Forfeit (sport)

In various sports, a forfeit is a method in which a match automatically ends and the forfeiting team loses.

There are two distinct forms of forfeiture. One occurs when a team is unable to meet the basic standards for playing the game, either before the game begins or as a result of actions that happen during the match. In such a case, the team not forfeiting wins the match. The other is punitive forfeiture, in which a team has been found to have broken the rules of a sanctioning body during a match they have won and must have the results stricken from the record; whether or not the other team receives a win in such a case depends on the rules of that body.

Association football

Both teams must have at least seven players at the beginning of the match per the FIFA rules. When a team has less than seven players, the match cannot start.[1] Usually (based on rules of a specific association) the same number is required for a match to continue.[2] When the number of players in a team falls definitely below seven (e.g. by five players sent off with red cards, or by injured players with no substitutions left, etc.), the match is forfeited. A team sanctioned with a forfeit is considered to have lost the match by 3-0 as per FIFA rules.[3]

Baseball

Main article: Forfeit (baseball)

In rare cases, baseball games are forfeited, usually in the event when a team is no longer able to play.

Basketball

In basketball rules published by FIBA, a forfeit and default are two different things. A forfeit occurs if:

A forfeit results in loss for the offending team, a score of 20−0, and in tournaments that use the FIBA points system, 0 points in classification of teams. Furthermore, in FIBA tournaments that use a two-game home-and-away series (two-legged tie) or a best-of-three playoff format, a team that forfeits any of the games loses the series by forfeit.

In U.S. NCAA basketball, a referee decides a game is to be forfeited when any of these criteria are satisfied:

The forfeiting team loses the game 2−0, unless 30 minutes have lapsed in the game clock; in this case, the score at the end of play shall stand. When the team that is behind in the scorebook is to be declared the winning team, that score shall be marked with an asterisk in the official statistics; and it shall be noted that the game was won by forfeit.

In FIBA tournaments, a forfeit is different from a default, a situation if during the game, the team has fewer than two players (e.g. one or zero players) on the playing court ready to play. In this case, the opponents are awarded with a win, and if they are leading, the score at the time of stoppage will be the final score; if it they are not leading, they are awarded with a 2−0 win. The defaulting team is given 1 point in classification of teams. Furthermore, in FIBA tournaments that use a two-game home-and-away series, a team that defaults in either game loses the series by default.

In tournaments and leagues that use winning percentage to rank teams, the difference between a forfeit and a default is negligible; however, for those that use the FIBA points system, a default is treated like an ordinary loss, as the team earns one point. Meanwhile, team that forfeited earns nothing and could be more detrimental in terms of championship aspirations. It's also more detrimental in tiebreaking situations as a defaulting team's worst result is the actual score if they were trailing when the game was stopped, or a 2–0 loss if they were trailing. A forfeit costs a 0–20 loss, and drags down a team's goal average worse than a 0–2 loss would.

The rules of the National Basketball Association don't mention how forfeitures are dealt with, but mention it is a possible sanction on a player or coach who violates the rules on ejections. Also, in the NBA, defaulting is virtually impossible, unless ejections bring a team to fewer than five players. When five players remain in a game, and one fouls out, a technical foul is called when a player who has fouled out is forced to remain in the game, or when, after an injury, a player who fouled out of the game previously returns to the game. These technical fouls are declared non-unsportsmanlike conduct fouls.

Chess

In chess, a forfeit occurs when a player does not appear in for the match at all, or when exceeding the time control (forfeit on time).

Cricket

In the sport of cricket a forfeiture occurs when a captain chooses to forfeit one of his side’s innings.

Gridiron football

In American football, a team must begin with at least eleven people ready to play; a forfeiture occurs if a team does not have that many. It can also occur when the number of able players drops to below seven (the number legally required to man a line of scrimmage) at any point during game time, as a result of an unfair act (only in high school or college football), or punitive retroactive sanctions against a team from a governing body such as the NCAA. In the event the team forfeiting the game is already losing at the time of the forfeit, the score at the time stands as is. Otherwise, forfeits result in a 2-0 score in the National Football League or a 1-0 score in high school football, NCAA and Canadian football (such a 1-0 score is possible during regular game play in Canada because of the single but impossible according to American football codes, hence why the NFL chooses 2-0, the lowest possible score, with the winning team awarded a safety).

The National Football League rulebook has a provision for forfeiture but has never used it (there was at least one alleged "forfeit" in the 1921 NFL season, but because league schedules were so fluid in the 1920s, the league now considers it a cancellation, which was very common at the time); it was briefly discussed as a potential punishment during Spygate but never implemented. The NCAA also uses punitive forfeiture in other sports. The Arena Football League has had one forfeit in its history, which came in 2012 as a result of a player's strike.

A related concept is the vacation, in which the team's wins are stricken from the record, but no loss is put in its place. The NCAA bylaws allow wins to be vacated as a form of punishment; the NFL does not.

Poker

In cases where a poker game is arranged but an opponent drops out, that person forfeits and remaining players win at that player's expense

See also

References

  1. ↑ FIFA: Laws of the Game 2015/2016, Law 3, p. 17
  2. ↑ FIFA: Interpretation of the Laws of the Game and Guidelines for Referees 2014/2015, Law 3, p. 68
  3. ↑ "FIFA" (PDF). FIFA. 2011. p. 21.
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