The edition in force, and how to check it
The Laws change every 1 July. Page 4 of the current edition prints "Effective from 1st July 2026" — that is the proof of vintage, and it is the one to cite. The changes were approved at the 140th IFAB Annual General Meeting on 28 February 2026 in Hensol, Wales, chaired by Mike Jones, President of the Football Association of Wales.
Two reading rules, printed by IFAB itself in the Notes on the Laws of the Game: "If there is any divergence in the wording, the English text is authoritative", and "If there is any divergence between metric and imperial units, the metric units are authoritative" — the metre beats the yard.
mouth returns zero hits, in protest returns zero hits, and Laws 3.1 and 7.5 are still printed in their unamended form. For anything from the April 2026 tranche, cite the changes booklet and the live online Laws, never the PDF. For everything else the PDF is authoritative.A verification trick. The index theifab.com/laws/latest/ returns HTTP 404, which wrongly suggests the resource is gone — but the per-Law sub-paths do resolve: /laws/latest/fouls-and-misconduct/ returns 200. That is the fastest way to check the live Laws against the printed PDF.
What changed in 2026/27
2026/27 is a tempo and behaviour edition. Three new countdowns enter the game, and they change how a coach manages a substitution, a set-piece routine and an injury.
| Law | Change | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Law 3 | Ten seconds for the substituted player to be off the field, from the substitution board being shown or the referee's signal | If exceeded, the substitute may only enter "at the first stoppage after one minute has elapsed". Caution only if the delay is excessive. The referee may waive the limit for injury or safety. |
| Law 3 | Senior 'A' international friendlies: usable substitutes 6 → 8, up to 11 by agreement between the teams | The referee must be informed before the match. The three-opportunity restriction still applies. |
| Law 4 | Accessories are permitted if they are not dangerous and are safely and securely covered | The end of the blanket jewellery ban. See the Law 4 section below. |
| Law 5 | One minute off the field after a player is assessed or treated for injury | Six express exceptions: injured goalkeeper; goalkeeper and outfield player collided; two players of the same team collided; a severe injury; injury caused by an offence for which the opponent is cautioned or sent off; a penalty kick has been awarded and the injured player will take it. |
| Law 5 | Body cameras for match officials — a competition option, no longer a trial | The organiser must supply the cameras and control the footage. |
| Law 5 | Advantage may be applied "when a restart is incorrectly taken and the ball is in play" | Clarification. |
| Law 12 | No caution for DOGSO where the advantage is played and a goal is scored | The card disappears entirely in that specific case. |
| Law 12 | The words "and attackers" added to the DOGSO considerations | ⚠️ There are still four considerations, not five: distance to goal, general direction of play, likelihood of keeping or gaining control of the ball, location and number of defenders and attackers. The change widened the fourth bullet; it did not create a fifth. |
| Law 15 | Five-second visual countdown at throw-ins | If exceeded: throw-in to the opposing team from the same position. |
| Law 16 | Five-second visual countdown at goal kicks | If exceeded: corner kick to the opposing team, on the side closest to where the goal kick was to be taken. |
| Laws 10 and 14 | Accidental double touch at a penalty kick (confirming IFAB Circular no. 31) | Goal → retake; no goal → indirect free kick. The automatic caution for the kicker is removed where kicker and goalkeeper offend simultaneously. |
The second tranche, approved on 28 April 2026. Four provisions, absent from the printed PDF, present in the live Laws:
- Sending-off offence for "covering their mouth when communicating with an opponent in a provocative, derisory or inflammatory manner or situation" — framed explicitly as anti-discrimination enforcement. Competition option.
- Sending-off offence for "leaving the field of play in protest at a decision of the referee", and for instructing or encouraging others to do so — players and team officials. Competition option.
- Law 3.1 re-worded: the seven-player minimum now reads "not including temporary dismissals or one-minute periods off the field of play".
- Law 7.5: a forfeit principle — a team responsible for a match being abandoned because it has fewer than seven players forfeits the match, subject to the competition regulations.
One deadline for a club calendar: the 'Only the captain' protocol — referee dialogue restricted to the captain — has been optional since 2025/26 and becomes compulsory for all competitions starting on or after 1 July 2027. Its 4 m (4.5 yds) zone around the referee applies only to youth, veterans, disability and grassroots football: one non-captain entering it is cautioned for dissent by action; if more than one enters, at least one caution and a mandatory report to the appropriate authorities after the match.
