In games of association football, teams compete to score the most goals. A goal is scored when the ball passes completely over a goal line at either end of the field of play between two centrally positioned upright goal posts 24 feet (7.32 m) apart and underneath a horizontal crossbar at a height of 8 feet (2.44 m) — this frame is itself referred to as a goal. Each team aims to score at one end of the pitch, while preventing their opponents from scoring at the other end. Nets are usually attached to the goal frame to catch goalscoring balls, but the ball is not required to touch the net.

Rules

Rules concerning goal scoring are described in Law 10 of the Laws of the Game:

As with other cases of the ball travelling out of the field of play, all of the ball must cross all of the line, otherwise play continues. A goal is credited to the team attacking the goal scored upon, regardless of which team actually caused the ball to enter the goal. A ball entering a goal from the action of a player defending that goal is called an own goal.

If the ball hits the frame of the goal and remains in play, play continues. Goals can be scored going in off the goal frame.

Even if serious foul play unambiguously prevents a goal from being scored, the referee cannot award a goal unless the ball enters the goal as described above; i.e., there is no provision for awarding a goal akin to the awarded goal in ice hockey, the penalty try in rugby football, or the goaltending offence in basketball (although such a provision did once exist, as described below).

A goal cannot be scored directly from a dropped ball, indirect free kick or a throw-in. Should the ball go into the opponents' goal from these without first being touched by another player, play is restarted with a goal kick. A player cannot score an own goal directly from any restart of play (other than, theoretically, a penalty kick); in that case a corner kick would be awarded. Both of these situations, especially the latter, are exceedingly rare.

As a result of rule changes introduced in 2019, it is not possible to score an attacking goal with the hands or arm. If a goalkeeper throws the ball directly into the opponent's goal from his/her own penalty area, no goal is awarded; instead a goal kick is awarded to the defending side. In practice such a situation is improbable given the distances involved, but this can occur in variations of the sport where the Laws are adapted to play on a smaller area. If the ball goes directly into the opponent's goal from the hands or arm of a player in any other circumstances, the handling is penalised as a handball offence (even if it was unintentional, or would otherwise have been legal). It remains possible to score an own goal with the hands or arm.

The 2019 rule changes also provided that a goal cannot be scored if the ball enters either goal directly after touching a match official; a dropped ball is awarded if this occurs.

If a player or team official is illegally on the field of play when that person's team scores a goal, the goal is disallowed, with a direct free kick being awarded to the opposing side.Laws of the Game 2019/20, , p. 54. The detailed reasons given in the laws why a player may be illegally on the field of play are: the player has been sent off the player has been substituted the player is an unused substitute the player has left the field of play temporarily, requires the referee's permission to re-enter, and has not received such permission

After a goal is scored, play is restarted with a kick-off by the side which conceded the goal.

Deciding whether a goal has been scored

Most goals are relatively unambiguous, as the ball will usually strike the net attached to the goal structure indicating that it has passed over the goal line as described above. Occasionally, however, situations occur where it is difficult for officials to tell if the ball completely crossed the goal line before a rebound, save, or clearance from the goal area. Additionally, even if the ball crosses the goal line as required, a goal may be disallowed if the attacking team commits an infringement of the Laws of the Game, such as the offside offence or a foul.

As with all other decisions on the Laws of the Game, the referee is the final authority as to whether a goal is scored. The match referee is advised by assistant referees, whose view across the pitch from the sidelines may in some cases be more useful in determining whether the ball crossed the goal line or whether the attacking team committed an infringement.

Goals incorrectly awarded or disallowed due to mistakes in determining if the ball crossed the line are referred to as ghost goals. The goal net was one of the earliest tools employed to aid match officials in determining whether a goal was scored. Introduced in the 1890s, the goal net provides a simple way to help determine whether the ball passed on the correct side of the goal posts and crossbar. Although not mandated by the Laws of the Game, goal nets are now ubiquitous across most levels of organised football. Since 2012, goal-line technology has been used at the highest levels of professional football; it employs a system of cameras and/or sensors to provide the referee with a discreet signal when the ball has crossed the goal line. The video assistant referee was added in 2018 after years of trials; this is an additional assistant referee who constantly monitors video footage of the match and is empowered to advise the referee if he/she makes "clear and obvious errors" in matters, including in the awarding of goals.

Attribution of goals The Laws make no mention of attributing goals to individual players. Nevertheless, goals are almost always attributed to individuals, that player being the one who provided the final action causing the goal to be scored. Generally, this is the last player to touch the ball, notwithstanding inconsequential deflections such as failed attempts at a save. Should a player cause a goal to be scored against their own team, the goal is recorded as an own goal.

