Football is a team sport which consists of 2 halves, each 45 minutes long (total 90 minutes). As a rule, the referee adds a certain time period to each of these halves, which is deemed a part of these halves. The break between 1st and 2nd halves is 15 minutes. Two teams participate in the game with 11 players per side, including the goalkeeper. The game is held on a grass field. The objective of the game is to hit the other team’s goal by passing the ball to each other, in other words to score a goal. Transfers are made mostly by feet, using hands is not permitted. The winner is the team which scores more goals during the game. If during 2 halves the teams score goals in equal amounts, then according to the regulations 2 cases apply:
1. A draw is recorded, which occurs on the stages of those tournaments or competitions where points are calculated: 3 points are given to the team for a win, 1 point for a draw, and no points for a defeat. This outcome is also possible in friendly matches.
2. An overtime of 2 halves, each 15 minutes long (total 30 minutes), is assigned. If the overtime fails to determine a winner, penalty shootouts are assigned to determine the winner of the match. This case occurs on those stages of the tournaments or competitions where no points are awarded to the teams, and the purpose is to determine which team wins the match and which team passes to the next stage of the tournament (e.g. 1/8 finals, 1/4 finals, 1/2 finals, finals, etc.), or which team becomes the final winner (if it wins in the finals).
During the match the teams are allowed to substitute the players. In official meetings the number of such replacements is 3, in friendly matches that number can be increased by mutual agreement.
Player is in "offside" position if at the moment of getting the transfer from his teammate
1. He is in the opponent's half of the field,
2. He is nearer to his opponents’ goal line than both the ball and the second last opponent (the goalkeeper is
usually the last).
In case of rule violations a shot is assigned. For rough violations a player is shown a yellow card, and for the most flagrant violations he is shown a red card. In case of a 2nd yellow card the player is shown a red card. A player with a red card is removed from the field. In case a player violates rules in his half of the field, penalty shots are assigned in favor of the opposing team.
In case the ball goes out of the bound ("out"), the opponent of the team which last touched the ball receives a free kick, and in case the ball goes out of the bound the front line(the gate) either goal kick or corner kick is assigned (depending on which team last touched the ball).
Tennis is a sport usually played either between 2 players (singles) or between 2 teams of 2 players each (doubles). Tennis court is divided in two by a net stretched on a certain height across the court.
Tennis tournament consists of sets, which in their turn consists of games, and games consists of points. Players take up places on opposite sides of the net. One player is designated the server and puts the ball into play, in other words that player serves. The opposing player is the receiver. The object of players is to send the ball over the net and into the opponent’s court so that the opposing player cannot return the ball, meanwhile the ball must not get out of the court. The opposing player must return the ball before it touches the ground more than once. The ball can also be returned without touching the ground. If the server makes a mistake, his/her opponent gets a point, and the score is 15-0. In case of another mistake the score is 30-0, then 40-0, after which a won point means a won game: 1-0. Obviously, during a game the score can be 15-15, 30-15, 30-30, 40-30, etc. It must be noted that in case of a 40-40 tie in a game it continues until one of the players gets a 2 points advantage over the opponent. Score is not calculated in numbers after 40. The player to first win 6 games (only if the opposing player won no more than 4 games) wins the set (e.g. 6:1, 6:2 etc.). If the game score is 5:5 one of the players must win the next two consecutive games (i.e. 7:5). If the game score is 6:6 “tie break” is played until 7 points are won (but with an advantage of no less than 2 points, e.g. 7:5). If a player wins tie-break, he/she wins the set with 7:6 score.
To win a tennis match players must win 2 sets (in all women’s competitions and most of men’s competitions) or 3 sets (in the most prestigious tournaments like the Grand Slam, Davis Cup). At the end of the most prestigious tournaments the decisive set (i.e. if the set score is 1:1 (for women) or 2:2 (for men)) tie-break is not played and the match continues until one of the players gets a 2 games advantage.
Tennis is played on various courts, e.g. clay, grass courts.
Basketball is a team sport with 2 teams of 5 players per side. The substitutions are unlimited. The objective of the game is to shoot the ball through the opponent team’s hoop (basket) by passing the ball by hand between players. Points are given for shooting the ball through the hoop. The winner is the team which earns the most points at the end of the game. A field goal earns 2 points for the shooting team if a player is in a close or middle distance, and 3 points (known commonly as a 3 pointer or three) are given if the player is behind the three-point line. Free throw is worth 1 point.
A game of basketball consist of four quarters, each 10 (European basketball) or 12 (American basketball, NBA) minutes long. Only "actual playing time" is calculated. There are intervals of 2 minutes each between the periods. There is a 15 minutes interval between the 3rd and 4th periods (second half). If the score is tied at the end of playing time, 5 minutes long overtime is assigned. In case the score is tied at the end of the overtime, extra quarters are assigned until the winner is determined.
Volleyball is a team sport with 2 teams of 6 players per side. Volleyball court is divided into two halves by a net stretched on a certain height across the court. The object of the game is to send the ball by hand over the net in order to bounce it on the opponent’s court, and to prevent the same effort by the opponent.
A volleyball match has no time limitation and is played in sets. Each set continues until one of the teams scores 25 points. In case the team doesn’t win by two points (25Ö‰24) by that time, the play continues until one team wins by two points or more. Teams play until one of them wins 3 sets, so the maximum amount of sets is 5 (3:2). In case of 2:2 score the defining 5th set continues until one of the teams scores 15 points while keeping the aforementioned mandatory condition of winning by two points (at least 15:13). In case of 15:14 score teams play until one of them gets a 2 points advantage over the opponent.
Handball is a team sport played between 2 teams of 7 players per side, including the goalkeeper. The objective of the game is to pass the ball by using hands, reach the 6-meter line at the opponent’s goal and throw the ball into the other team’s goal. Players are forbidden to overpass the 6-meter line to goal area, but they are allowed to jump above it when taking a shot on goal. The winner is the team that scores more goals into the opponent’s goal.
A handball match consists of two periods of 30 minutes, with 10 minutes intervals between the periods. A tied score is possible, however if a winner is required 2 overtime halves of 5 minutes each are appointed (with a 1-minute break). Should the first overtime not decide the game either, the second overtime with the same conditions is appointed after 5 minutes.
Handball rules provide 3 types of personal sanctions:
1. Warning (yellow card),
2. 2-minute suspension,
3. Disqualification (red card, suspension till the end of the match).
Handball allows a 7-meter line throw, in which case player has a right to throw the ball from the 7-meter line.
Baseball is a team sport played between two teams of 9 (sometimes 10) players per side. The objective of the game is to earn more points than the opponent. In each match both teams play in turns on offense/batting (batting the ball) and defense/fielding (serving the ball). Points are earned when players of the offense side touch all the bases arranged at the corners of a 90-foot (27.4 m) field before the ball is returned.
Each game is played in innings, in every inning both teams play in turns on offense and defense. Usually the game consists of 9 innings. If there is a tie at the end of the last inning, play continues into extra innings. Baseball doesn’t allow a draw, extra innings are appointed until there is a winner.