49 Fun Facts About Sports Rules

In soccer, a player is offside if they are nearer the opponents' goal line than the ball and whom?

Offside means being nearer the goal line than both the ball and the second-last opponent, in the opponents' half; the last opponent is usually, but not always, the goalkeeper.

Which number Law of the Game covers offside in soccer?

Offside is Law 11 of the 17 Laws of the Game; Law 12, the next one, covers fouls and misconduct including handball.

Yellow and red cards were used for the first time at which World Cup?

Cards debuted at the 1970 World Cup in Mexico, a neutral signal devised after language confusion at the 1966 tournament, when players did not realise they had been booked.

How wide is a regulation soccer goal between the posts?

A soccer goal is 8 yards (7.32 m) wide between the posts and 8 feet (2.44 m) high; the 8-yard width dates back to the FA's original 1863 rules.

The golden goal was formally introduced in 1993 and stopped applying to most FIFA matches in which year?

IFAB scrapped the golden goal in 2004, effective after that summer's European Championship, returning to full extra time; the silver goal had briefly supplemented it from 2002.

The IFAB wrote VAR into the Laws of the Game in March of which year, ahead of a World Cup debut?

The IFAB approved VAR at its March 2018 annual meeting, and it debuted at the 2018 World Cup in Russia after trials in Serie A, the Bundesliga and elsewhere.

Hawk-Eye ball tracking was first used on television in 2001 to analyse what kind of decision?

Hawk-Eye debuted on Channel 4's cricket coverage in 2001 to show leg before wicket decisions; engineer Paul Hawkins developed it, and tennis adopted it for line calls in 2006.

The NBA has used a 24-second shot clock since which year?

The 24-second clock arrived for the 1954-55 season, after the league's owners adopted it in 1954 to end stalling; scoring jumped by more than a dozen points per game the next season.

Which league popularised the three-point line, introducing it in its first season in 1967-68?

The ABA played with the line from its first season, 1967-68, a decade before the NBA adopted it in 1979; the short-lived ABL had tried it in 1961.

Traveling is called when a player takes more than how many steps without dribbling?

The NCAA and high school rules do not allow the two-step gather that professional leagues permit.

How far is the basketball free-throw line from the plane of the backboard?

The free-throw line is 15 feet from the plane of the backboard, which puts it 13 feet 9 inches from the centre of the basket; FIBA's 5.80 m from the baseline works out nearly the same.

Goaltending in basketball is a violation involving interference with the ball when it is where?

Goaltending is touching a shot on its way to the basket while it is above the rim and on a downward path; the NBA also counts a touch of a ball above the rim after it has hit the backboard.

In which year did the NFL adopt the two-point conversion?

The NFL added the conversion option in 1994, nearly a quarter-century after absorbing the AFL, which had used it throughout its 1960–69 existence.

The NFL abolished the tuck rule in 2013 by what vote of its teams?

Owners voted 29-1 in March 2013 to scrap the tuck rule, with Pittsburgh opposed and New England and Washington abstaining; the rule had famously overturned Charles Woodson's strip of Tom Brady in January 2002.

How does a football returner signal a fair catch?

Under NFL and high school rules the team can then attempt a rarely seen fair catch kick from the spot.

The infield fly rule requires fewer than two outs and a force play at which base?

A force play must exist at third, meaning runners on first and second or bases loaded, with no more than one out; the batter is out whether or not the ball is caught.

In baseball, what is the name for a pitcher's illegal motion, usually pretending to pitch?

A balk is an illegal pitching motion, such as feigning a pitch or a pickoff throw with runners on base; each runner advances one base as the penalty.

In which year did the National League permanently adopt the designated hitter?

The NL adopted the DH permanently in 2022 under the new collective bargaining agreement, after a one-season trial in 2020; from 1973 to 1975 every World Series game was played without a DH.

The baseball strike zone extends from the batter's knees up to what point?

The zone's upper limit is the midpoint of the torso, defined as halfway between the top of the shoulders and the top of the uniform pants, judged as the batter prepares to swing.

How many innings does a regulation Major League Baseball game have?

A regulation MLB game lasts nine innings, with extra innings if tied; a rain-shortened game still counts once five innings have been completed.

Unless the ground rules say otherwise, the foul poles in a baseball park lie in which territory?

A ball hitting the pole above the fence is therefore a home run.

In ice hockey, icing occurs when the puck is shot from the team's own half past which marker without scoring?

Icing is called when the puck crosses the opposing goal line untouched after being shot from behind the centre red line; the NHL has used hybrid icing since 2013.

Leg before wicket first appeared in cricket's laws in which year?

The 1774 Laws, drawn up at the Star and Garter in Pall Mall, first penalised a batsman who put his leg before the wicket 'with a design to stop the ball'.

In a five-day cricket match, a side batting first can enforce the follow-on if it leads by at least how much?

A first-innings lead of at least 200 runs allows the follow-on in a match of five or more days; the margin drops to 150 in shorter first-class matches.

