2025/2026 IFAB "Law Changes":
-Goalkeepers MUST play the ball within 8 seconds of handling the ball
-Referees will raise their hand, and verbally countdown the final 5 seconds
-If the goalkeeper doesn't play the ball within 8 seconds, the infraction will result in a
corner kick for the opposing team
Standard "Laws Of The Game" Clarifications:
First and foremost, what someone sees in a professional game (International, Premier League, MLS, etc.) does not mean that is the rule, or what is stated in the FIFA Laws Of The Game. For youth soccer, we follow the FIFA Laws Of The Game, with a few minor tweaks.
-Law 13 of the Laws Of The Game clearly states that players MUST grant 10 yards of space on any free kick, and does not require a player to ask for their space.
-Players who stand directly in front of the ball are committing 3 separate infractions;
1. Not following Law 13.
2. Delay of game.
3. Disrespecting “the spirit of the game”.
a. Failure to abide by this policy, per the Laws Of The Game is a yellow card.
b. We will mandate that our referees are noting the mandatory granting of 10
yards of space in their pre-game speeches.
i. We will not issue a yellow card for anyone NOT respecting the distance, but will send them to the sidelines for a substitution, to their coach, for an occurrence.
1. Of note, a combination of this infraction along with other infractions (reckless fouls, speaking to the referee in a derogatory nature, etc.) will result in a yellow card.
-Following the scoring of a goal, the goal scoring team’s players are NOT permitted to retrieve the ball out of the net to run it back to midfield. These instances are also cause for a yellow card.
a. This is a player safety issue that has been addressed by FIFA over the last few years, after multiple instances/incidents of fighting, fouls, and overall disruption on the field following a goal scored.
b. The referee has the official time on the field, and can easily stop the clock if they feel that the team in the lead is purposely delaying the restart of the game by not retrieving the ball, and moving it back into play with haste.
Reminders:
FIFA makes changes to the “Laws Of The Game” every year. Referees are required to attend re-certification classes every year, in order to stay on top of these changes, and often times coaches are NOT aware of each change.
1. Offsides rules have been changed numerous times over the course of the last 5 years. Pre-covid, a player could NOT be called offsides in their own half. With the law change a few years ago, a player who starts in an offside position on the offensive side of the field, who comes back onsides to receive a pass is NOW considered offsides.
2. Hand ball rules change every year, and FIFA is constantly changing the verbiage. For instance, in 2025, they changed the rule to state that a ball knocked from 1 part of the body directly to the hand is no longer “handling.” So, technically, a ball from the head or foot directly to the hand is not considered “handling” for FIFA purposes.
3. Balls played back to a keeper by a pass from a teammate, then directly picked up by the keeper’s hands, have always been an infraction, resulting in an indirect kick to the opposing team. 2 years ago, they changed the law to allow for a keeper “misplaying” a ball played back to them to no longer be an infraction.