Fair catch
A fair catch is a feature of American football and several other codes of football, in which a player attempting to catch a ball kicked by the opposing team – either on a kickoff or punt – is entitled to catch the ball without interference from any member of the kicking team. A ball caught in this manner becomes dead once caught, i.e., the player catching the ball is not entitled to run with the ball in an attempt to gain yardage, and the receiving team begins their drive at the spot where the ball was caught. A player wishing to make a fair catch signals his intent by extending one arm above his head and waving it while the kicked ball is in flight.
The primary reason for the fair catch rule is to protect the receiver. A receiver directs his attention toward the incoming punt and cannot focus on the defenders running towards him. He is quite vulnerable to injury and is also at risk for fumbling the kick if the punter intentionally makes a high short kick to allow defenders time to hit the receiver. The XFL removed the fair catch rule in an effort to make the game more "extreme." Canadian football and Arena football also do not have fair catch rules, with XFL and CFL preferring a five yard "no-yards" rule instead.
In rugby union and Australian rules football, a loose equivalent to a fair catch is called a mark; see mark (rugby) and mark (Australian football) for more information. Fair catches featured in some extinct forms of football, and they have been abolished in other modern codes.
American football
In American football, a member of the team receiving a punt or kick, may signal for a "fair catch". To signal fair catch the receiver must raise one arm fully above his head and wave it side to side while the ball is in flight. After the signal is made, no opponent may interfere with the fair catcher, the ball or his path to the ball, and the receiver may not attempt to advance the ball. If the receiver fails to give a proper signal (arm not fully extended) the receiving team is penalized five yards for an invalid fair catch signal, marked from the spot of the signal.
A player signaling for a fair catch is not required to catch the ball; however, after making the signal, he may not initiate contact with any member of the kicking team until the ball is touched by another player. If he does he will be penalized 15 yards for unsportsmanlike conduct. If the ball hits the ground or a member of the kicking team, the fair catch signal is off and rules for kicked balls apply. If the receiver "muffs" the ball (touches it, but then fails to field it cleanly), then the ball can be recovered by the kicking team once the ball touches the ground.
A "personal foul" for kick catch interference and a 15 yard penalty is called against the kicking team if a member violates the fair catcher's right to the ball. If the interference is deemed flagrant, the kicking team member can be ejected from the game. If the receiver attempts to advance the ball after signalling for a fair catch he is penalized five yards for "delay of game". A fair catch may be followed by a snap or a type of free kick — the fair catch kick — at his team's choice, and an expired playing period may be extended if the free kick is chosen. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (USA) abolished the fair catch from its version of American football in 1950, but restored it in 1951, minus the option of kicking from the mark of the catch, which is retained in rules of the National Federation of State High School Associations and of the National Football League.
The fair catch signal can be used as a legal form of deception: If the receiver has no intention of actually fielding the ball, but wishes it to roll into the end zone for a touchback, he may signal for a fair catch in front of where the ball will land, making the kicking team think it will not reach the end zone.
Other games
Various forms of football descended from certain English school football games of the 19th century have had a fair catch. It was abolished early in the development of soccer, then in the middle of the 20th century by Canadian football, and slightly later by rugby league. Forms of football retaining a form of fair catch (also called "mark") include American (outdoor), rugby union, and Australian rules. The American-invented intramural games speedball and speed-a-way have some of the flavor of the original fair catch, which was to allow handling of the ball in games where handling was otherwise forbidden. Australian rules, speedball, and speed-a-way do not require that the kick be from an opponent. American football requires that the catcher signal in advance, as did Canadian football before that game abolished the fair catch. Rugby union requires a player to signal a fair catch by catching the ball and shouting "Mark!".
In some forms of football a player fielding an opponent's kick must be given a certain circular unobstructed space around him in which to do so by either some or all opponents. In rugby union, rugby league, and Canadian football this applies only against members of the kicking team who are offside, and applies whether the ball is in the air, bouncing, or rolling. In Arena Football, there is no fair catch; however all members of the kicking team must refrain from penetrating the five-yard line in coverage, but only while the ball is in the air.
The various games differ as to the conditions under which a fair catch will be awarded — for example, whether the ball must be caught "cleanly", i.e. without juggling. Rugby union requires a clean catch. American football allows the ball to be juggled, but not to be intentionally batted forward to improve the position of the catch (as for a free kick at goal). Australian rules is most generous, allowing unlimited hand play with the ball before it is caught, and allowing the kick to be from any other player, regardless of team (however, the ball must have travelled 15 metres) and the ball can even be dropped so long as the player was deemed to have sufficient control of its fall. In the 19th century in rugby and into the 20th in American and Canadian football, a fair catch was allowed from certain kicks of a teammate -- a punt-out or punt-on. Until very late in the 20th century in rugby union, a fair catch was allowed from an opponent's throw-forward (knock-on).