The WhistleRulebook
Rulebook 2026-27

Football's laws, VAR and refereeing — explained properly

Every decision starts somewhere in the lawbook. We read the 17 Laws, the VAR protocol and the referee's brief, then explain them in plain English for supporters, coaches and anyone who has ever shouted at a screen.

The Whistle · Laws of the Game 2026-27 · England
THE WHISTLELAWIFAB · VAR PROTOCOL
17 LAWS · ONE BOOK
Football pitch photographed at dusk with fresh white line markings and a match ball on the touchline
Laws of the Game 26-27

New Football Laws 2026-27: What Has Actually Changed

A new edition of the Laws arrives every summer, and most of it is continuity rather than revolution. Here is what the 2026-27 lawbook really changes.

THE LAWWHAT CHANGEDMATCH EXAMPLES
Open referee rulebook resting on a wooden table beside a whistle and a pencil
Laws of the Game 26-27

The 17 Laws of the Game Explained in Plain English

Seventeen laws run every match on earth. This is the whole lawbook in one place, with the clause that matters most in each one.

THE LAWWHAT CHANGEDMATCH EXAMPLES
Goalkeeper gloves lying on the goal line beside a ball inside the six-yard box
Laws of the Game 26-27

The Eight-Second Goalkeeper Rule: How the Count Works Now

Referees no longer wait for the keeper to dawdle: they raise an arm and count the last five seconds out loud. Break the limit and it is a corner.

THE LAWWHAT CHANGEDMATCH EXAMPLES
Referee whistle held up against a floodlit stadium background
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 5 Referee Powers: Duties, Discretion and the Final Word

Law 5 is the shortest route to understanding why a referee can change a decision, stop a match or wave play on. It is also the most misunderstood.

THE LAWWHAT CHANGEDMATCH EXAMPLES
Yellow and red cards held together in a referee shirt pocket
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 12 Fouls and Misconduct: When the Cards Come Out

Most arguments about cards are really arguments about three words: careless, reckless and excessive. Law 12 is where they are defined.

THE LAWWHAT CHANGEDMATCH EXAMPLES
Football law illustration for law-1-the-field-of-play
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 1: The Field of Play, Measured

Every match starts with a rectangle. Law 1 sets its dimensions, its lines and the marks that decide penalties and goal kicks.

THE LAWWHAT CHANGEDMATCH EXAMPLES
Football law illustration for law-2-the-ball
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 2: The Ball, and What Makes It Legal

Circumference, weight, pressure and the dropped ball after a burst: Law 2 in the numbers the officials actually use.

THE LAWWHAT CHANGEDMATCH EXAMPLES
Football law illustration for law-3-the-players
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 3: How Many Players and How Many Subs

Eleven to start, seven to continue, five substitutions from three opportunities: the numbers and procedures in Law 3.

THE LAWWHAT CHANGEDMATCH EXAMPLES
Football law illustration for law-4-players-equipment
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 4: Players' Equipment and What Is Banned

Five compulsory items, a total ban on jewellery and strict rules on colours: what Law 4 allows a player to wear.

THE LAWWHAT CHANGEDMATCH EXAMPLES
Football law illustration for law-7-duration-of-the-match
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 7: Duration, Added Time and the Last Kick

Forty-five minutes each way is only the start: Law 7 governs the interval, added time and a penalty taken with the clock gone.

THE LAWWHAT CHANGEDMATCH EXAMPLES
Football law illustration for law-8-start-and-restart-of-play
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 8: Kick-Offs and Dropped Balls

Coin toss, kick-off geometry and the dropped ball: the restarts that start and resume every match under Law 8.

THE LAWWHAT CHANGEDMATCH EXAMPLES
Football law illustration for law-9-ball-in-and-out-of-play
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 9: When the Ball Is In and Out of Play

Whole ball, whole line: Law 9 decides when play is live, and what happens when the ball hits the referee.

