Section I – Disciplinary Sanctions

Section II – General Foul Procedures

Section III – Timing of the Foul

Section IV – The Penalty Box

Section V – Advantage

Section VI – Delayed Penalties

_____________________________________

Section I – Disciplinary Sanctions

1. No Harm No Foul
   In the case of a minor offense that has not given either team an advantage, a referee may decide to verbally warn players about a potential infraction rather than calling a foul.
2. Repeat Procedure
   If a player commits a foul that results in a repeat procedure penalty, the player must repeat the violated procedure from the point of the procedure that was violated.
   1. The player does not need to return to the location of the violation unless it is necessary to complete the procedure correctly.
   2. The player is ineligible to otherwise interact with play until the procedure is correctly completed.
3. Back to Hoops
   If a player commits a foul that results in a back to hoops penalty:
   1. Play should generally not be stopped.
   2. A referee informs the player of the infringement and tells them “back to hoops.”
   3. The player must dismount and follow the knockout procedure.
   4. If any ball is propelled by a player while or immediately after commiting a foul for which they are sent back to hoops, that ball must be turned over to the opposing team under the turnover procedure.
4. Turnover
   Turnovers result in possession of a specific ball being given to the opposing team. If a player commits a foul that results in a turnover:
   1. The referee may choose to stop play or complete the turnover while play continues unless required to stop play by rule.
   2. If play is not stopped to complete the turnover:
      1. The referee calls for the turnover.
      2. If a player on the fouling team has the ball, they must drop it.
      3. If the ball is loose any eligible player for the receiving team may retrieve it.
      4. The referee may pass the ball to the nearest eligible player.
      5. The fouling team may not touch the ball until the receiving team gains possession of it or declines the turnover.
      6. The fouling team may not delay the receiving team from getting the ball.
      7. The receiving team must immediately move to possess the ball or decline the turnover.
         1. Failure to do either after being clearly informed of the turnover shall be treated as declining the turnover.
   3. If play is stopped to complete the turnover:
      1. The referee stops play.
      2. The referee gives the ball to the closest eligible player to the location of the ball.
         1. If the ball was thrown during or after the foul, the ball is turned over to the closest eligible player to the point of the throw.
   4. If there is no eligible player to receive the ball, the ball is placed at or thrown to the center hoop of the receiving team.
      1. If there are no eligible players to receive a dodgeball because all the receiving team’s beaters already have dodgeballs, the ball is dropped or left in place instead of being turned over.
   5. A quadball to be turned over is unable to result in a goal against the receiving team until the procedure is complete.
   6. If both teams have committed fouls which would turn over the same ball, possession of that ball is determined by:
      1. The procedure for the foul receiving the most severe penalty card, if any.
      2. If multiple fouls tie for the most severe penalty card, among the tied fouls, the procedure for the foul committed last.
      3. If both teams commit fouls that tie for the most severe and one team has committed more fouls than the other, the procedure for the last of those fouls committed by that team shall be followed.

   Back to Hoops - Delaying the completion of the turnover process

   Yellow Card - Willfully ignoring a turnover call

5. Penalty Cards
   If a foul results in a penalty card:
   1. Play is stopped.
   2. The referee signals that there was a penalty by showing the appropriate card(s) and communicating the nature of the foul.
   3. The player who committed the foul is sent to the penalty box.
      1. The fouling team must play down a player at the position of the fouling player for the duration of the penalty time.
         1. The player serving the penalty time may not be substituted while in the penalty box unless they are injured or ejected.
      2. A player who receives a red card is ejected and their substitute is sent to the penalty box.
         1. All requirements and procedures for ejected players must be followed (See: 10.I.6. Ejection).
   4. Penalty cards result in the following turnovers:
      1. Any ball that the fouling player possessed or acted on from the time of the foul until play was stopped must be turned over to the opposing team. This includes any balls that the fouled team was prevented from possessing by the foul.
      2. If a delayed penalty results in a card and the fouled team lost the quadball between the time of the foul and the stoppage of play, the quadball is turned over to the fouled team.
      3. For yellow and red cards, if the fouling team is in possession of the quadball or if the quadball is loose, the quadball is turned over to the opposing team.
   5. If a player receives a third yellow card in the same game, the player must receive a red card after being shown the yellow card.
   6. Play is resumed.
6. Ejection
   If a penalty results in an ejection:
   1. The ejected player must leave the player area and may not return for the remainder of the game.
   2. If the player refuses to leave the player area:
      1. The player’s team must assist in escorting the player away from the player area.
      2. If the player persists in refusing to leave or becomes dangerous, the head referee may end the game resulting in a forfeit for the fouling player’s team.
   3. The referee may require the player to leave the vicinity of the pitch.
   4. Ejected players must not re-enter the player area or communicate with anyone inside the player area.
      1. This rule does not prohibit the ejected player from cheering for their team.
   5. Ejected players must not re-enter the player area or communicate with anyone inside the player area.
      1. Gender maximum exceptions apply as if this were an injury substitution (3.III.3 Substitutions Due to Injury).
         1. If this would leave a position without at least one player, another player in play must change to the position and location of the ejected player.
   6. If the ejected player had any penalty time assessed which had not been fully served, their substitute must serve the remainder of the penalty time.
      1. If the ejected player was not in play, then the coach must designate a player on the pitch to go to the penalty box and serve that time.
      2. If the player was serving time for their own penalty and was ejected with a red card, the remaining time for the previous penalty is waived, and only the two minutes for the red card are served.