The clause that makes youth formats legal
This is the most useful text in the whole book for an amateur club, and it is not inside a numbered Law. It sits in the front matter, under Notes and modifications → General modifications, pages 20-21 of the 2026/27 book. It is the legal basis for every reduced format in France, Switzerland and Belgium.
IFAB — General modifications, pp. 20-21"All national FAs (and confederations and FIFA) have the option to modify all or some of the following organisational areas of the Laws of the Game for football for which they are responsible."
| Scope | What may be modified |
|---|---|
| All levels of the game | The number of substitutes in official competitions, up to a maximum of five — except in youth football, where the maximum is set by the national association, confederation or FIFA · the use of additional permanent concussion substitutions · implementation of the 'Only the captain' guidelines (compulsory from 1 July 2027). |
| Youth, veterans, disability and grassroots | Size of the field of play · size, weight and material of the ball · width between the goalposts and height of the crossbar from the ground · duration of the two (equal) halves · number of players · use of return substitutes · use of temporary dismissals for some or all cautions · specific requirements for the captain's compulsory armband. |
| Categories | Each national FA sets the age restrictions for youth and veterans football, and determines which competitions are designated 'grassroots'. |
And the hard boundary, printed on p. 17 of the Notes on the Laws of the Game: "apart from the modifications permitted by The IFAB (see 'General modifications'), the Laws must not be modified or changed, except with the permission of The IFAB".
Temporary dismissals, in numbers. IFAB sets their length at 10-15% of total playing time — "e.g. 10 minutes in a 90-minute match; 8 minutes in an 80-minute match" — the same length for every offence. They are available only in youth, veterans, disability and grassroots football, with national FA approval and publication in the competition rules. They apply to all players including goalkeepers, but not to substitutes or substituted players. A player still serving one at the end of the match may take part in kicks from the penalty mark.
The concussion substitute is likewise a competition option: a maximum of one per team per match, permanent, and its use gives the opposing team the option of an additional substitute for any reason. The protocol was approved at the 138th AGM on 2 March 2024 in Scotland.
Law 2: the ball, and what the FIFA marks actually certify
The U6-U9 ball has no FIFA mark to check
One circumference scale. The FIFA bands cluster tightly around Law 2; the size 3 ball the FFF publishes falls entirely to the left of the lowest of them.
The two FFF values for that same size 4 are printed together: they come from two different FFF documents, and neither is a typo.
Law 2 comes down to three numbers, and they are the only ones that apply everywhere:
| Property | Law 2.1 |
|---|---|
| Circumference | 68 to 70 cm |
| Weight | 410 to 450 g — at the start of the match, not out of the box |
| Pressure | 0.6 to 1.1 atmosphere at sea level (600 to 1,100 g/cm²) |
| Marks | Compulsory in FIFA and confederation competitions; a national FA may require one for its own competitions but is not obliged to |
| Advertising | None, except the competition logo or emblem, the competition organiser and the authorised manufacturer's trademark |
A defective ball: stop play and restart with a dropped ball; if it became defective at a restart, the restart is retaken; if during a penalty kick before it touches a player, the crossbar or a post, the kick is retaken.
The three FIFA Quality Programme marks. FIFA Basic targets "minimum standards while ensuring affordability for use at all levels"; FIFA Quality emphasises durability and safety and is "the general level for training and broader use"; FIFA Quality Pro targets "first-class performance, accuracy and safety". One point worth knowing: FIFA Basic has replaced the old International Match Standard (IMS) — balls and surfaces certified to IMS remain eligible "until their certification expires".
