A rouge in Canadian football is a one-point score awarded when a kick enters the opponent’s goal area and the receiving team does not get the ball back out. It most often happens on a missed field goal, punt, or kickoff.
The rule rewards a kick that pins the opponent deep, but it also gives the receiving team a way to prevent the point: return the ball out of the goal area. Here’s how that works, when a rouge is scored, and how it differs from other points on the scoreboard.
what is a rouge in canadian football?
A rouge, also called a single, is one point awarded to the kicking team when its kick enters the opponent’s goal area and the receiving team does not return the ball into the field of play. The goal area is the Canadian football equivalent of the end zone.
The ball must be kicked for a rouge to be possible. A player carrying or passing the ball into the goal area does not score a rouge; those plays may lead to a touchdown instead. The key question is what happens to a kicked ball after it reaches the goal area.
If the receiving team carries the ball out, there is no rouge. If the ball becomes dead there without being returned, the kicking team gets one point. A ball is dead when the play ends under the rules—for example, when a player is down or the ball goes out of bounds.
That is the basic rule behind the score you may see recorded as “1” or “single.” The precise situation can involve a punt, kickoff, or missed field-goal attempt, but the result is the same: one point for the kicking team if the ball is not brought out.
How a rouge is scored on a kick
A rouge is most familiar after a missed field goal, but it can also follow a punt or kickoff. In each case, the kick has to reach the opponent’s goal area, and the receiving team must fail to return the ball out before the play ends.
| Play | How a rouge can happen | Best way to avoid it |
|---|---|---|
| Missed field goal | The kick enters the goal area and becomes dead there without a return. | Run or advance the ball out of the goal area. |
| Punt | The punt enters the goal area and is not returned out before the play ends. | Catch or recover the ball and bring it out, if there is a safe return opportunity. |
| Kickoff | The kickoff reaches the goal area and is not returned out. | Return the ball out when the return is available and safe. |
A missed field goal is not automatically a rouge. If the ball falls short of the goal area, or the receiving team returns it out, the kicking team does not get the single. A ball that enters the goal area and is then returned into the field remains in play until the return ends.
The same principle applies if a kick travels through the goal area and out of bounds without being returned. The kick has reached the area, and the receiving team has not brought it out. The official’s ruling depends on where the ball goes and how the play ends, but the basic outcome can still be a rouge.
What the receiving team can do to stop a rouge
The receiving team can prevent the point by returning the ball out of its goal area. The return may be made by running with the ball or advancing it in another legal way. Once the ball is out, the single is no longer the result of that play; the return continues until the ball becomes dead.
That does not mean the player should attempt a return every time. A return can expose the team to a tackle deep in its own end or a turnover. The right choice depends on the ball’s position, the coverage, and the returner’s room to move.
- Locate the ball. Identify whether it is still in the goal area and whether it is live. A ball that is already dead cannot be returned.
- Check the return lane. Look for space to advance the ball and for defenders closing in. A clear path matters more than a hopeful attempt through traffic.
- Bring the ball beyond the goal line. The return must get the ball out of the goal area to prevent the single. Merely touching or catching it there is not enough.
- Secure the ball and finish the play. Protect it from a fumble, then continue until the play is whistled dead. A return that ends in a turnover can put the opponent in a stronger position.
There is an important difference between catching a kick and returning it out. A player can catch the ball in the goal area and still concede a rouge if the play ends there. The ball has to be advanced out before it becomes dead.
Rouge vs. touchdown, field goal, and safety
Canadian football uses several scoring plays, and the rouge is the one that awards a point for an unreturned kick. It is not a smaller touchdown or a field goal. Each score comes from a different action and is worth a different number of points.
| Score | Points | What causes it | Simple distinction |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rouge or single | 1 | A kick enters the opponent’s goal area and is not returned out. | Scored on the kick’s result in the goal area. |
| Field goal | 3 | A place kick passes between the uprights and above the crossbar. | The kick goes through the goalposts. |
| Touchdown | 6 | A player carries, catches, or recovers the ball in the opponent’s goal area under scoring rules. | The team gains possession in the goal area through a play, not an unreturned kick. |
| Safety touch | 2 | The team in possession is responsible for the ball becoming dead in its own goal area under specified conditions. | Usually penalizes the team backed up in its own goal area. |
A rouge and a safety can both involve a ball becoming dead in a goal area, but they are not the same score. A rouge is typically one point for the team that kicked the ball into the opponent’s goal area. A safety is generally two points for the defense when the offense is responsible for the ball becoming dead in its own goal area.