The Duckworth-Lewis method was first used internationally in 1997 in a series between which two teams?

Its first international use came in the second ODI between Zimbabwe and England at Harare on 1 January 1997; Australian statistician Steven Stern later took over, and the method was renamed DLS in 2014.

How many legal deliveries make up an over in cricket?

All are bowled from one end by a single bowler; wides and no-balls do not count toward the total.

In tennis, what is the score called when both players have won three points in a game?

Deuce is the score at 40-40; from there a player must take the next pair of points together, advantage then game; the French call it égalité.

In boxing, a downed fighter who cannot continue within a count of what number is knocked out?

A fighter who cannot rise by the referee's count of ten is knocked out; a standing eight count, where it applies, lets the referee check a hurt boxer without ending the bout.

A game of table tennis is won by the first player to reach how many points, with a two-point lead?

Games go to 11 points under rules the ITTF adopted in 2001; at 10-10 the game continues until one player leads by the required margin.

A game of badminton is played to how many points?

A badminton game goes to 21 points under the rally-point system the BWF adopted in 2006, with every rally scoring; a game stretching past 20-all is capped at 30.

In curling, what is the term for having the last stone of an end?

Having the hammer means throwing the last stone of an end, a scoring advantage; the team that fails to score keeps the hammer for the next end.

A sumo wrestler loses by leaving the ring or touching the ground with anything other than what?

A rikishi loses if any part of his body other than the soles of his feet touches the dohyō's clay, or if he is forced out of the ring; most bouts end in seconds by pushing or throwing.

What is the maximum number of clubs a golfer may carry during a stipulated round?

Rule 4.1b limits a player to 14 clubs, a cap the USGA introduced in 1938; a player who starts with fewer may add clubs up to the limit during the round.

A maximum break in snooker is worth how many points?

A 147 comes from potting every red with a black, then the colours in sequence: 120 points from the reds and blacks plus 27 from the colours.

In rugby union, which set piece restarts play after the ball goes into touch?

A lineout restarts play after the ball goes into touch: forwards from both sides form parallel lines and the hooker throws the ball straight down the gap between them.

The volleyball libero, a defensive specialist, was introduced internationally in which year?

The FIVB introduced the libero in 1998, first appearing at that year's World Championships; the NCAA followed in 2002, and liberos may neither attack from above the net nor block.

The marathon distance of 42.195 kilometres was not standardised until which year?

The IAAF fixed the marathon at 42.195 km in 1921, adopting the distance run at the 1908 London Olympics, where the course was extended so it would finish in front of the royal box.

A mercy provision, ending a game early when one side leads by a huge margin, is also known by which name?

The mercy rule is also called the slaughter rule, common in North American youth baseball and softball, where a large run lead after a set number of innings ends the game.

Which high-jump technique clears the bar head first with the back to the bar?

The Fosbury flop, which Dick Fosbury used to win gold at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, replaced the straddle as the dominant technique within a decade.

In standard darts games, players count down from which starting score?

Standard games start at 501 (or 301 in pub play) and count down to exactly zero; the final dart must land on a double, the narrow outer ring.

FIBA introduced a 30-second shot clock in 1956 and switched to 24 seconds in which year?

FIBA cut its shot clock from 30 to 24 seconds in 2000, alongside reducing the backcourt limit to eight seconds, bringing international play in line with the NBA.

Which team's officials came up with the NBA shot clock, first testing it in a scrimmage?

Syracuse Nationals owner Danny Biasone and general manager Leo Ferris devised the 24-second clock, calculating it from about 120 shots per game; the franchise became the Philadelphia 76ers in 1963.

After a safety in American football, from which yard line does the conceding team kick off?

After a safety the conceding team free-kicks from its own 20-yard line, typically with a punt since no tee is used, and the scoring team takes possession of the kick.

Which English referee invented yellow and red cards, inspired by traffic lights?

Ken Aston, who had refereed the notorious 1962 'Battle of Santiago', thought of the cards while waiting at traffic lights after the 1966 England-Argentina quarter-final confusion.

Who invented the tennis tiebreak, unveiling it as an experiment at Newport Casino in 1965?

James Van Alen, founder of the International Tennis Hall of Fame, devised the tiebreak within his VASSS scoring system; his original 'sudden death' version was used at the US Open in the early seventies.

In volleyball, how many times may a team touch the ball before it must cross the net?

A team has three touches to return the ball, and no player may hit it twice in succession, though a block touch does not count as one of the three.

How high is the top of the net in men's volleyball?

The men's net is 2.43 m (7 ft 11 5/8 in) at the top; the women's is 2.24 m, and William Morgan's original 1895 rules set a far lower net.

In handball, only the defending goalkeeper may stand inside a zone extending how far from the goal?

The goal area extends 6 metres from the goal and only the goalkeeper may stand inside it; attackers may jump into it to shoot as long as they release the ball before landing.

How many players does each water polo team have in the water at one time?

Each side has seven players in the water, a goalkeeper plus outfield players; water polo was among the first team sports in the Olympics, debuting at Paris in 1900.