DELIBERATE HEADING DELIBERATE HEADING

The trial follows concerns about the possible risks of heading the ball and associated risks resulting from attempting to head the ball, especially in ‘aerial challenges’ with other players when impact to the head may result from contact with another player’s body (e.g. elbow/head), the ground and/or a goal post.

A deliberate header will usually involve:

• a player moving their head and/or body:
  • towards the ball and/or
  • into the path of the ball

When judging if a header is ‘deliberate’, account should be taken of whether the player had the time/opportunity to avoid the ball - this will be influenced by:

• the speed of the ball
• the distance between the ball and the player when it is played by another player or rebounds from the goal post or crossbar etc.

In the trial, deliberate heading of the ball is an offence punishable by an indirect free kick.

No. The trial is not part of the Laws of the Game and will only take place in competitions and matches involving players aged under 12 and below, where there already exist restrictions on heading in training.

After extensive examination of the trial results and consultations within the various IFAB bodies, a decision can be made as to whether the ban will be permanently implemented into the Laws of the Game or not and whether it would be mandatory or optional. For more information on The IFAB’s decision-making process, click here.

The indirect free kick is taken at the point where the ball was deliberately headed. However, if a player of the defending team deliberately heads the ball in their own penalty area, the free kick is taken from the penalty mark.

Deliberately heading the ball is not a cautionable (yellow card) or sending-off (red card) offence unless it:

• stops or interferes with a promising attack (yellow card)
• denies the opposing team a goal or obvious goal-scoring opportunity (red card)
• occurs often enough to be considered ‘persistent misconduct’ (yellow card)

The indirect free kick awarded for a defending team player deliberately heading the ball inside their own penalty area is taken from the penalty mark because:

• under the current Laws, if an indirect free kick is awarded to an attacking team for an offence inside the goal area, the free kick is taken on the goal-area line (parallel to the goal line), which creates major problems with trying to keep the defending players on the goal line, between the goalposts
• an indirect free kick taken from the penalty mark is more advantageous for the attacking team, which thus partly addresses the concern of some that an indirect free kick is not a strong enough punishment

The trial is open to all competitions and matches involving players aged under 12 and below, where there are restrictions on heading in practice/training. Confederations and national FA’s (on behalf of the competitions under their auspices) must apply to The IFAB for permission to take part in the trial, which will only be given to competitions using the official protocol and that agree to submit the requested feedback.

The results will be assessed by The IFAB. Each competition organiser will be required to provide data and feedback to The IFAB during and after completion of the competition.