Clear and Obvious Means Something Different in Every League
The video review threshold compared across football, American football, hockey and cricket: what triggers a check, what overturns a call and who decides.
Author: Curtis Hanlon
Curtis Hanlon writes about rulebooks and the people who apply them under time pressure. Clocks, reviews, protocols and late-game arithmetic are his regular territory. He is drawn to the situations fans argue about longest and understand least.
Five Offside Situations Fans Get Wrong Every Weekend
Five offside rule situations decided by the wording of Law 11: the deflection, the deliberate play, the rebound, the stranded goalkeeper and level position.
Hybrid Icing and the Shift Change That Follows It
Hybrid icing decided at the faceoff dot, the no-change rule that follows it, and the delayed penalty sequence coaches build late-period shifts around.
The Arithmetic Behind Fouling on Purpose
Intentional foul strategy priced properly: free-throw expectation, possessions actually gained, the margin where it turns negative, and the football versions.
How the Fourth Official Arrives at the Number on the Board
How stoppage time is calculated in football: what Law 7 counts, what is estimated, why the board shows a minimum and what pushed the totals up.
Three Moments When Calling a Timeout Hurts You
Basketball timeout strategy treated as a price rather than a habit: the three moments a stoppage costs more than it buys, and how to judge one live.
Six Ways to Break a Tie, Ranked by Injury Load
Six overtime formats measured on length, physical cost and how faithfully each one settles the match that produced the tie, with a side by side table.
What Can a Goalkeeper Legally Do During a Shootout?
The penalty shootout rules on what a keeper may do, when a kick is retaken, who kicks first and which shootout claims the evidence does not support.
Price Every Two-Minute Drill Decision in Seconds and Points
Every two minute drill decision has a price in seconds and expected points. What a spike, a timeout and a sideline route really cost a late drive.