Withdrawal (sports)

In various sports, a forfeit is a method in which a match automatically ends and the forfeiting team loses.

There are two distinct forms of forfeiture. One occurs when a team is unable to meet the basic standards for playing the game, either before the game begins or as a result of actions that happen during the match. In such a case, the team not forfeiting wins the match. The other is punitive forfeiture, in which a team has been found to have broken the rules of a sanctioning body during a match they have won and must have the results stricken from the record; whether or not the other team receives a win in such a case depends on the rules of that body.

Both teams must have at least seven players at the beginning of the match per the IFAB/FIFA rules. When a team has fewer than seven players, the match cannot start or continue. When the number of players in a team falls definitely below seven (e.g. by five players sent off with red cards, or by injured players with no substitutions left, etc.), the match is forfeited. Forfeits are also used as ex post disciplinary sanctions by governing bodies.

A forfeited match is handled differently in various competitions; FIFA Disciplinary Code punishes the team sanctioned with a forfeit with a 3–0 loss (but the result on the pitch is upheld if the goal difference at the end of the match was greater than three).

In rare cases, baseball games are forfeited, usually in the event when a team is no longer able to play.

In basketball rules published by FIBA, a forfeit and default are two different things. A team will forfeit if:

A forfeit results in loss for the offending team, a score of 20−0, and in tournaments that use the FIBA points system for standings, 0 points. Furthermore, in FIBA tournaments that use a two-game home-and-away series (two-legged tie) or a best-of-three playoff format, a team that forfeits any of the games loses the series by forfeit.

In FIBA tournaments, a forfeit is different from a default, a situation if during the game, the team has fewer than two players (e.g. one or zero players) on the playing court ready to play. In this case, the opponents are awarded with a win, and if they are leading, the score at the time of stoppage will be the final score; if it they are not leading, they are awarded with a 2−0 win. Furthermore, in FIBA tournaments that use a two-game home-and-away series, a team that defaults in either game loses the series by default.

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