   Coach Blue Card - Illegally communicated with people in the player area as an ejected player

   Forfeit - Persistently refusing to leave the player area after being ejected

   Forfeit - Endangering others after being ejected

7. Forfeit
   If a foul results in a forfeit penalty, the fouling team forfeits the game (See: 4.VII.1 Declaring a Forfeit).
   1. If both teams receive forfeit penalties on the same play or incident, a double forfeit shall be declared.
8. Standard Contact Penalties
   When a penalty for a foul is listed as the standard contact penalty, the following set of penalties shall apply to that foul:
   1. The default penalty for the foul is a yellow card.
   2. Minor fouls that do not affect overall gameplay and were, if applicable, immediately adjusted may receive a back to hoops penalty in place of a yellow card.
   3. Violent or egregious fouls must receive a red card instead of the yellow card.
9. Coach Penalty Cards
   When a penalty for a foul is listed as a coach card, the listed penalty card is given to the team’s coach rather than the individual directly committing or causing the foul.

Section II – General Foul Procedures

1. Violations Caused by Opponents' Fouls
   1. Any player who violates a rule as a direct result of the illegal actions of an opponent may avoid a penalty if they correct the violation as soon as possible.
2. Plays After a Foul
   Any goal, knockout, or flag catch performed by a player while or immediately after committing a foul does not count.
   1. If either advantage or a delayed penalty are called, the fouling player may knock out opponents during the delay as normal so long as the attempts were not made while or immediately after committing the foul.
3. Bench Fouls
   In certain limited cases, when substitutes or team staffers commit fouls, the penalty may be assessed to the coach.
   1. If a single identifiable substitute or team staffer commits a foul, only the fouling individual shall be assessed the penalty.
   2. If a single substitute or team staffer commits a foul but the individual cannot be identified, the penalty shall be assessed to the coach instead.
   3. If multiple substitutes or team staffers jointly commit the same or directly related offenses, only the coach shall receive a penalty card, if applicable, for the foul committed.
      1. The coach shall only receive a single penalty card for the offense.
      2. If the penalty for the offense is a straight red card or ejection, all substitutes and team staffers who are identified as having committed the red card or ejection offense themselves shall be ejected from the game.
   4. If multiple unconnected offenses are committed by substitutes or team staffers, they shall be treated as separate incidents for the purposes of applying this rule.
      1. If this would result in multiple penalty cards being given to the coach, including multiple red cards, on a single stoppage, then the coach or their replacement shall serve only the single most severe of the cards. A separate player must be pulled off of the pitch to serve the time for each of the remaining cards.
         1. The players pulled off the pitch do not get credited with the cards.
         2. If the coach is given three yellow cards in this manner, they shall still be shown a red card.
            1. If these are their first three yellow cards of the game, the penalty time for the red card shall be served by their replacement and the three yellow cards shall not be separately served.

Section III – Timing of the Foul

1. Simultaneous Penalty
   If a player commits multiple fouls, the player shall be assessed the appropriate penalty for each offense except as follows:
   1. If a player commits multiple penalty card offenses simultaneously, the referee only adjudicates the penalty for the most egregious of those fouls.
   2. If a player commits multiple directly related penalty card offenses in quick succession, the referee only adju- dicates the penalty for the most egregious of those fouls.
2. Fouls Before a Goal
   1. If the fouled team scores a good goal between the time of the foul and the adjudication of the penalty for that foul, the penalty shall not result in a turnover of the quadball.
3. Fouls After a Goal
   1. If a player on the formerly defending team receives a penalty for a foul committed while the quadball is dead:
      1. If the foul was committed as part of a play to defend against the goal, the penalty shall not result in a turnover of the quadball.
      2. If the foul was not committed as part of a play to defend against the goal, the penalty is assessed in full including any prescribed turnovers.
      3. The goal does not negate any penalty time for the foul.
4. Fouls Prior to the Game
   If a player receives a penalty card before the game begins:
   1. The offending team begins the game with the offending player (or the player’s replacement in the case of a red card) in the penalty box and one less player in the keeper zone.
   2. The player’s penalty time officially begins at brooms up.
5. Fouls After the End of the Period
   1. A player who receives a penalty card for a foul that occurred prior to the referee signalling the end of a period ending in a tie shall serve their penalty time in the subsequent period at the position at which they were playing.
   2. A player who receives a penalty card for a foul that occurred after the referee signaled the end of a period ending in a tie shall serve their penalty time in the subsequent period at the position of their coach’s choice.
   3. If a player is assessed a foul after the game ends, the penalty must be noted normally on the scorecard for the game.
6. Fouls Near the End of the Period
   1. If a stoppage occurs due to a penalty by the defending team during the final 10 seconds before 20 minutes of game time, the timekeeper must reset the game clock to 10 seconds remaining in the period.

