Penalty area

The penalty area with penalty box marking and the penalty arc in parallel to the goal. The smaller box is often called the 6-yard box

The penalty area or 18-yard box (also known less formally as "the penalty box" or simply "the box") is an area of an association football pitch. It is rectangular and extends 16.5m (18 yd) to each side of the goal and 16.5m (18 yd) in front of it. Within the penalty area is the penalty spot (or penalty mark), which is 11 metres (36 ft) or 12 yards from the goal line, directly in-line with the centre of the goal. A penalty arc adjoins the penalty area, and encloses the area within 9.15m (10 yd) from the penalty spot; it does not form part of the penalty area and is only of relevance during the taking of a penalty kick.^[1]

Previously, penalty areas extended the width of the field, but were reduced to their current dimensions in 1901.

Functions

Schematic of an association football pitch, the penalty areas are the larger of the two rectangular regions surrounding the goals at both ends of the pitch

A player taking a penalty kick from inside the penalty area.

Fouls punishable by a direct free kick (i.e. handling the ball and most physical fouls), committed by the defensive team within the penalty area, may be penalised by a penalty kick.^[2] A penalty kick is taken from the penalty spot. The penalty spot is located 12 yards (10.97m) away from the goal line.

The penalty area has other functions, including:

• Goalkeepers: The area delimiting the area in which a goalkeeper may legally handle the ball;
• Goal kicks: The ball is not in play until it has left the area, and opposing players must remain outside the area until this time;
• Defensive direct free kicks and indirect free kicks: Again, the ball is not in play until it has left the area, and opposing players must remain outside the area until this time;
• Taking of penalty kicks: players other than the kicker and the goalkeeper must remain outside the area (and also the penalty arc) until the kick has been taken.

In play

In a typical game, for the majority of time the penalty area is only occupied by the goalkeeper. The attacking team generally aims to get the ball and their own players into the defending team's penalty area, and a high percentage of goals in professional football are scored from within the penalty area.^[3] Usually during attacking set pieces, including corners, a large number of both attacking and defending players are in the penalty area and, although illegal, grappling between players is frequently observed.^[4]

Proposals for change

A mathematics-based new penalty area has been lately (2016) proposed; it is based on considering the actual scoring possibility on the 2 dimensions near the goal ^[5]. It is shown in the scientific paper that the 150-year-old rectangular area is mathematically disproportionate; this can be causing too much diving or simulation by players around the goal and also too many matches that are decided unfairly. The goal of the new penalty area is to reduce these problems with a novel penalty-area line, or curve, that is based on the proposed scoring potential measure which is in turn based on the angle towards the goal line (between posts) and the distance to the centre of this line. The idea is that as you (or an attacker with the ball) move along the current penalty-area line or lines, the geometric possibility of scoring varies wildly, whereas along the new penalty-area curve the potential of scoring is mathematically the same; this would make the new marking a better limit for the critical and crucial penalty area. Nevertheless, the fully mathematical line or curve may be difficult to implement in the real world of football, which has thousands of tournaments at all –economic and generational– levels of the sport, although field hockey –for example– has for more than 100 years used penalty circles (areas) whose lines are curved.

References

See also

• Penalty shoot-out (association football)
• Association football pitch