THE LAWWHAT CHANGEDMATCH EXAMPLES
Football law illustration for law-10-determining-the-outcome
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 10: Goals, Winners and Shoot-Outs

From the whole ball crossing the line to the fifth kick of a shoot-out: how Law 10 decides who wins a match.

THE LAWWHAT CHANGEDMATCH EXAMPLES
Football law illustration for law-6-other-match-officials
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 6 Other Match Officials: Assistants, Fourth Official and VAR

Who else is making the call: assistant referees, the fourth official, the reserve assistant and the video team, with their exact powers and limits.

THE LAWWHAT CHANGEDMATCH EXAMPLES
Football law illustration for law-13-free-kicks
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 13 Free Kicks: Direct, Indirect and the Wall

Direct and indirect free kicks, the 9.15 m wall distance and the trick that turns a free kick into an indirect one.

THE LAWWHAT CHANGEDMATCH EXAMPLES
Football law illustration for law-14-the-penalty-kick
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 14 The Penalty Kick: Procedure, Goalkeeper and Retakes

Eleven metres, a moving goalkeeper and an encroaching team-mate: what Law 14 allows, what it forbids and when a kick is retaken.

THE LAWWHAT CHANGEDMATCH EXAMPLES
Football law illustration for law-15-the-throw-in
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 15 The Throw-in: Technique, Position and Sanctions

Both hands, feet on the ground, ball behind the head: the throw-in is the simplest restart and the one most often done wrong.

THE LAWWHAT CHANGEDMATCH EXAMPLES
Football law illustration for law-16-the-goal-kick
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 16 The Goal Kick: When the Ball Is Back in Play

The ball is in play the moment it is kicked and moves, and opponents must be outside the penalty area. What changed and why.

THE LAWWHAT CHANGEDMATCH EXAMPLES
Football law illustration for law-17-the-corner-kick
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 17 The Corner Kick: Arc, Delivery and Goalkeeper Contact

The one-metre arc, the ball in play rule and the goalkeeper contact clause that turns corners into VAR decisions.

THE LAWWHAT CHANGEDMATCH EXAMPLES
Football law illustration for law-11-offside-explained-in-full
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 11 Offside in Full: Position, Moment and Active Play

Offside is not about where a player stands alone: it is about the moment of the pass and what the player then does.

THE LAWWHAT CHANGEDMATCH EXAMPLES

The Laws · IFAB 2026-27The 17 Laws, statute by statute

Every decision on a pitch traces back to one clause in this book. Pick a law and read what it actually says, with the restarts, the cards and the match examples that follow from it.

1The Field of Play2The Ball3The Players4Players' Equipment5The Referee6Other Match Officials7Duration of the Match8Start and Restart of Play9Ball In and Out of Play10Determining the Outcome11Offside12Fouls and Misconduct13Free Kicks14The Penalty Kick15The Throw-in16The Goal Kick17The Corner Kick
Empty Premier League stadium seats photographed from the touchline before kick-off
Controversy of the week

Tottenham vs Liverpool VAR: Anatomy of a Breakdown

The mistake was not a wrong line or a bad camera angle. It was a sentence spoken too late, and it changed how reviews are run.

Controversies · 2026-09-22 · Read the full breakdown →

ExplainersAll articles →

Football law illustration for law-1-the-field-of-play
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 1: The Field of Play, Measured

Every match starts with a rectangle. Law 1 sets its dimensions, its lines and the marks that decide penalties and goal kicks.

2026-10-18
Football law illustration for law-2-the-ball
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 2: The Ball, and What Makes It Legal

Circumference, weight, pressure and the dropped ball after a burst: Law 2 in the numbers the officials actually use.

2026-10-18
Football law illustration for law-3-the-players
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 3: How Many Players and How Many Subs

Eleven to start, seven to continue, five substitutions from three opportunities: the numbers and procedures in Law 3.

