Lesson 4 of 5 · 3 min
A yellow card is a warning that follows you for the rest of the match. A red card changes the match itself.
A yellow card is a formal caution for offences like a reckless challenge, deliberately stopping a promising attack, persistent fouling, or dissent. The player stays on. What changes is their margin: a second yellow in the same match becomes a red, so a cautioned player has to defend more carefully for the rest of the game, and the opposition know it.
A red card, for serious foul play, violent conduct, or denying an obvious goalscoring opportunity, removes the player from the match entirely. Crucially, the team cannot bring a substitute on in their place. They finish the game with ten players, which is what makes a sending-off a tactical event and not only a disciplinary one.
A team down to ten almost always sacrifices a forward rather than a defender, drops deeper, and defends in a more compact block, accepting less of the ball in exchange for keeping their shape intact. You will meet the same trade-off again in the defending and game-management modules, where holding a compact block is a deliberate choice rather than something forced on you.
Try it
When a team goes down to ten, watch which player comes off at the next substitution. It is almost never a defender.
Quick check
What happens to a team that has a player sent off?
Key takeaways