Advantage
The provision as it is printed, and everything on Ruleside that turns on it.
If the referee plays the advantage for an offence for which a caution/sending-off would have been issued had play been stopped, this caution/sending-off must be issued when the ball is next out of play. However, if the offence was denying the opposing team an obvious goal-scoring opportunity, the player is cautioned for unsporting behaviour, except where a goal is scored by the non-offending team as a result of the advantage having been played, in which case there is no disciplinary sanction; if the offence was interfering with or stopping a promising attack, the player is not cautioned.
Verdicts that turn on it 27
Walk a practice scenario to any of these and this clause is part of the answer.
- Penalty kick + red card: violent conductfoul-sanction
- Direct free kick + red card: violent conductfoul-sanction
- Penalty kick + red card: serious foul playfoul-sanction
- Direct free kick + red card: serious foul playfoul-sanction
- Penalty kick + yellow card: reckless challengefoul-sanction
- Direct free kick + yellow card: reckless challengefoul-sanction
- No red card: the force was negligiblefoul-sanction
- Penalty kick + yellow card: showing a lack of respect for the gamefoul-sanction
- Direct free kick + yellow card: showing a lack of respect for the gamefoul-sanction
- Play on, and no caution: advantage cancels this onefoul-sanction
- Goal, and no sanction at allfoul-sanction
- Yellow card, not red: advantage was played and no goal came of itfoul-sanction
- Yellow card, not red: advantage was played on a reckless challengefoul-sanction
- Yellow card, not red: advantage was played on a blatant holdfoul-sanction
- Indirect free kick: playing in a dangerous manneroff-the-ball
- An indirect or direct free kick, or a penalty kickoff-the-ball
- A direct free kick, or a penalty kickoff-the-ball
- Indirect free kickoff-the-ball
- On the nearest boundary line, and a penalty if that is inside their own areaoff-the-ball
- Indirect free kick on the nearest boundary lineoff-the-ball
- Direct free kick where the object struck, or would haveoff-the-ball
- Direct free kick, if it interferedoff-the-ball
- Direct free kick, or a penalty kickoff-the-ball
- Indirect free kickoff-the-ball
- Direct free kick, or a penalty kickoff-the-ball
- Holding: a direct free kick, or a penalty kick in the offender's own areaoff-the-ball
- The card waits for the next stoppage, and three offences change what it isreferee
Explained in the rules library 5
The plain-language pages that build on this provision.
Applied in these incidents 5
Real decisions where this clause decided what should have happened.
Changed for 2026/27 2
What this provision replaced, and when it took effect.
Questions that ask it 5
Points in a walk where the reader is deciding this provision.
- Did the referee play the advantage rather than stop play?foul-sanction
- Did the referee play the advantage rather than stop play?foul-sanction
- Did the non-offending team score from the advantage?foul-sanction
- Did the referee play the advantage rather than stop play?foul-sanction
- Did the referee play the advantage rather than stop play?foul-sanction
The Laws of the Game are published by The IFAB and quoted here for the purpose of explaining the decisions on this site. Ruleside is not affiliated with The IFAB or FIFA. Every clause of Fouls and Misconduct that Ruleside cites.