Goal Kick

A goal kick is awarded when the ball fully crosses the goal line last touched by an attacking player. The ball is in play as soon as it is kicked and clearly moves, and opponents must be outside the penalty area until then. New for 2026/27: a team that unfairly delays a goal kick concedes a corner after a five-second countdown.^7, ^10, ^11, ¹²

Key points

✓Ball is in play as soon as it is kicked and clearly moves, no need to leave the area¹⁰
✓Opponents must be outside the penalty area until the ball is in play¹¹
✓An opponent still inside the area is not the offence on its own: the retake needs them to touch or challenge for the ball before it is in play¹³
✓Any player of the defending team can take a goal kick, not just the goalkeeper⁹
✓Cannot score directly into own goal from a goal kick⁸
✓Ball can be played short to a teammate inside the penalty area¹⁰
✓Unfairly delaying a goal kick triggers a five-second visual countdown, then a corner kick to the opponents^1, ^2, ^3, ^4, ^5, ^12, ^14, ^15, ¹⁷
✓A caution follows only if the player excessively delays the restart after the corner has been awarded^1, ^6, ¹²

Read the full rule

Scenarios

Scenario 1

Teammate receives goal kick inside the penalty area

No foul

The goalkeeper plays a short goal kick to a defender who is standing inside the penalty area.

Correct call: Legal. Since 2019 the ball is in play immediately and can be received inside the area.

Common mistake: Awarding a retake because the ball did not leave the penalty area. The old rule was changed in 2019.

Law¹⁰

Scenario 2

Goalkeeper stalls over a goal kick while leading

Foul

A goalkeeper repeatedly repositions the ball and walks slowly around the goal area while his team protects a narrow lead.

Correct call: The referee whistles and signals a five-second countdown with a raised hand. If the goal kick is not taken within five seconds, a corner kick is awarded to the opposing team.

Common mistake: Assuming the worst outcome is a yellow card and some added time. Since 2026/27 the team loses the restart entirely and concedes a corner, which is a far heavier sanction.

Law^1, ^2, ^3, ^4, ^5, ^12, ^14, ^15, ¹⁷

Scenario 3

Opponent inside area when goal kick is taken

No foul

An opposing attacker remains inside the penalty area when a goal kick is taken and the ball travels out to them.

Correct call: Play continues. Being inside the area is not itself the offence. The Law allows play to continue where opponents had no time to leave, and orders a retake only where an opponent touches or challenges for the ball before it is in play. The ball is in play as soon as it is kicked and clearly moves, so a ball that travels out to a player standing in the area reaches them after that moment.

Common mistake: Retaking automatically because an opponent was inside the area when the kick was taken. Position alone does not force a retake. What does is touching or challenging for the ball during the brief window before it is in play, such as charging the kick down.

Law^10, ^11, ¹³

The full rule

A goal kick restarts play after the ball crosses the goal line having last been touched by an attacker and no goal is scored. Since 2019 the ball is in play as soon as it is kicked and clearly moves, so it no longer needs to leave the penalty area before a team-mate can touch it. Opponents must remain outside the penalty area until the ball is in play. An opponent who is still inside is not automatically an offence: where opponents had no time to leave the referee allows play to continue, and the kick is retaken only where an opponent who was inside, or who entered before the ball was in play, touches or challenges for the ball before it is in play. The goalkeeper most commonly takes goal kicks but any player of the defending team can. A goal can be scored directly from a goal kick, but only against the opposing team. New for 2026/27 is a countdown aimed at deliberate delay. If a player is unfairly delaying the taking of a goal kick for their team, the referee whistles and signals the start of a five-second countdown, counting down visually with a raised hand. If the goal kick has not been taken by the end of the five seconds, a corner kick is awarded to the opposing team, on the side of the field closest to where the goal kick was to be taken. That is worth stating plainly because it is counter-intuitive: delaying your own goal kick hands the opposition a corner. The offending player is cautioned only if they excessively delay the restart after the corner has already been awarded. This sits alongside the other new route to a corner, where a goalkeeper controls the ball with the hands or arms for more than eight seconds.^1, ^2, ^3, ^4, ^5, ^6, ^7, ^8, ^9, ^10, ^11, ^12, ^13, ^14, ^15, ^16, ¹⁷