What the mark actually certifies. Nine laboratory tests, at 20 ± 2 °C and 65 ± 5% relative humidity after at least 24 hours of conditioning: circumference, sphericity, rebound, water absorption, weighing value, loss of pressure, shape and size retention, balance, material analysis. The published thresholds for a size 5 outdoor ball:
| Test | Quality Pro | Quality | Basic |
|---|---|---|---|
| Circumference | 68.5 – 69.5 cm | 68.0 – 70.0 cm | 68.0 – 70.0 cm |
| Sphericity, max. | 1.5% | 1.8% | 1.8% |
| Rebound at 20 °C | 135 – 155 cm | 125 – 155 cm | 125 – 155 cm |
| Rebound at 5 °C | min. 125 cm | min. 115 cm | min. 115 cm |
| Water absorption, max. | 10% | 10% | 10% |
| Weighing value | 420 – 445 g | 410 – 450 g | 410 – 450 g |
| Loss of pressure, max. | 15% | 20% | 25% |
| Samples tested | 9 | 9 | 6 |
The 2026 test manual tightened two columns against the February 2018 one: loss of pressure went from 20 / 25 / 25% to 15 / 20 / 25%, and sample counts from 10 / 10 / 7 to 9 / 9 / 6. Quality and Quality Pro testing is done by Empa, the Swiss federal materials science and technology laboratory; Basic by Sports Labs Ltd and PFI.
And for children? FIFA's ball programme certifies size 5 and size 4 only for outdoor football. The size-3 ball the FFF publishes for U6 to U9 — "between 57 and 60 cm in circumference and about 300 g" — sits below the FIFA size-4 band (63.5 to 66.0 cm, 350 to 390 g): there is no FIFA quality mark to check on a size-3 ball at all. The legal basis for that national size is the General modifications clause.
Law 4: the players' equipment
Compulsory equipment is five items: a shirt with sleeves, shorts, socks, shinguards, footwear. The rest of Law 4 is a list of details amateur clubs routinely miss before kick-off.
| Point | What Law 4 says |
|---|---|
| Shinguards | Suitable material, appropriate size to provide reasonable protection, covered by the socks. And crucially: "Players are responsible for the size and suitability of their shinguards" — the duty sits with the player. The Laws state no minimum size, thickness or standard. |
| Tape on socks | Any tape or material applied or worn externally must be the same colour as the part of the sock it covers. A routine matchday non-compliance. |
| Undershirts | A single colour matching the main colour of the shirt sleeve, or a pattern exactly replicating the sleeve. |
| Undershorts and tights | The same colour as the main colour of the shorts or of their lowest part; the same for all players of a team. |
| Colours | The two teams must be distinguishable from each other and from the match officials. Each goalkeeper must be distinguishable from other players and the officials; if both goalkeepers' shirts are the same colour and neither has another, "the referee allows the match to be played". |
| Captain's armband | Issued or authorised by the competition organiser, or a single-colour band optionally bearing "captain", "C" or a translation — also in a single colour. |
| Other equipment | Non-dangerous protective equipment: "gloves, headgear, facemasks and knee and arm protectors made of soft, lightweight padded material", sports spectacles, goalkeepers' caps, and goalkeepers may wear tracksuit bottoms. |
| Head covers | Five cumulative conditions: black or the shirt's main colour and identical within the team; in keeping with a professional appearance; not attached to the shirt; not dangerous (no opening or closing mechanism around the neck); no protruding elements. |
| Accessories (new in 2026/27) | "Accessories are permitted as long as they are not dangerous and are safely and securely covered. Dangerous items must be removed and not taped or covered." |
| Electronics — players | Prohibited, except where EPTS is allowed. This also covers substitutes, substituted players and sent-off players. |
| Electronics — team officials | Permitted where it relates directly to player welfare or safety or to tactics and coaching, and only small mobile handheld equipment: microphone, headphone, earpiece, mobile phone or smartphone, smartwatch, tablet, laptop. Misuse or inappropriate behaviour as a result: the official "will be sent off" — mandatory, not discretionary. |
| Slogans | No political, religious or personal slogans, statements or images. Permitted: player number, name, team crest, slogans or emblems promoting football, respect and integrity, and authorised advertising — preferably confined to the shirt front and the armband. |
| Lost boot or shinguard | Replace as soon as possible, and no later than when the ball next goes out of play; a goal scored before replacing it is awarded. |
| Sanction | The player leaves to correct the equipment, the correction is checked by a match official, and re-entry requires the referee's permission. Re-entering without permission: caution. |
Why IFAB removed the jewellery ban, in its own words: "The banning of jewellery created confrontation and had been inconsistently applied. It also overlooked cultural, religious, medical and personal reasons for wearing certain items." The old sentence — "All items of jewellery … are forbidden and must be removed. Using tape to cover jewellery is not permitted" — is absent from the printed 2026/27 Law; it survives only as struck-through amended text in the changes booklet. Any club handbook written against the 2025/26 text is now wrong on this point.
