Rules→Back-Pass & Goalkeeper Handling

Law 12·goalkeeping

Back-Pass & Goalkeeper Handling

A goalkeeper may not handle the ball after a team-mate has deliberately kicked it to them, or after receiving it directly from a team-mate's throw-in, and the restart is an indirect free kick. There is an exception that decides most real incidents: if the goalkeeper has clearly kicked or attempted to kick the ball to release it into play, they may then handle it.^4, ^6, ^7, ⁸

Key points

✓No handling after a team-mate deliberately kicks the ball to the goalkeeper, or after a team-mate's throw-in received directly^4, ^6, ^7, ⁸
✓The exception in the same clause: if the goalkeeper has clearly kicked or attempted to kick the ball to release it into play, they may then handle it^4, ⁶
✓So a goalkeeper who tries to clear a back-pass with the foot and miscues may pick the ball up^4, ^6, ⁷
✓The restriction is the deliberate use of the foot, so a headed or chested back-pass may be handled^4, ^6, ⁷
✓Unless it was a deliberate trick to circumvent the Law, which is an indirect free kick and a caution for whoever initiated it^2, ³
✓A genuine deflection off a team-mate's foot is not a back-pass, because the Laws say deliberately kicked^4, ^6, ⁷
✓The goalkeeper may also not handle again after releasing the ball and before another player touches it^4, ⁵
✓Indirect free kick, and no card: handling inside the area when not permitted carries no disciplinary sanction on its own¹
✓An indirect free kick to the attacking team inside the goal area is taken from the nearest point on the goal area line, not from the spot^9, ¹⁰

Read the full rule

Scenarios

Scenario 1

Defender kicks the ball back and the goalkeeper picks it up

Foul

Under pressure, a defender plays a deliberate pass back to the goalkeeper with their foot. The goalkeeper gathers it in their hands without trying to play it first.

Correct call: Indirect free kick to the attacking team. The ball was deliberately kicked to the goalkeeper by a team-mate and the goalkeeper handled it without having kicked or attempted to kick it away first, so the exception does not apply. No card: handling inside the area when not permitted carries no disciplinary sanction on its own.

Common mistake: Allowing play because it looked like a normal defensive action. The deliberate use of the foot by the team-mate is what triggers the restriction, and how routine it looked is not part of the test.

Law^1, ^4, ^6, ⁷

Scenario 2

Goalkeeper miscues a clearance from a back-pass, then picks it up

No foul

A team-mate plays the ball back with their foot. The goalkeeper swings at it to clear, scuffs the contact and the ball rolls a couple of yards away. The goalkeeper follows it and picks it up.

Correct call: Play continues, no offence. The clause forbidding handling after a deliberate back-pass carries the exception 'unless the goalkeeper has clearly kicked or attempted to kick the ball to release it into play'. The attempt happened, so the restriction has been discharged and the goalkeeper may handle.

Common mistake: Giving the indirect free kick because a back-pass was handled. This is the exception most often dropped when the rule is quoted, and dropping it converts a bad touch into a free kick six yards out.

Law^4, ^6, ⁷

Scenario 3

Defender heads the ball back

No foul

A defender heads a ball back towards their own goalkeeper, who catches it.

Correct call: Play continues. The restriction covers a ball deliberately kicked to the goalkeeper, and a header is not a kick.

Common mistake: Penalising the goalkeeper for handling a headed back-pass. The one thing to watch is whether the defender flicked the ball up to head it deliberately as a way around the rule, which is a separate offence.

Law^2, ^3, ^4, ^6, ⁷

Scenario 4

Defender flicks the ball up and heads it to the goalkeeper

Foul

With no pressure on, a defender lifts the ball with their foot and heads it back to the goalkeeper, who catches it.

Correct call: Indirect free kick, and a caution for the defender. Initiating a deliberate trick for the ball to be passed to the goalkeeper with the head, chest or knee to circumvent the Law is its own offence, and it applies whether or not the goalkeeper handles the ball.

Common mistake: Allowing it because the goalkeeper received a header rather than a kick. The offence is the trick, and it is committed by the outfield player, not the goalkeeper.

Law^2, ³

Scenario 5

Ball deflects off a defender's foot to the goalkeeper

No foul

A cleared ball strikes a defender's boot and loops back to the goalkeeper, who catches it.

Correct call: Play continues. The Laws say deliberately kicked, and a deflection is not a deliberate kick.

Common mistake: Giving an indirect free kick because the ball came off a defender's foot. Whether the pass was deliberate is exactly what the clause asks about.

Law^4, ^6, ⁷

The full rule

The goalkeeper is the only player permitted to handle the ball, and only inside their own penalty area. Two situations remove that permission. A team-mate deliberately kicking the ball to them, and the goalkeeper receiving it directly from a team-mate's throw-in. In both, handling is an indirect free kick. The clause that creates those two restrictions also carries an exception in the same sentence, and it is the part most often left out: the goalkeeper may not handle **unless they have clearly kicked or attempted to kick the ball to release it into play**. So a goalkeeper who takes a back-pass, tries to clear it with the foot and miscues badly may then pick the ball up, because the attempt to release has already happened. Reading the restriction without its exception turns a legal recovery from a bad touch into an indirect free kick in the six-yard box, which is the single most consequential mistake available in this area of the Laws. Two limits on the restriction itself. It is about the deliberate use of the foot: a ball headed or chested back to the goalkeeper is not a kick, and neither is a genuine deflection off a team-mate's foot, because the Laws say deliberately kicked. But a team-mate who flicks the ball up to head or chest it back as a way around the rule has initiated a deliberate trick, which is an indirect free kick and a caution for the player who started it, whether or not the goalkeeper touches the ball with the hands. Separately, the goalkeeper may not touch the ball with the hand or arm again after releasing it and before it has touched another player. Where any of these gives an indirect free kick to the attacking team for an offence inside the goal area, the kick is not taken from the spot: it is taken from the nearest point on the goal area line parallel to the goal line.^1, ^2, ^3, ^4, ^5, ^6, ^7, ^8, ^9, ¹⁰

The law · numbered to match the references above

Law 12 · Handling the ball

1The goalkeeper has the same restrictions on handling the ball as any other player outside the penalty area. If the goalkeeper handles the ball inside their penalty area when not permitted to do so, an indirect free kick is awarded but there is no disciplinary sanction. However, if the offence is playing the ball a second time (with or without the hand/arm) after a restart before it touches another player, the goalkeeper must be sanctioned if the offence stops a promising attack or denies an opponent or the opposing team a goal or an obvious goal-scoring opportunity.

Law 12 · 2. Indirect free kick

2An indirect free kick is awarded if a player:

3initiates a deliberate trick for the ball to be passed (including from a free kick or goal kick) to the goalkeeper with the head, chest, knee etc. to circumvent the Law, whether or not the goalkeeper touches the ball with the hands; the goalkeeper is penalised if responsible for initiating the deliberate trick

4An indirect free kick is awarded if a goalkeeper, inside their penalty area, commits any of the following offences:

5touches the ball with the hand/arm after releasing it and before it has touched another player

6touches the ball with the hand/arm, unless the goalkeeper has clearly kicked or attempted to kick the ball to release it into play, after:

7it has been deliberately kicked to the goalkeeper by a team-mate

8receiving it directly from a throw-in taken by a team-mate

Law 13 · 2. Procedure

9All free kicks are taken from the place where the offence occurred, except:

10indirect free kicks to the attacking team for an offence inside the opponents' goal area are taken from the nearest point on the goal area line which runs parallel to the goal line

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