2026-10-18
Football law illustration for law-4-players-equipment
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 4: Players' Equipment and What Is Banned

Five compulsory items, a total ban on jewellery and strict rules on colours: what Law 4 allows a player to wear.

2026-10-18
Football law illustration for law-7-duration-of-the-match
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 7: Duration, Added Time and the Last Kick

Forty-five minutes each way is only the start: Law 7 governs the interval, added time and a penalty taken with the clock gone.

2026-10-18
Football law illustration for law-8-start-and-restart-of-play
Laws of the Game 26-27

Law 8: Kick-Offs and Dropped Balls

Coin toss, kick-off geometry and the dropped ball: the restarts that start and resume every match under Law 8.

2026-10-18

VAR ExplainedAll articles →

Video review desk with multiple monitors showing a football pitch from different camera angles
VAR Explained

VAR Rules Explained: What Can and Cannot Be Reviewed

VAR is not a second referee and it never re-referees a match. Four categories of decision are reviewable, and the list is shorter than most fans assume.

2026-09-25
Referee monitor on the touchline viewed from a distance at a stadium
VAR Explained

The Clear and Obvious Error Test: Why VAR Stays Silent

Two words in the protocol do most of the work: clear and obvious. They are also the reason a decision you hate can survive a video review.

2026-09-14
Camera operator filming a football match from a gantry high above the pitch
VAR Explained

The VAR Protocol, Step by Step: Check, Review, Call

Every review follows the same sequence, and it starts before anyone in the stadium knows a decision is being examined at all.

2026-09-06

ControversiesAll articles →

Match ball resting on the goal line on wet grass under stadium floodlights
Controversies

The Beach Ball Goal: Outside Interference and the Law

An inflatable ball, a deflection and a goal that stood. The law had no answer, so the law was changed.

2026-09-08
Defensive wall of players standing on the edge of the penalty area photographed from behind
Controversies

The Handball Law Changes: How One Rule Kept Swinging

No law has changed direction as often as handball. Each revision answered one complaint and created the next.

2026-08-31
Referee signal with arm raised seen from the stands behind a crowd barrier
Controversies

The VAR High Bar Debate: Why Fans and Referees Never Agree

The argument about VAR is rarely about technology. It is about how much uncertainty a league is willing to accept.

2026-08-18

Referee ProfilesAll articles →

Referee locker room with a folded kit, boots and a whistle on a wooden bench
Referee Profiles

Premier League Referee Appointments Explained

A referee is appointed to a match like a player is picked for a squad: form, fitness, geography and workload all count.

2026-09-26
Assistant referee flag planted on the touchline beside freshly cut grass
Referee Profiles

Michael Oliver Referee Profile: Positioning as a Superpower

Watch a referee who is never in the way of the camera angle, and you are watching positioning. It is the most underrated skill in officiating.

2026-09-16
Referee arm signalling a free kick photographed at close range against a green pitch
Referee Profiles

Anthony Taylor Referee Profile: Game Management and the Craft

Managing a match is mostly talking: early words, clear signals and a whistle that arrives at the right moment.

2026-09-02

Handball & Offside GuidesAll articles →

Player arms held behind the back inside a defensive wall at a free kick
Handball & Offside Guides

Handball Rule Explained: Arms, Distance and Intent

The handball law is not about whether the ball touched a hand. It is about what that arm was doing there in the first place.

2026-09-20
Goal area with the offside line marked in fresh white paint on green grass
Handball & Offside Guides

Offside Rule Explained: Position, Phases and Judgement

Being in an offside position is not an offence. What happens next is what turns a position into a free kick.

2026-09-12
Penalty spot and penalty arc photographed on a freshly mown pitch
Handball & Offside Guides

Handball in the Box Rule: How Referees and VAR Decide

Inside the box, the same arm movement can mean a penalty or nothing at all. The difference is written into the law, step by step.

2026-08-28