Indoor soccer has some rules that are different from outdoor soccer. Some of these are in place just because it’s a different sport, but some are in place because it’s necessary! Two-line and three-line rules are examples of this, because without them, a loophole in the futsal rules could be exploited! This article will explain what they are, why they’re there, and how to use them to your advantage!
To understand this article, you need to know how to set up an indoor field. There is the midfield line, but there is another line on each side between the midfield line and the goal. This line is approximately halfway between the goalkeeper area and the midfield line. All three lines are important for this article.
In futsal there is no offside rule. This means that attackers can venture as far forward as they like without worrying about the consequences (other than a lack of help on defense). To counter this, there is a three line rule. It is not allowed to kick the ball in the air from behind your front row (the one between the goalkeeper’s area and the midfield line) in front of the opponent’s front row. If the ball hits the ground or a player, that’s fine, it just can’t travel through the air. This is to prevent the defense from simply throwing balls at the forwards without playing the game at all.
You can use this rule to help you on defense! You know that if the opponents have the ball behind their front row they can’t just kick it, so you can play a bit more aggressive. However, watch out for bouncing balls as they can mess you up.
The two-line rule only applies to goal kicks. In goal kicks, it is not allowed to hit the ball beyond the midfield line. This is meant to encourage passing and play rather than just kicking the ball to the forwards. This rule is not as important as the three lines rule, because the goalkeeper can pass it to a defender who can then hit it beyond the midfield line. This rule only applies to balls that are hit in the air and do not hit a player or the ground.
If you are playing defense and the opponent has a goal kick, you can be sure that they will not bounce the ball. Once again, this means you can play more aggressively.
Remember to check with the facility you are playing at to see if these rules are in effect. Most of the time they are, but some places don’t use them. Now get out there and use what you just learned!
