Offside

An offside position is one in which a player has the head, the body or a foot anywhere inside the opposing half, though standing on the halfway line does not count. Hands and arms are ignored when Offside is judged. The arm is taken to end at the level of the armpit's lower edge, so anything over that line is treated as part of the body.

The exclusion of hands and arms applies to every player on the pitch, goalkeepers included, so a defender's outstretched arm cannot hold an attacker onside any more than an attacker's arm can put him offside.

Beyond the halfway line, a player is in an offside position only when nearer to the opponents' goal line than both the ball and the second-last opponent. Being level with the second-last opponent, or with the last two opponents, is not an offside position. A player with no part of the head, body or feet in the opponents' half cannot be in an offside position at all.

Timing decides the judgement. The position is fixed at the moment a team-mate plays or touches the ball; a touch by an opponent does not count as that reference moment.

Under the Laws of the Game, as recorded no later than 21 October 2026, Offside is penalised only when a player standing in an offside position takes part in active play. Merely being in that position is not enough: the player must touch the ball or interfere with an opponent. The defending side then receives an indirect free kick from the spot where the offence took place.

Source: theifab.com

What counts as involvement

Interference is not limited to touching the ball. A player in an offside position who clearly blocks the goalkeeper's line of vision commits an offside offence. The same applies when a team-mate's shot rebounds off the crossbar and a player in an offside position gains an advantage by playing it. The moment of judgement can also vary: when a goalkeeper throws the ball, the offside position is assessed at the instant the ball leaves the goalkeeper's hand.

The free kick

The indirect free kick is taken where the offence occurred, even if that spot lies in the offending player's own half. Because the kick is indirect, a goal cannot be scored directly from it. If the ball was received inside the goal area, the free kick may be taken from anywhere in that area.

Players off the field

An attacker may step off the field of play, or stay off it, to avoid being involved in active play. Defenders cannot use the same move to catch an opponent offside. A defender who leaves the field without the referee's permission is treated as standing on the goal line or touchline until the next stoppage, or until the ball is played towards the halfway line and is outside the penalty area. A player who comes back onto the field from the goal line is treated as standing on the goal line for offside purposes.

Technology and the "daylight" approach

Automated systems described no later than 31 December 2022 build the offside line from the calculated positions of players' limbs. Their alert triggers whenever an attacker receives the ball after having been in an offside position when a team-mate played it. Under a revised approach, an attacker is onside if at least one part of the body that can be used to score is level with or behind the second-to-last defender. A player is ruled offside only when there is a gap, or "daylight", between them and that defender. The principle is meant to favour attacking play.

Restarts

Offside has no fixed precedence over a foul, deliberate play or a save; when an offside offence and a foul coincide, whichever comes first is penalised. Unlike a deliberate handball, which the term excludes, deliberate play means a player controls the ball and could pass it, clear it or win possession of it.

Deliberate play

A pass, attempt to gain possession or clearance that is inaccurate or unsuccessful still counts as the player in control having deliberately played the ball. One criterion is that the ball travelled from distance and the player had a clear view of it. A defender who had no control of the ball and no possibility of clearing it by kicking is not considered to have played it deliberately. A player in an offside position who receives the ball from an opponent who deliberately plays it commits no offside offence. This holds even when the opponent's deliberate play was a deliberate handball: the attacker is not considered to have gained an advantage unless the opponent's action was a deliberate save.

Save

For offside purposes, a save is when a player stops, or attempts to stop, a ball going into or very close to the goal with any part of the body except the hands or arms, the exception being a goalkeeper within the penalty area. An attacker in an offside position can gain an advantage by playing the ball after a defender's deliberate save. A player in an offside position who plays a ball deliberately saved by an opponent, such as the goalkeeper, is penalised for offside.

In association football, Offside is governed by Law 11 of the IFAB Laws of the Game. Semi-automated offside technology was used at the 2022 FIFA World Cup starting on 21 November 2022.

• 2018: VAR used at the FIFA World Cup in Russia.
• 2021: Semi-automated offside technology trialled at FIFA Arab Cup and FIFA Club World Cup.
• 2026: Canadian Premier League begins alternative offside Law trial.

Video review reached the sport's biggest stage first: VAR technology was used at the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. Semi-automated offside technology was then trialled live during 2021 at the FIFA Arab Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup.

The wording of the rule itself has also been opened to experiment. An offside trial approved by IFAB was decided at its 140th Annual General Meeting. FIFA led the trial, and the Canadian Premier League was chosen as its testing ground. The league was set to begin playing under the alternative offside Law on 4 April 2026.