may be more likely to focus on winning as many corner kicks as possible and not worry about trying to actually score a goal that would win them the game. This is because it is much easier to get a corner kick than it is to score a goal. Having corner kicks as tie breakers could lead to some ridiculous situations where the last several minutes of a game are entirely about trying to get corner kicks with little to no attention paid on attacking the goal, which should be the main objective.

Some scoreboards for high school and college venues in the United States have statistics for fouls, shots on goal, and corner kicks earned. On television such statistics are shown periodically during play for international and other major televised matches.