Handling the ball
The provision as it is printed, and everything on Ruleside that turns on it.
For the purposes of determining handball offences, the upper boundary of the arm is in line with the bottom of the armpit. Not every touch of a player's hand/arm with the ball is an offence.
Verdicts that turn on it 10
Walk the tree to any of these and this clause is part of the answer.
- No handball: arm position justifiablehandball
- No handball: arm in a natural resting positionhandball
- No handballhandball
- No handball: shoulder contacthandball
- Likely no handball: arm out to break the fallhandball
- No handball: arms for balancehandball
- No handball: natural running motionhandball
- No handball: arms tucked in wallhandball
- No handball: arm position not chosenhandball
- Likely no handball: the arm was holding the player uphandball
Explained in the rules library 2
The plain-language pages that build on this provision.
Questions that ask it 6
Points in a walk where the reader is deciding this provision.
- handoff_handball_outsidegoalkeeper-offences
- Did the ball make contact with the player's hand or arm?handball
- Did the ball touch another part of the player's body first, before touching the arm?handball
- Was the contact on the shoulder rather than the arm?handball
- Was the arm's position a risk the player could have seen coming and avoided?handball
- Was the arm on the ground taking the player's weight?handball
The Laws of the Game are published by The IFAB and quoted here for the purpose of explaining the decisions on this site. Ruleside is not affiliated with The IFAB or FIFA. Every clause of Fouls and Misconduct that Ruleside cites.