A field goal also involves a kick, but it must pass through the uprights. If a field-goal attempt misses and reaches the opponent’s goal area, the play may instead result in a rouge if the receiving team does not return it out. So a missed kick can still add a point, even though it did not score a field goal.
Why Canadian football has the single
The rouge gives a kicking team a point for sending the ball deep and keeping it there. That creates a practical choice for the receiving team: attempt a return, or accept the point and avoid a risky run. The possibility of a single can affect decisions on punts, kickoffs, and missed field goals.
It also means that a kick’s value is not limited to whether it produces a field goal. A team may use a punt to push its opponent back, and a kick that reaches the goal area can carry a scoring consequence. The receiving team must weigh field position against the risk of conceding one point.
That added scoring option is one of the features that distinguishes Canadian football from American football. In American football, a ball entering the end zone on a kick does not normally award the kicking team a point simply because the receiving team fails to run it out. Canadian rules make the unreturned kick a scoring play.
The term “single” describes the point value. “Rouge” is the traditional name used in Canadian football. You may hear either term in a broadcast or see “single” in a box score; both refer to the same one-point play.
Common misunderstandings about a rouge
“Any ball in the end zone is a rouge.”
No. The scoring play is tied to a kick entering the opponent’s goal area and not being returned out. A pass or run into the goal area follows the rules for a touchdown, not a rouge.
“A missed field goal always gives the other team a point.”
No. The attempt has to reach the goal area, and the ball must not be returned out before the play ends. A short miss that never reaches the goal area does not produce a rouge.
“The receiving team has to touch the ball to concede the point.”
Not necessarily. The key issue is whether the ball is returned out of the goal area. A kick can become dead there without the receiving team making a return, and that can award a single to the kicking team.
“The point belongs to the team that had the ball last.”
In the typical rouge situation, the point goes to the team that kicked the ball into the opponent’s goal area. The receiving team’s chance to return it out is what determines whether that kick results in a single.
One useful detail for viewers: watch the goal line, not just whether the kick is caught. If the returner secures the ball but is tackled in the goal area, the team may still give up the point. If the returner gets the ball out first, the rouge is avoided and the play continues.
How to read a rouge on the scoreboard
A rouge adds one point to the kicking team’s score. If the score changes by one after a kick that did not go through the uprights, a single may be the reason. The play-by-play or scoring summary can confirm whether it was recorded as a rouge.
Do not confuse a one-point change with a conversion after a touchdown. Canadian teams can score one point by kicking a convert after a touchdown, but that point follows a touchdown and is a separate scoring play. A rouge comes from an unreturned kick into the opponent’s goal area.
For a quick check, ask three questions: Was the ball kicked? Did it enter the opponent’s goal area? Did the receiving team return it out before the play ended? If the answers are yes, yes, and no, the play can be a rouge.
What to watch for during a game
When a field-goal attempt misses, follow the ball all the way into or past the goal area. The returner’s decision may determine whether the kicking team adds one point. A kick that seems like a harmless miss can therefore change the score.
On punts and kickoffs, look for whether the ball is caught, allowed to bounce, or carried out. The result depends on where the ball ends and whether the returner advances it beyond the goal line. If the returner stays in the goal area until the play is over, the kicking team may earn the single.
Keep the distinction simple: a rouge is one point for an unreturned kick into the opponent’s goal area. The return is the part that can prevent it. Once you know to watch for that, the scoring rule is much easier to follow.
A rouge is one point for the kicking team when its kick reaches the opponent’s goal area and the receiving team does not return the ball out. It can follow a missed field goal, punt, or kickoff, but a return out of the goal area prevents the single.
Next time a kick enters the end zone, watch whether the returner gets the ball across the goal line. That one detail tells you whether the play may add a rouge to the scoreboard.