Goal safety
On the Laws side, it is one sentence — the Law 1.10 safety clause: "Goals (including portable goals) must be firmly secured to the ground." No test, no force, no inspection interval. The dimensions are fixed: 7.32 m between the inside of the posts, 2.44 m from the ground to the lower edge of the crossbar, posts and crossbar white, of the same width and depth, 12 cm maximum, square, rectangular, round, elliptical or hybrid in section — and the same at both ends. If the crossbar breaks, play is stopped until it is repaired or replaced; a rope or any flexible or dangerous material may not replace it; if it cannot be repaired the match "must be abandoned".
Standards exist, but they are paywalled. BS EN 748:2013+A1:2018 Playing field equipment — Football goals covers four types and two sizes, and excludes goals within the scope of EN 16579 (socketed and free-standing goals weighing 10 to 42 kg — the class most amateur clubs buy) and EN 16664 (lightweight goals). The FIFA Quality Programme for Football Goals is built on it: an accredited institute must hold ISO 17025 accreditation for EN 748 Strength and Stability, both scoped to free-standing portable goals only, and since 1 January 2022 for five further FIFA test methods — mesh breaking force, net fixing strength, frame entrapment, strength and stability. ⚠️ The EN 748 load figures have not been read: the standard is paywalled at 224.59 USD.
France: the most-quoted reference in the trade is abrogated
And the famous 180 kg, 110 kg and 320 kg loads? They are real — they are the tests of the 1996 annex, reproduced by the French Ministry of Education under the heading "Décret n° 96-495 du 4 juin 1996 et note de la DGCCRF du 23 décembre 1996": a one-minute static test with 180 kg hung vertically from the middle of the crossbar, the load 20 cm above the ground; a second test applying a 110 kg horizontal force for one minute at the middle of the crossbar by means of a 3 m rope; 320 kg for a basketball backboard. A permanent deformation limited to 10 mm may be accepted, and must be entered in the register.
But they are no longer in the law. A full-text search of the consolidated Code du sport (edition of 14 July 2026, 41,967 extracted lines) for 180 kg, 110 kg and 320 kg returns zero hits. What stands in their place is article R. 322-22: equipment is presumed to satisfy the safety requirements where it is manufactured in conformity with "les normes de sécurité les concernant, dont les références sont publiées au Journal officiel" — the safety standards whose references are published in the official journal. Conformity therefore now runs through the standards (NF EN 748, NF EN 16579, NF EN 16664, NF S52-409, NF EN 1270), which sit behind the AFNOR paywall. The honest consequence: no kilogram figure can be presented today as the legal requirement in force. Inspection bodies do still apply the 1996 loads in practice; that is inspection practice, not law.
The text in force is less numeric than the 1996 one, but it is more actionable, because it names a duty-holder a club can be:
| Article | Obligation |
|---|---|
| R. 322-19 | Scope: football, handball and hockey goals and basketball baskets, outdoor or indoor, for sport or play. Excluded: "les buts légers dont le poids total est inférieur à 10 kg" — goals under 10 kg. An objective mass threshold replaced the 1996 subjective criterion ("equipment adapted to the capacities of young children"). The enabling power is article L. 422-2 of the consumer code: this is consumer law, not sports law. |
| R. 322-21 | Non-mobile goals: an installation device ensuring permanent fixing. Mobile goals: a fixing or counterweight device that is "permanent et solidaire de la structure" — permanent and integral to the structure — preventing "la chute, le renversement ou le basculement" under reasonably foreseeable conditions of use, and resisting a player hanging and swinging on the crossbar without deformation or rupture. |
| R. 322-23 | Instruction notice; a visible, legible and indelible warning; the name and address of the first party placing it on the market; the year and month of manufacture. |
| R. 322-25 ⚠️ | "Les exploitants ou les gestionnaires" — the operators or managers — must maintain the equipment regularly, check it on first installation, keep a maintenance and verification plan stating its periodicity, and keep a register recording, for each site, the date and results of the tests and checks carried out, both available to inspectors. And: "Après utilisation, les buts non fixés de manière permanente sont rendus inutilisables par le public" — after use, goals that are not permanently fixed must be made unusable by the public. Non-conforming equipment must be immediately made inaccessible. |
| R. 322-25-1 | Serious accidents linked to the equipment must be reported without delay to the préfet de département. A serious accident is "un accident mortel ou un accident ayant provoqué des lésions corporelles" — fatal, or causing bodily injury. |
| R. 322-26 | Fifth-class contraventions — including failing to produce the verification and maintenance plan and the register to inspectors, and failing to report a serious accident. Not keeping the register is itself the offence. |
Sourced research, not legal advice. This section reproduces the text of published instruments (the consolidated Code du sport, edition of 14 July 2026) and states what was and was not read. It is not a legal opinion: for a specific situation, the league, the district or a qualified lawyer remains the right interlocutor.
