GUIDES · BETSLIP DOCTOR
When can a player receive the ball directly from a restart without being offside?
Under IFAB Law 11, a player is not penalised for receiving the ball directly from a goal kick, throw-in or corner kick, even if in an offside position. That exception covers the direct receipt only. If a teammate plays or touches the ball later, the normal offside test applies to that moment and the player's involvement.
For Soccer fans learning to read referee decisions and match sequences · Updated
The Law 11 exceptions are specific
Law 11.3 names three direct-restart exceptions: a goal kick, a throw-in and a corner kick. A player can receive the ball directly from one of those restarts without an offside offence, even when standing in an offside position.
The exception is about that direct receipt. It does not make the player immune from offside for the rest of the move.
A later teammate touch starts a new check
For the ordinary test, the relevant position is assessed when a teammate plays or touches the ball. Being in an offside position is not itself an offence; the player must also become involved in active play under Law 11.2.
So follow the sequence touch by touch. First ask whether the player received directly from one of the three listed restarts. Then identify the next teammate play and assess position and involvement from that point.
The corner taker can be offside on a return pass
After taking a corner, the kicker is no longer receiving the ball directly from the restart if a teammate passes it back. If the kicker is in an offside position when that teammate plays the return and then plays the ball, the referee can penalise an offside offence.
Two touches in a fictional corner sequence
Imagine a fictional forward standing in an offside position who receives the corner kick directly. That first receipt is not an offside offence. Now compare the corner taker: after passing to a teammate, the taker moves into an offside position and receives that teammate's return pass. The teammate's return is the new touch to assess; if the taker then plays the ball while meeting Law 11.2's involvement test, an offside offence can be called.
Related questions
Is a player offside just for standing in an offside position?
No. Law 11 says position alone is not an offence. The player must be in an offside position when a teammate plays or touches the ball and then become involved in active play.