Kasala - a New Sport
The new sport of Kasala was created by Udochukwu Lawrence Iwu from Nigeria in 2020. Kasala is a football game played by two teams with no goal posts (the goal areas take the place of the goal posts). It is a football game that favors dribbling, possession and teamwork more than shooting. Devoid of goal posts, players score by dribble past defenders and getting into the opponents goal fully in control of the ball.
Equipment Required: jersey, shorts, shin guards, stockens and cleats.
Sport Details
The Pitch:
Kasala football pitch comprises the midfield, penalty area and the goal area.
The length of the pitch is 96 yards (minimum) and 120 yards (maximum) while the width of the pitch is between 45 yards and 62 yards. Smaller pitches can be used for training and unofficial games.
The two Goals must be equal with each allocated 5 to 8 yards depending on the length of the pitch.
14 yards from the goal line out into the field is the penalty area.
33 yards from the goal line out into the field is the offside line (the offside rule applies within this area). Short flags may be mounted at the four points where the goal lines intersect the touchlines. Any flag can be used; club, country or advert flags.
Rules of The Game
1: The ball:
The ball must be spherical in shape with a circumference of 26 to 28 inches, made of leather or any similar material. Smaller balls suitable for teenagers or children can be used for youth games, training or competition as the case may be.
2: Number of players:
Standard matches consist of two teams. Each team consists of 9 players.
3: Player's equipment:
Each player must put on a jersey, shorts, shin guards, stockens and cleats. The referee can send out any player whose dressing does not appear satisfactory to prepare well before coming back to the pitch.
4. The referee:
The referee is the officiator of the game, his/her decision is final, and his word is law. The referee may discipline anyone who questions his actions in the course of the game (both players and coaches) even after the final whistle using the yellow or red card.
5: Assistant referees:
Assistant referees work together with the referee to achieve a desired result. They will signal the referee (using a flag) when the ball goes out of the pitch, a player is offside, a foul is committed or goal is scored. Assistant referees are two in number (one on each touchline).
6: Match duration:
Kasala football match comprises of two 45-minute halves (extra time is added at the end of each half at the refereeâ s discretion). Between the two halves is a 15-minute half-time period. The extra time added after every 45-minute period is determined by the referee who considers time wasted during the game.
7: Kick-off:
The team to kick-off the game is determined by the referee by tossing a coin. The winner of the toss takes the kick-off and chooses the side of the pitch from where it prefers to start the game. The other team will kick-off the second half (teams are mandated to switch sides at halftime). At kick-off, the ball is placed at the center of the pitch and no player is allowed to move beyond the ball (center of the pitch) except the player taking the kick-off. Any team that concedes a goal restarts the game with a kick-off. Players can move to where they like after kick-off.
8: Scoring goals:
Goals are scored when players successfully find their way to opponents goal with the ball. The goal scorer must be the last person to touch the ball outside the opponents goal and the first to touch the ball in the opponentâ s goal (only intentional touches are considered which can be on the ground or in the air with any part of the body other than the hand). Running into the goal to receive a pass doesnâ t qualify for a goal. Goals are counted at the end of the match to determine the winner of the match or a stalemate.
9: Offside:
At the very time the ball is passed to an attacking player by his team mate, (the attacker having crossed the opponentâ s offside line), he must be level or anywhere not beyond the last defender of the opposition. However, if a player in offside position is not involved with the play and does not in anyway interrupt the play, the offside rule does not apply.
When an attacking player receives the ball from the opponent, offside rule does not apply.
When an attacking player receives the ball from his teammate who is level or in front of him, he is onside (not offside).
Offside rule is active between the goal lines and the offside lines (does not apply in the goal area or midfield).
10: Goal kick:
When a team plays the ball out of the pitch through the opponents end of the pitch, a goal kick is awarded to the opponent.The ball is placed anywhere inside the goal area and the set piece taker kicks the ball back into play at the sound of the whistle. At goal kick, the opposing team is not allowed to enter the goal area or challenge the kicker. If such happens, the goal kick will be retaken.
11. Yellow and red cards:
Any player or coach shown red card is sent out of the arena immediately and the team cannot be able to replace him/her. Disciplinary measures can follow depending on the offense committed.Yellow card is shown to players to warn or caution them. A second yellow card will result in a red card and the player involved sent off.
