High Foot is a term used in Football to determine if the defender would have taken a penalty or an indirect free kick. This would depend on whether the player is in contact or not. If he is in contact with another player, then a penalty should be served, however, if there's no contact, then the player will be awarded an indirect free-kick. The referee would also have to watch closely if the defender is closer to the attacker.
What the Referee Should Watch Out For?
This would depend on every situation. If Player 1 is diving for a header and Player 2 id in contact with Player 1, then the referee would be concerned if Player 2 had hit Player 1. If this is the case, then the referee should have given Player 2 either a yellow or red card, depending on the situation's intensity.
High Foot as a Dangerous Play
It's always the referee's job to determine if the high foot is an intentional act of physical or attempted. If the player has truly attempted this attack, then NCAA and FIFA have a written guideline prepared for it. This is an act of violence because it causes an injury to any player. The referee should look out if the correct rule was being applied to the player. If this shows a threat, then the player would be removed automatically from the game.
Early Rules of High Foot
Way back in the 1900s, acts of tripping or pushing are punishable and deemed illegal, however, everyone seemed to quiet with dangerous play. If the attacker kicks the ball being still in the hands of the goalkeeper, then the referee can warrant a sanction or give the attacker a yellow card. As of today's rules, the current penalty would be an indirect free kick if there's an actual contact is made with the foot of the player. This would escalate into something more serious if the player is not penalized.
Misconceptions of High Foot
There are general rules that they needed to follow to avoid high foot. Misconceptions about exhibiting bicycle kicks. This technique is allowed unless if the player is in very close contact with the exhibitor. If no one is in close with the player, then it won't be considered as a dangerous play. Another technique that was misconceptualized is the high kick or kicking above the waist level, in which the exhibitor must measure his proximity to another player first before he exhibits this.