Section IV – The Penalty Box

1. Time of Penalty
   1. Blue and yellow cards result 30/60 seconds in the penalty box for the penalized player respectively, unless the opposing team scores during that time period.
      1. When the opposing team scores by any method, the player with the least amount of penalty time remaining from a blue or yellow card is released from the penalty box.
         1. A single score may only count toward the release of one player.
            1. If two players on the same team have the same amount of time remaining in the penalty box for releasable penalties, the head referee shall use their discretion to designate which one is released first.
            2. If a player is serving time for multiple penalty cards simultaneously, scores will only count toward their release if no other player on their team has less time remaining for a blue card or yellow card penalty.
         2. An own goal counts as a score by the team for which the goal is counted.
      2. If the fouled team scores between the time of the foul and when play is stopped, and no other players would be released by the score, the penalized player does not go to the penalty box and restarts play dismounted at their current location instead.
         1. If there are multiple blue or yellow cards, only the penalty time of player who would have been released on a score first is negated.
         2. If the penalized player receives multiple penalty cards for fouls occurring prior to play being stopped and the score would count against their time, the penalized player still goes to the penalty box, and their opponent’s score counts as the first score toward their release.
   2. A red card results in two full minutes of game time in the penalty box for the offending player’s replacement.
      1. Scores cannot release this player.
   3. Stacking penalty time:
      1. Whenever a person receives a red card for any reason, they are ejected, all other penalty time for fouls by that individual is negated, and only the penalty time for the red card is served.
      2. If a person receives multiple penalty cards on a single stoppage without receiving a red card, the penalty time shall be one minute per card received, or until the opposing team scores a number of times equal to the number of cards received, whichever occurs first.
      3. If a person receives multiple penalty cards on a single stoppage without receiving a red card, the penalty time shall be one minute per card received, or until the opposing team scores a number of times equal to the number of cards received, whichever occurs first.
      4. If a player receives a penalty card while serving time for a teammate’s penalty:
         1. Another substitute must serve the remainder of the original penalty.
         2. The offending player’s penalty shall then be treated as a foul by a substitute (See: 10.II.3 Bench Fouls).
2. Proceeding to the Penalty Box
   Play is stopped while the penalized player, team staffer, or appropriate substitute is sent to the penalty box.
   1. Any substitution or position change made by the fouling player after the foul and before receiving the pen- alty card must be undone, and the fouling player must serve their penalty time at the position at which they committed the initial foul.
      1. If the foul is illegal substitution, the entering player receives the penalty card and time.
   2. If the keeper in play is sent to the penalty box, they must switch positions with a chaser on their team who is in play before they go to the penalty box.
      1. The keeper must not switch with a player who is serving time in the penalty box.
      2. If all of the team’s chasers are already serving time in the penalty box, the keeper must switch headbands with a seeker or beater on their team instead.
   3. The person going to the penalty box must proceed immediately to the penalty box without delay and remain there until the penalty expires.
      1. If all of the team’s chasers are already serving time in the penalty box, the keeper must switch headbands with a seeker or beater on their team instead.
         1. If a carded player is replaced in the penalty box due to an injury, that player may not re-enter play until their substitute is released from the penalty box.
   4. Penalty time begins as soon as the head referee resumes play.
   5. If the player’s penalty time is negated by a score before they are shown the penalty card the player shall not be moved to the penalty box and shall restart play dismounted at their current location.

   Yellow Card - Failing to immediately proceed to the penalty box after being carded

3. Penalty Box Considerations
   1. Players serving penalty time are considered in play for the purposes of the gender maximum rule and positions.
   2. If a player is serving time for another player’s card, the carded player, not the player serving the time, is con- sidered in play for the purposes of the gender maximum rule and positions for the duration of the penalty.
      1. This does not apply to cases where a player is serving time for a team staffer’s penalty.
   3. Players in the penalty box are subject to the same restrictions and penalties regarding interacting with play as substitutes.
   4. Players serving time in the penalty box may not be mounted on a broom.
   5. If a player illegally substitutes while serving time in the penalty box, the substitution must be undone, and a penalty for an illegal substitution in the penalty box must be assessed in lieu of the penalty for a regular illegal substitution.