12: Kick-in/Throw-in:
If a player kicks the ball out of the pitch via any of the touchlines, a kick-in or throw-in is awarded to the opponent. The set piece is taken by placing the ball on the ground from where it left the pitch and kicking it back into the pitch (kick-in) or throwing it back into play with the hand (throw-in) from where it left the pitch. Be it throw-in or kick-in, the set piece is to be taken from outside the pitch.
A goal cannot be scored directly from a kick-in or throw-in. At least three players from the attacking team must touch the ball before scoring.
13: Penalty:
There are two types of Penalties in Jungle football (Kasala); Double rush and Rush.
Double rush:
A double rush is awarded to the opponent if any player kicks the ball out of the pitch from any of the lines within his/her own goal area.
The set piece is taken by two players against two defenders. The ball is placed at the penalty spot in the midfield, no player other than those involved in the set piece must be seen anywhere on the pitch between the ball and the end of the goal area involving the set piece. At the sound of the whistle, one of the attacking players passes the ball to the other and the two must advance immediately with the ball towards the opponent's goal to score while the two defenders tries to stop them. The penalty is missed if for any reason the ball goes out of the pitch or any of the attackers commits a foul. The defending team is awarded a goal-kick if the penalty is missed.
If any of the defenders commits a foul against any of the attackers, a Rush is awarded to the opponent and the defender may be booked depending on the enormity of the foul.
The penalty is also missed if any of the attacking players is tackled or challenged inside the midfield between the two offside lines. The set piece takers must move the ball fast from the spot past the offside line before the defenders catch up with them for a tackle and if for any reason the ball goes back to the midfield, the penalty is missed.
Rush
A penalty (a rush) is awarded to the opponent if a player commits a foul in his/her penalty area or goal area. The foul can be handling the ball intentionally, kicking, pulling or bringing down an opponent.
The rush is taken by one player against one defender.The ball is placed at the penalty spot in the midfield, no player other than the two involved in the set piece must be seen anywhere in the pitch between the ball and the end of the goal area involving the set piece.
At the sound of the whistle, the attacking player drives the ball towards the defender in a bid to score a goal while the set piece defender tries to stop him/her.
Before the sound of the whistle the defender must stand anywhere within the goal area while the attacker must position close to the ball facing the defender.
The penalty is missed if for any reason the ball goes out of the pitch, goes back to the midfield after crossing the offside line or the attacker commits a foul.
14: Direct and indirect free kicks:
There are two types of free kicks, direct and indirect. The referee raises up his hand to signal an indirect free kick before it is taken. A player who receives a pass from a direct free kick is permitted to score but in the case of indirect free kick, he must pass it on to another player who passes it on to another or back to him/her before a goal can be scored validly.
If a team commits foul between the penalty line and the offside line in their own half, an indirect free kick is awarded to the opponent and if a team commits foul in the midfield or anywhere in opponentâ s half, a direct free kick is awarded to the opponent.
15. Extra time:
If at fulltime (at the end of second halve) and the result/score of a game that must produce a winner (cup matches, play-offs, knockout games, etc) is still tied, the game proceeds to extra time which consists of two halves of 15 minutes each (a total of 30 minutes). Also if at the end of the added extra time and the score is still tied, the game proceeds to â penalty take-onâ just as it is in a normal football match. (Any competition, match, League, etc. that does not want to make use of the extra time and prefers to proceed straight to penalty take-on should agree that before the commencement of the match, league or tournament as the case may be).
16: Penalty take-on:
Penalty take-on is the final solution to decide a Kasala game (where a winner must emerge). The take-on consists of 4 rushes to be taken by each of the two teams (in an alternating order) from the penalty spot (at the center of the pitch).The referee determines the team to begin the rush by tossing a coin (after the two captains must have chosen from the two sides of the coin). All the players involved must be players that were on the field at the end of the game (players from the bench or substituted players are not eligible to participate). Only one side of the pitch is used.The team that scores the most number of goals at the end of the exercise emerges the winner of the game.
Note
Related Pages
- See our large list of other New Sports
- How to Submit a New Sport
- Complete list of unusual sports
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