On the Swiss side the gap is real and we say so. No ASF/SFV instruction on portable-goal anchoring could be retrieved. The Swiss FA pitch commission's Richtlinien für die Erstellung und den Unterhalt von Fussballanlagen (2024 edition, in force since 1 July 2024) is held and covers pitch classes, dimensions and lighting — but goal anchoring was not located in it.
Artificial turf and the 2031 deadline
Law 1 allows a surface that is wholly natural, wholly artificial if the competition rules permit, or hybrid if permitted. Two requirements stand out: artificial surfaces must be green; and for matches between national representative teams or in international club competition they must meet the FIFA Quality Programme for Football Turf unless The IFAB grants a dispensation.
FIFA's published on-site field test thresholds (2024 test manual, version April 2026):
| Property | FIFA Quality Pro | FIFA Quality |
|---|---|---|
| Vertical ball rebound | 0.60 – 0.85 m | 0.60 – 1.00 m |
| Ball roll, initial test | 4.0 – 8.0 m | 4.0 – 10.0 m |
| Ball roll, retests | 4.0 – 8.0 m | 4.0 – 12.0 m after simulated wear |
| Peak shock absorption | 60 – 70% | 60 – 75% |
| Peak deformation | ≤ 15 mm | ≤ 16 mm |
| Peak torque | 30 – 45 N·m | 25 – 50 N·m |
| Surface regularity | < 10 mm | < 10 mm |
Validity and no downgrade. Passing a retest re-certifies for one further year under FIFA Quality Pro and three further years under FIFA Quality. A pitch that fails a Pro retest cannot be downgraded to Quality: "It is not possible for a field to be recertified for FIFA Quality certification" — only a new initial test can produce a Quality certificate. Initial requirements apply to fields installed within the past three years, retest requirements beyond that.
One detail that fails municipalities. Certification includes an audit of the maintenance equipment kept on site: "a tractor unit, a drag brush and/or a drag mat, additional infill to top up the field, a maintenance log and a ball-roll ramp". If those items are absent, "the field has failed to obtain certification". Other useful rules: one product per field, no two-tone yarn patterns, joints open beyond 3 mm counted as a visual defect, and low-infill systems (under 20 kg/m²) that must be secured on site against carpet movement.
The 17 October 2031 deadline
Commission Regulation (EU) 2023/2055 of 25 September 2023 amends Annex XVII to REACH as regards synthetic polymer microparticles. It entered into force on 17 October 2023. Its heaviest provision for football sits at entry 78, paragraph 6, point (j): a prohibition on placing on the market "from 17 October 2031 for granular infill for use on synthetic sports surfaces". Recital 53 explains the eight-year transitional period: to let a larger number of existing synthetic surfaces reach end of life. Recital 30 records that the Risk Assessment Committee preferred an outright ban to an exception conditional on risk management measures, infill being "the largest source of environmental emissions of intentionally-present synthetic polymer microparticles at European level".
| What the regulation does | What it does not do |
|---|---|
| It prohibits placing on the market granular infill from 17 October 2031. | It does not prohibit playing on, or maintaining, an existing rubber-crumb pitch after that date. |
| It therefore makes buying top-up infill impossible after that date. | It sets no removal date for pitches already installed. |
That is where the practical bite is: topping up infill is a routine annual maintenance item, and additional infill is on FIFA's list of mandatory on-site equipment. A pitch renewal planned for 2029-2031 is worth specifying with a non-restricted infill — sand, cork or another organic material — or a non-infill system.
