GUIDES · BETSLIP DOCTOR
When is a throw-in repeated by the same team, awarded to opponents, or allowed to continue?
Separate delivery from entry. A correctly delivered ball that touches the ground before it enters the field is thrown again by the same team. If the throw is incorrect but the ball enters the field, the opponents normally get the throw-in; the referee may instead apply advantage once the ball is in play and the opposing team benefits. Opponents' distance is measured from the point on the touchline, not from the thrower.
For Football fans and players distinguishing failed entry, incorrect throw-in delivery, and the benefit of playing advantage. · Updated
A correct throw can still fail to enter
A legal thrower faces the field, has part of each foot on the touchline or on the ground outside it, throws the ball with both hands from behind and over the head, and delivers it from the point where it left the field. The ball becomes live when it enters the field.
If that correctly delivered ball touches the ground outside before crossing into the field, the same team retakes the throw from the same position. This is a non-entry result, not a turnover for an incorrect throw.
An incorrect delivery that enters has another outcome
If a foot is fully inside the field away from the line or the delivery otherwise fails the required technique, and the ball enters, the usual restart is a throw-in for the opponents. If the ball is already in play and the opponents gain a real benefit from continuing, the referee may apply advantage instead.
Do not blend an incorrect delivery and a ball that never entered into a single automatic result. The point at which the ball enters is what makes an advantage decision possible.
Measure distance from the point on the line
An opponent must not unfairly distract or impede the thrower. The two-metre distance is measured from the point on the touchline where the throw is taken, not from the thrower's body. A qualifying interference is cautioned; if the throw has already been taken, the restart is an indirect free kick.
A second touch depends on who touched the ball first
After the ball enters play, the thrower cannot touch it again until another player has touched it; otherwise the restart is an indirect free kick. If that second touch is a handball offence, the restart is a direct free kick or, if it occurs inside the thrower's own penalty area, a penalty kick. If the thrower is the defending goalkeeper handling the ball inside their own penalty area, the restart is an indirect free kick. A handball offence is different from any contact with the hand or arm.
If an opponent fairly touches the ball before it returns to the thrower, the second-touch condition described above is no longer present. That does not decide whether a separate offence occurred.
Which edition this guide uses
Edition note: This guide follows the IFAB's current online Laws of the Game 2026/27, checked 15 October 2026. Circular 32 dates the edition's effect to 1 July 2026. Competitions that had already started may adopt it earlier or no later than their next competition; the adoption of any particular competition is not established here. Circular 34 explains that Circular 33 changes appeared online but missed the printed book's production schedule. This guide uses the current online text and does not claim that each clause is new in 2026/27 or that a trial applies. IFAB's metric figure controls if a translation differs.
Fictional throw-in branches
In a fictional South–East match, South makes a correct throw from the correct point that bounces on the ground outside before entering; South retakes from the same spot. In a separate play, South's thrower has one foot fully inside the field away from the line, the ball enters, East would not benefit from play continuing, and the referee awards East a throw-in. In another case, South throws from the wrong point and the ball enters; East immediately controls it with a clear attacking benefit, so the referee applies advantage and lets play continue. In a separate incident, an opponent moves inside two metres of the touchline point and impedes the thrower; the distance is measured from that point. In a final branch, the thrower plays the ball again before anyone else touches it, producing the second-touch restart; a fair opponent touch first changes that sequence. These are stipulated examples, not real rulings.
Related questions
Who retakes a correct throw that hits the ground before entering?
The same team repeats the throw from the same position.
Does an incorrect throw that enters always give the opponents a throw?
Usually, but the referee may apply advantage once the ball is in play if the opponents benefit from continuing.
Where is the two-metre distance measured?
From the point on the touchline where the throw is taken, not from the thrower's body.
Does a teammate have to touch the ball before the thrower can play it?
No. The restriction is lifted when another player has touched it; a fair touch by an opponent also counts as an intervening touch for this condition.
Sources and further reading
- The IFAB — Laws of the Game 2026/27, Law 15: The Throw-in; 15.1–15.2 complete; FAQs on non-entry, incorrect delivery and advantage. Current online body checked 2026-10-15; a separate day-level body publication date was not established.
- The IFAB — Laws of the Game 2026/27, Law 5: The Referee; 5.3 complete Advantage paragraph. Current online body checked 2026-10-15; a separate day-level body publication date was not established.
- The IFAB Circular 32, dated 2026-03-31, p. 3: 2026/27 effective date and transition.
- The IFAB Circular 33, dated 2026-05-19: additional 2026/27 changes, read for edition control.
- The IFAB Circular 34, dated 2026-07-27, pp. 2 and 4: online/printed materials and trial-permission controls.
- The IFAB Notes on the Laws, 2026/27: metric units control where measurement translations differ; Official languages, Measurement, Applying the Laws and Viewing changes.