A substitution foul will be called when a team incorrectly uses their substitution players. During a game, there must always be four substitute players in the team’s designated subbing area and six players in the playing area. The only time teams do not need four people in the sub box is during half time, between points, or during a team timeout. If at any point outside those times there are fewer than four players in the sub box, a subbing foul will be called and one player of the offending team will serve a one minute penalty.
If teams do not have a full team of ten players, meaning they will have fewer than four subs, the chief referee should be notified before the game begins. If the team fails to do this, the chief referee may assume the team had more than six players in the game and call a substitution foul. Similarly, if a player must exit the water for any reason (such as broken gear) during the game, they should not leave the substitution area until the chief referee has been notified.
Demo video coming soon!
This foul should be called if a team has more than six players in the playing area during play. The Chief Referee may decide to delay stopping the game to call an illegal substitution. The Chief Referee should use their discretion regarding if the illegal substitution is actively giving advantage to the fouling team. The signal for a substitution foul is hand over hand rotation.
Substitution fouls should not be called if the game is between points, in half time or in a team timeout.
Real-life video coming soon.
ILLEGAL SUBSTITUTION