Futsal, beach soccer, para football: separate codes
A governance point many clubs miss: IFAB publishes only the Laws of eleven-a-side football. Futsal and beach soccer have their own Laws of the Game, published by FIFA, with their own effective dates.
| Code | Authority | Document in force | Since |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eleven-a-side football | IFAB | Laws of the Game 2026/27 | 1 July 2026 |
| Futsal | FIFA — approved by the Bureau of the FIFA Council | Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26 | 5 September 2025 |
| Beach soccer | FIFA — approved by the FIFA Council | Beach Soccer Laws of the Game 2025-26 | 17 December 2025 |
| Walking football (France) | FFF — a recreational practice | Lois du Jeu Foot en Marchant, April 2026 version | — |
| Mini-foot (Belgium) | URBSFA — Livre M / Boek M | ❌ not retrieved (HTTP 403) | — |
Futsal, the divergences that matter. Pitch 25 to 42 m × 16 to 25 m (international 38 to 42 × 20 to 25), lines 8 cm wide, goals 3 × 2 m. Ball: 62 to 64 cm, 400 to 440 g, 0.6 to 0.9 atm, plus a bounce test unique to the code — the ball must not rebound less than 50 cm or more than 65 cm on the first bounce when dropped from 2 m. Five players including a goalkeeper; a match may not start or resume with fewer than three. Unlimited rolling substitutions, a maximum of 9 substitutes in official competitions. Two equal periods of 20 minutes of playing time, stopped clock. One one-minute timeout per team per period, not carried over. Accumulated fouls: from the sixth in a period, a direct free kick from the 10 m mark (or from the place of the offence if nearer goal, at the kicker's choice), no wall, and the kicker must attempt to score. Four seconds for kick-ins, free kicks and goal clearances. The goalkeeper may not control the ball in their own half for more than four seconds. And the flying goalkeeper is explicitly contemplated. New for 2025-26: artificial turf is permitted only in exceptional cases and only for domestic competitions.
Beach soccer. Pitch 35 to 37 m × 26 to 28 m, measured from the outside of the imaginary lines. Ball: circumference 68 to 70 cm, weight 400 to 440 g, pressure 0.4 to 0.6 atm. Five players including a goalkeeper, a minimum of three to start or resume, with FIFA leaving the minimum squad including substitutes to national associations. Unlimited substitutions. And a duration with no equivalent anywhere else: three equal periods of 12 minutes of playing time. In France, footwear is prohibited (neoprene socks are permitted in training); the National Beach Soccer became an official FFF competition in 2019, with a women's national competition launched the same year.
Para football is not one code but several. Each has its own international body, and the state of public documentation is very uneven — we say so rather than fill the gaps.
| Discipline | Body | What is published |
|---|---|---|
| Powerchair football | FIPFA — Laws of the Game 2025, approved April 2025 | 4 v 4 including a goalkeeper; may not continue with fewer than 2. Field 28 × 15 m (a standard basketball court), max 30 × 18, min 25 × 14. Surface hard, smooth, level. Goals 6 m between pylons, goal area 8 × 5 m, penalty mark at 3.5 m. Two equal periods of 20 minutes. And a hard equipment ceiling: "The maximum speed allowable during the match for powerchairs is 10 kph (6.2 mph), forward and reverse", four or more wheels, scooters banned, lap seatbelts mandatory. Signature offences: "2 on 1" and "3 in the goal area". |
| CP football (7-a-side) | IFCPF | Seven a side. Sport classes FT1 (greatest impairment impact), FT2, FT3. Eligible impairments: hypertonia, ataxia, athetosis. Team composition: at least one FT1 on the field at all times, at most one FT3 at the same time. IFCPF's rules are formally a modification of the IFAB Laws, not a separate code. ⚠️ Pitch, goals, duration, offside and roll-in are not verified — the 2025 rulebooks could not be opened. |
| Blind football (B1) | IBSA | 5 a side: four outfielders in blackout eyemasks, with a sighted or partially sighted goalkeeper. Pitch 40 × 20 m surrounded by kickboards that keep the ball in play. The ball is hollow with a noisemaker inside. Two equal periods of 20 minutes, half-time not exceeding 10 minutes. Players must call "voy" when going for the ball; a guide behind the opponents' goal gives a shooting reference, and the stadium stays silent until a goal is scored. ⚠️ These parameters come from the IPC page; IBSA's own rulebook could not be retrieved, and neither goal dimensions nor the ball specification are stated. |
| Intellectual impairment | Virtus | Two formats: outdoor 11-a-side and futsal. "All competitions are conducted in accordance with FIFA rules… Adaptations may be applied where necessary." Virtus manages eligibility centrally. |
| Amputee football | WAFF | ❌ Laws of the Game not retrieved. Player count, crutch rules, pitch and goal dimensions, duration and classification are unverified. We invent nothing. |
| Deaf football | ICSD / EDSO in Europe | ❌ Not retrieved. The decibel eligibility threshold, the rule on hearing aids and cochlear implants during play and the visual signalling arrangements are all unverified. |
Two French recreational formats are published with their parameters. Walking football (Foot en marchant): 5 v 5 or 6 v 6, a pitch 18 to 30 m wide by 30 to 40 m long, a futsal or size-5 ball recommended, shinguards mandatory, no running and no lifting the ball above 1.80 m, tackles and contact strictly prohibited, no offside, all free kicks indirect, opponents at 4 m minimum, goalkeeper confined to the penalty area. Foot5: 5 v 5 on a reduced synthetic pitch of 30 to 35 m × 18 to 20 m enclosed by rigid boards off which the ball rebounds, size 5 ball, flat-soled or stabilised shoes with moulded studs forbidden — and goals of 4 × 2 m, against 3 × 2 m in futsal.
