replay (sports)

A replay (also called a rematch) is the repetition of a match in many sports.

Association football

In association football, replays were often used to decide the winner in a knock-out tournament when the previous match ended in a draw, especially in finals. In 1970, FIFA (the worldwide governing body of the sport) and IFAB (the international rules committee for the sport) allowed penalty shoot-outs to be held if a match ended in a draw after extra time. The penalty shootout made its appearance immediately thereafter. The first instance of a shootout replacing a replay (rather than lots) was the final of the 1976 European championship. The shootout's first use at the World Cup took place in the 1982 semi-finals. Replays are now only used in the early rounds of the English FA Cup tournament, as well as rounds up until the semi-finals in the Scottish Cup are only replayed once, with extra time and penalty shootouts used to decide the tie if the replay ends in a draw. Historically, FA Cup games would be replayed as many times as necessary until one team managed to win - in 1971, a fourth qualifying round match between Alvechurch and Oxford City was replayed five times after the initial match ended 2-2, with Alvechurch winning 1-0 in the fifth replay to settle the tie.

Replays can sometimes also take place on occasion if a team has fielded an ineligible player in the original match, or if a player has been injured as a result of an action by a spectator (such as throwing a coin or a bottle). However, more common consequences for such actions include awarding victory to non-offending teams and/or deducting points from offending teams.

Baseball

In the rare event that a Major League Baseball game ends in a tie, it is replayed if necessary to decide postseason advancement. Tied games count in statistical records, but are not counted in a team's win-loss percentage.

Until the 2020 Major League Baseball season, it was possible for teams to protest games, usually if the manager believed his team was negatively impacted by a consequential umpiring decision that violated MLB rules. If the protest was upheld, the game would be replayed from the "point-of-protest" at a later date. In total, 15 MLB games were partially replayed under this rule, the last such occurrence happening in 2014. Most upheld protests were in the National League. The only case where the American League upheld a protest and ordered a replay was after the famous Pine Tar Incident in 1983. The rule was abolished after the 2019 MLB season, so protests and ensuing replays are no longer possible.

Boxing

In boxing, rematches (referred to as "rematch" and not "replay") have produced some historically significant moments in the sport. Examples include:

*Joe Louis and Max Schmeling
*Jack Dempsey and Gene Tunney (see: The Long Count Fight)
*Sugar Ray Robinson and Jake LaMotta
*Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier (see: Fight of the Century, Muhammad Ali vs. Joe Frazier II, Thrilla in Manila)
* Sugar Ray Leonard and Roberto Durán (see: The Brawl in Montreal, The No Mas Fight)
*Muhammad Ali (Cassius Clay) and Sonny Liston (see Muhammad Ali vs. Sonny Liston)
* Bobby Chacon and Rafael Limon (see: Chacon vs. Limon)
* Marco Antonio Barrera and Érik Morales (see Érik Morales vs Marco Antonio Barrera I, Érik Morales vs Marco Antonio Barrera II, and Érik Morales vs Marco Antonio Barrera III)
*Arturo Gatti and Micky Ward
* Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield (see Evander Holyfield vs. Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield vs. Lennox Lewis II)
* Juan Manuel Márquez and Manny Pacquiao (see Manny Pacquiao vs. Juan Manuel Márquez III and Manny Pacquiao vs. Juan Manuel Márquez IV)

Gaelic games

Replays are often used as tiebreakers in the Gaelic games of hurling, Gaelic football, camogie and ladies' Gaelic football. Extra time, penalty shoot-outs and free-taking shootouts have, in recent years, been increasingly used as tiebreakers to prevent fixture congestion.

Gridiron football

The National Football League has a clause in its rules that allows the commissioner to order a whole or partial replay of a game that has been corrupted by an " extraordinary act." For a partial replay, the game is reset to the point immediately before the play in which the act took place, with all game parameters (time, score, ball position and possession) set to where they were at that point. A full replay discards the result of the previous game altogether and restarts the game from its beginning.

To date, the NFL has never used its extraordinary act clause. The rulebook states that the authority is only to be used in the event that "any club action, non-participant interference, or calamity occurs in an NFL game which the Commissioner deems so extraordinarily unfair or outside the accepted tactics encountered in professional football that such action has a major effect on the result of the game." Former commissioner Pete Rozelle refused on principle to use the provisions. Under commissioner Roger Goodell, the league also opposes using the power, mainly because of the domino effect it could have on the rest of the schedule and the financial ramifications that would result.

Notable replayed games

*The 1909 Scottish Cup Final resulted in a 2-2 draw between Celtic F.C. and Rangers F.C. When the replay resulted in a 1-1 draw, a riot ensued after the crowd learned extra time would not be played. As a result, a second replay was not held and the trophy was not awarded.
*The 1919 New York Pro Football League championship between the Buffalo Prospects and Rochester Jeffersons ended with Buffalo winning 20-0; the original match had ended in a scoreless tie.
*The 1932 NFL Playoff Game can be seen as a replay, since the two teams had tied earlier in the year and the extra game was needed to decide the league championship.
*The UEFA Euro 1968 Final between Italy and Yugoslavia ended 2-0; the original match ended in a 1-1 draw after extra time.
*The 51st National High School Baseball Championship Game ( Japan) between Matsuyama Shogyo and Misawa ended 4-2; the original match was declared a 0-0 draw after 18 innings.
*A 1972 Louisiana High School Athletic Association Class AAAA football semifinal playoff between Monroe Neville and host New Orleans