General Duties
All decisions by the assistant referee are only advisory to the referee; assistants do not actually make binding decisions. During the game one assistant referee oversees one touch-line and one end of the field utilising the diagonal system of control. The more senior of the two assistants will normally occupy the side of the field containing the technical areas, in order to help oversee substitutions. An assistant referee indicates matters to the referee (usually initially by raising his flag, but nowadays also by wireless communication devices, which can include "buzzer flags" and in the most senior games, additionally a microphone and headset link, which the referee may then act upon.)
Assistant referees were formerly called linesmen. In 1996, the name was changed, primarily to better reflect the modern role of these officials, and secondarily to become non-gender specific. They are also sometimes incorrectly referred to as "referee's assistants". However the term "linesman" is still commonly used.
Law 6 of the Laws of the Game outlines the general duties of the assistant referees, however their duties in a given game remain subject to the decision of the referee. These duties usually include indicating:
- When the whole ball has passed outside the field of play.
- Which side is entitled to return the ball into the field of play.
- When a player may be penalised for an offside offence.
- To assist the fourth official (if present) in notifying the center referee that a substitution is being requested.
- When offences or other infringements of the Laws of the Game have been committed of which the referee does not have an adequate view.
An assistant referee may also be called upon by the referee to provide an opinion regarding matters which the referee requires clarification on. Occasionally the assistant referee will assist in player management during free kicks, as well as provide visual assistance during penalty kicks. The assistant referees also usually assist the referee with preparatory and administrative functions.
Due to the nature of association football's offside rule, the assistants are generally better placed to assess whether a player is in an offside position than the referee. Assistants are generally expected to position themselves such that they are best able to make such judgements.
Read more about this topic: Assistant Referee (association Football)
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