Referee and discipline statistics are full of short labels — DOGSO, SPA, OFR, "second yellow". This glossary explains each term in plain English, based on the IFAB Laws of the Game, so that the numbers on this site mean exactly what they say. Where a definition mentions Law 12 or Law 17, it follows the wording of that Law.
Cards and discipline
Caution (yellow card)
A formal warning shown to a player. Law 12 lists the offences that must be cautioned, including unsporting behaviour, dissent by word or action, persistent offences, delaying the restart of play, failing to respect the required distance at a restart, entering or leaving the field without the referee's permission, and excessively using the "review" (TV screen) signal.
Second caution
A second yellow card in the same match. It is itself a sending-off offence, so the player leaves the field. Statistics often count it separately from a straight red card.
Sending-off (red card)
The player must leave the field and cannot be replaced. Law 12 lists the sending-off offences: denying a goal or an obvious goal-scoring opportunity by a deliberate handball, denying an obvious goal-scoring opportunity to an opponent moving towards the goal by an offence punishable by a free kick (with the exceptions below), serious foul play, biting or spitting, violent conduct, using offensive, insulting or abusive language or gestures, and receiving a second caution.
Careless, reckless, excessive force
The three levels Law 12 uses to judge a foul. Careless means a lack of attention or consideration — a free kick, but no card. Reckless means acting with disregard to the danger to, or consequences for, an opponent — a caution. Using excessive force means exceeding the necessary use of force or endangering an opponent's safety — a sending-off.
DOGSO
Denying an obvious goal-scoring opportunity. Normally a red card. The exception: when the offence is in the penalty area, a penalty is awarded and the offence was an attempt to play the ball or a challenge for the ball, the player is cautioned instead. A deliberate handball that denies a goal or an obvious goal-scoring opportunity is always a sending-off.
SPA
Stopping a promising attack. An offence that interferes with or stops a promising attack is cautioned — unless the referee plays advantage and a goal results.
Advantage
The referee lets play continue when stopping it would favour the team that committed the offence. If the offence deserved a card, Law 12 says the card must still be shown when the ball is next out of play.
Restarts
Corner kick
Awarded when the whole of the ball passes over the goal line, on the ground or in the air, having last touched a player of the defending team, and a goal is not scored (Law 17). A goal may be scored directly from a corner kick, but only against the opposing team. Opponents must stay at least 9.15 m (10 yds) from the corner arc until the ball is in play.
Goal kick
The reverse of a corner: the ball crosses the goal line, without a goal being scored, having last touched a player of the attacking team.
Penalty kick
A direct free kick taken from the penalty mark, awarded for a direct free kick offence committed by a defender inside their own penalty area while the ball is in play.
Officials and VAR
Assistant referees and fourth official
The assistant referees work along the touchlines; the fourth official assists the referee from the touchline between the two team areas. Their duties are set out in Law 6, "The Other Match Officials".
VAR
Video assistant referee. Under the IFAB protocol, the referee's original decision is not changed unless the video shows a "clear and obvious error" or a serious missed incident. The VAR can only be used for four match-changing situations: goal or no goal, penalty or no penalty, direct red cards (not second cautions) and mistaken identity.
OFR
On-field review. The referee watches the replay at the pitch-side screen in the referee review area (RRA) before making the final decision. It is typically used for subjective decisions, such as the intensity of contact or handball. Factual decisions, such as offside position or whether the ball went out, are usually corrected on the VAR's information alone.
Terms used in our statistics
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Yellow cards per match | Cautions shown, divided by matches refereed |
| Fouls per match | Fouls whistled, divided by matches refereed |
| Fouls per yellow card | Fouls whistled for each caution shown: a measure of a referee's style |
| Penalties per match | Penalty kicks awarded, divided by matches refereed |
Turn any referee's season totals into these rates with our referee profile calculator.
Sources
- Law 12: Fouls and Misconduct — IFAB Laws of the Game
- Law 17: The Corner Kick — IFAB Laws of the Game
- Video Assistant Referee (VAR) protocol — IFAB
- Law 6: The Other Match Officials — IFAB Laws of the Game