Frequently asked
Which edition of the Laws should my club documents cite this season?
Is the Laws PDF I downloaded reliable?
Can a national FA change the offside law for its youth categories?
Are my portable goals compliant if I can show the 180 kg test?
Will my artificial pitch become illegal in 2031?
Is a ball without a FIFA mark banned in amateur leagues?
Sources
Laws of the Game. IFAB, Laws of the Game 2026/27 (single-pages PDF, 260 pp., build dated 11 May 2026), "Effective from 1st July 2026" — Laws 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17, the Notes and modifications → General modifications section pp. 20-21, Notes on the Laws of the Game — Applying the Laws p. 17, Guidelines for temporary dismissals, the 'Only the captain' guidelines and the concussion-substitution protocol · IFAB, Law changes 2026/27, "Updated in July 2026", 31 pp. — including "Additional changes approved on 28 April 2026", pp. 27-30 · IFAB, Law changes 2025/26 (April 2025) · the live Laws at theifab.com/laws/latest/… (per-Law sub-paths) · IFAB news release from the 140th AGM, 28 February 2026, Hensol, Wales.
FIFA. FIFA Quality Programme for Footballs — Test Manual, 2026 edition, March 2026 version (and the February 2018 edition, used only to date the tightening of tolerances) · FIFA Quality Programme for Football Turf — Test Manual II: Test Requirements, 2024 edition, April 2026 version · FIFA Quality Programme for Football Goals — How to become a FIFA Accredited Test Institute, v1.1, 15 December 2020 · Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26 and its Summary of changes · Beach Soccer Laws of the Game 2025-26.
Standards and law. BS EN 748:2013+A1:2018, Playing field equipment — Football goals ⚠️ scope abstract only — the standard is paywalled and the load figures were not read; EN 16579 and EN 16664 referenced by exclusion · Commission Regulation (EU) 2023/2055 of 25 September 2023, REACH Annex XVII entry 78 §6(j) and recitals 30, 52 and 53 · Code du sport, regulatory part, arts. R. 322-19 to R. 322-26 (Décret n° 2016-481 of 18 April 2016), consolidated edition of 14 July 2026 · Décret n° 96-495 of 4 June 1996, abrogated on 25 July 2007 by Décret n° 2007-1133; the historical test regime as reproduced by the French Ministry of Education under "décret n° 96-495 et note de la DGCCRF du 23 décembre 1996" · Swiss Federal Office for the Environment, ORRChem / ChemRRV page.
Federations and disciplines. FFF, Le foot pour les enfants, Football à 8 et à 5, Le Foot5, Le Beach Soccer, Le foot en marchant, Les pratiques loisirs; Lois du jeu Foot à 8 from the Haute-Loire and 65 districts; Règlement des Terrains et Installations Sportives 2021 ⚠️ single automated read · ASF/SFV pitch commission, Richtlinien für die Erstellung und den Unterhalt von Fussballanlagen, 2024 edition · URBSFA, index of the federal regulation (Livre M exists; its content was not retrieved) · FIPFA, Laws of the Game 2025 · IFCPF classification page · IPC blind football page · Virtus football page.
Content verified in August 2026. The Laws of the Game change every 1 July: re-check each season.
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