   Coach Yellow Card - Illegal substitution in the penalty box

4. Tracking Penalty Time
   1. Penalty time begins when the referee blows the whistle to restart play.
   2. As soon as a player’s penalty time expires, the timekeeper must release the player from the penalty box.
      1. When a player is released from the penalty box they are dismounted and must follow the knockout pro- cedure to re-enter play.
      2. Any player serving time in the penalty box may return to the pitch as soon as their penalty time expires.
5. Penalties to Substitutes and Team Staffers
   If a substitute or team staffer receives a penalty card, that team must play a player down. The following procedure applies:
   1. The coach must designate a player in play who is not already serving penalty time.
      1. The coach must designate a player in play who is not already serving penalty time.
   2. If a substitute receives a blue or yellow card, they substitute into the game for the designated player.
      1. The fouling substitute proceeds to the penalty box.
      2. The designated player returns to the bench and is eligible to substitute back into the game through the normal substitution procedure.
   3. If a substitute receives a red card, they are ejected and the designated player must proceed to the penalty box to serve the two minutes of penalty time.
   4. If a team staffer receives a penalty card, the designated player proceeds to the penalty box and serves the penalty time.
      1. If the team staffer was not ejected, they must join the designated player in the penalty box.
         1. Once the team staffer’s penalty time expires, the player is released and the team staffer shall return to the team bench.
6. All Players in the Penalty Box
   If all players in play for a team are simultaneously serving time in the penalty box, that team must forfeit the game.
   1. If both teams reach this situation on the same play or incident, a double forfeit shall be declared.

Section V – Advantage

1. Calling Advantage
   If the head referee determines that stopping play due to a foul would provide an advantage in the quadball game to the fouling team, the referee may delay stopping play by calling advantage.
   1. If advantage is called the following procedure applies:
      1. The referee raises one hand straight into the air.
      2. The referee may send the fouling player back to hoops at the start of the advantage if the situation warrants.
      3. Play continues until the fouling team would no longer benefit from play being stopped including but not limited to the following situations:
         1. The fouling team gains possession of the quadball.
         2. A goal is scored for the fouled team.
         3. The fouled team is not actively moving to score.
         4. The fouled team commits a separate foul.
         5. There is a flag catch by either team.
   2. When advantage abates, the referee must stop play, and any penalties shall be adjudicated as normal.
      1. If no penalty is assessed against the team that was on defense during the advantage call, play shall be restarted as though advantage was not called.
2. Advantage Restart Procedure
   Play is restarted as follows after an advantage call:
   1. If a goal is scored for the non-fouling team, play restarts according to standard procedure for a goal (See: 5.II Restarting After a Goal).
   2. If a yellow or red card penalty against the quadball carrier occurs, the quadball carrier may elect to stay where they are when play is stopped or move to any position on the nearest restrictor line in the direction of their team’s keeper zone line from the spot of the foul. The fouled player is given the ball and play then resumes as normal.
      1. If the fouled player is beat or comes off broom during the advantage call, they will begin play remounted, but they must return to an eligible spot on a restrictor line, and do not have the option of staying where they were when the stoppage occurred.
      2. For the purpose of this rule, the opponent’s keeper zone line will be treated as a valid restrictor line.
      3. All other players remain where they were at the time of the stoppage and, if knocked out before the stoppage, continue to be knocked out.
      4. Play is resumed by the head referee.

Section VI – Delayed Penalties

1. Delayed Penalties
   All blue, yellow, and red card penalties called by officials other than the head referee are considered delayed penalties.
   1. If the head referee also sees and calls the foul themselves, then it is not treated as a delayed penalty.
   2. If play is stopped under this procedure and no cards are assessed as a result, it shall be treated as though it was not a delayed penalty.
2. Calling a Delayed Penalty
   1. If an official other than the head referee sees a player or team staffer commit a foul, that official raises their hand and play continues as a delayed penalty.
   2. The assistant referee may send the fouling player back to hoops during the delay if the situation warrants.
   3. The referee visually and verbally signals to the head referee that a foul has occurred and which team committed the foul.
      1. If the head referee determines that it is appropriate to immediately stop play, the head referee may do so.
      2. If the head referee determines that it is appropriate to immediately stop play, the head referee may do so.
         1. If the head referee continues play as in an advantage situation, they shall raise their own arm as well.
   4. After all penalties are adjudicated, play is restarted.