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Soccer Law 4
The Players' Equipment

Safety

A player must not use equipment or wear anything that is dangerous to himself or another player (including any kind of jewelry).

Jewelry

All items of jewelry are potentially dangerous. The term "dangerous" can sometimes be ambiguous and controversial, therefore in order to be uniform and consistent any kind of jewelry has to be forbidden.

Players are not allowed to use tape to cover jewellery. Taping jewelry is not adequate protection.

Rings, earrings, leather or rubber bands are not necessary to play and the only thing they can bring about is injury.

In order to avoid "last minute" problems, teams should inform their players in advance.
Please avoid injuries!
Necklaces, rings, bracelets, earrings, leather or rubber bands etc. are not allowed.

Basic Equipment

The basic compulsory equipment of a player is:

jersey or shirt;

shorts - if thermal under shorts are worn, they are of the same main color as the shorts;

stockings;

shinguards;

footwear.

Shinguards

are covered entirely by the stockings;

are made of a suitable material (rubber, plastic, or similar substances);

provide a reasonable degree of protection.

Goalkeepers

each goalkeeper wears colors that distinguish him from the other players, the referee and the assistant referees.

Non-basic Equipment

A player must not use equipment or wear anything that is dangerous to himself/herself or another player.

Modern protective equipment such as headgear, facemasks, knee and arm protectors made of soft, lightweight, padded material are not considered to be dangerous and are therefore permitted.

New technology has made sports spectacles much safer, both for the players themselves and for other players.

Infringements/Sanctions

For any infringement of this Law:

play need not be stopped;

the player at fault is instructed by the referee to leave the field of play to correct his equipment;

the player leaves the field of play when the ball next ceases to be in play, unless he has already corrected his equipment;

any player required to leave the field of play to correct his equipment does not re-enter without the referee's permission;

the referee checks that the player's equipment is correct before allowing him to re-enter the field of play;

the player is only allowed to re-enter the field of play when the ball is out of play.

A player who has been required to leave the field of play because of an infringement of this Law and who enters (or re-enters) the field of play without the referee's permission is cautioned and shown the yellow card.

Restart of Play

If play is stopped by the referee to administer a caution:

the match is restarted by an indirect free kick taken by a player of the opposing side, from the place where the ball was located when the referee stopped the match.

Decisions of the International F.A. Board

Decision 1

Players must not reveal undershirts that contain slogans or advertising.

A player removing his jersey to reveal slogans or advertising will be sanctioned by the competition organizer.

Jerseys must have sleeves.

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