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Football (Soccer) vocabulary · Rules, Fouls & Match Time

Dropped ball

Meaning in football (soccer), with examples

nounCommon term

In football (soccer), dropped ball means: A restart in which the referee drops the ball after a stoppage requiring no other specified restart.

In Turkish: hakem atışı

How it is used

Say restart with a dropped ball; the ball enters play when it touches the ground.

Example sentences

  1. After stopping play for the loose dog, the referee used a dropped ball.

    The referee-drop restart deals with an interruption that does not call for a foul award.

  2. The players waited for the dropped ball to touch the grass.

    Touching the ground marks the point when this restart puts the ball in play.

Common collocations

  • award a dropped ball
  • restart with a dropped ball
  • dropped-ball restart
  • refereeThe official in charge of a match who applies the rules, blows the whistle, gives fouls and shows yellow and red cards.
  • kick-offThe kick from the centre spot that starts each half and restarts play after a goal; also the time a match is due to start.

More terms: Rules, Fouls & Match Time

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