The authority on attributing goals varies between competitions. The Premier League in England has a dedicated Dubious Goals Committee for resolving attribution disputes.

For an individual player, scoring multiple goals in a game is considered a notable achievement. In association football, a hat-trick refers to the uncommon feat of scoring three goals in a single game. Awards exist for individual players who score the most goals in some competitions, such awards are often called the "Golden Boot".

While prose match reports have long mentioned when one player contributes to an attack which leads to a goal scored by another, it is only since the 1990s that statistics for such "assists" have been commonly tracked.

Goal celebrations

Players will typically celebrate scoring a goal with team mates, occasionally putting on elaborate displays for the crowd. The Laws allow this, but mandate that celebration must not be "excessive".

Quantity of goals On average, only a few scores occur per game in association football. + Scoring rate in major competitions Competition Average number of goals per game 2015–16 Premier League 2.70 2015–16 Bundesliga 2.83 2015–16 La Liga 2.74 2014 FIFA World Cup 2.67 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup 2.81 An analysis of several years' results from several English leagues found that 1–0 was the most common result, occurring in approximately 20% of games.

History

Before 1863 In English traditional football, the object of the game was typically to convey a ball into a specified area, or to touch a specific object (the area or object often being called the "goal").Strutt (1801) p. 92: "The goal is usually made with two sticks driven into the ground, about two or three feet apart" defended by the opposing team. This feat might itself be called a "goal";E.g. alternative names such as "inn" were also in use. The game might be decided by a fixed number of goals (e.g. first goal scored wins or best of three)Strutt (1801) p. 93: "[T]he object of each party is to drive it through the goal of their antagonists, which being achieved the game is won" or be played for a fixed period of time.

In the more formalised football games of English public schools and universities, the object was typically to kick the ball between goal-posts guarded by the opposition. This might be required to be above a crossbar (as in the game of football played at Rugby School), below a bar or other object (as in the Sheffield Rules of 1862) or at any height (as at Shrewsbury School).

+ Comparison of goals in some early football codes, c. 1863 Code Year Width Height Notes Ball must go between posts above specified height Rugby School 1862 10 feet Must go above crossbar. Goal is void if ball is touched by opposition. Posts are 18 feet high. The width of the goal is not specified in the laws, but the novel Tom Brown's School Days (1857) reports it as approximately 14 feet. Marlborough College 1863 24 feet 9 feet Ball must go between posts below specified height Uppingham School 1857 "six paces" Ball must go below cross-bar. Later version (1871) of rules specifies a goal 40 feet wide and 7 feet high. Eton Field Game 1862 11 feet 7 feet No crossbar; ball must not go above height of the posts. Sheffield FC 1862 12 feet 9 feet Must go below crossbar. The Simplest Game 1862 Ball must go below crossbar. Goal disallowed "if thrown by hand". Charterhouse School 1863 Ball must go below "cord". Goal void if ball "hit or otherwise impelled through by the hands of any one of the side who are not defending the goal". Ball must go between posts at any height Harrow School 1858 12 feet Goals (both the physical target and the method of scoring) are called "bases". Melbourne FC 1860 Width of the goal is agreed between captains. Goal is void if ball touches a post or a defending player. Blackheath FC 1862 Goal is void if ball touches a defending player. Shrewsbury School 1863 40 feet Cambridge Rules 1863 15 feet Earlier version of Cambridge Rules (1856) required ball to go under a "string". Football Association 1863 24 feet Goal void if the ball is handled. Ball must cross line (at any height) Surrey FC 1849 Ball must cross "goal rope". Winchester College 1863 Ball must cross goal-line. Earlier version of the game used "goal-sticks" (posts). Goal is void if "an opposing player can touch it as it passes, and then, leaping up, alight with one foot beyond the goal-line.".

The 1863 FA Rules The size and type of goals were among the first questions decided by the Football Association (FA). At its second meeting, on 10 November 1863, the FA agreed on the following three resolutions:

The goals should be defined by two upright posts without any tape or bar across them. That a goal should be scored whenever the ball was kicked between the goalposts or over the space between them. That the goal-posts be 8 yards apart.

The next meeting, on 17 November, added the further condition that a goal could not be scored when the ball was "thrown, knocked or carried" between the posts.

These points were reflected in the first draft of the Laws of the Game created by FA secretary E. C. Morley. Morley's proposal met with objections expressed in correspondence from J. C. Thring of Uppingham School, and also from William Chesterman of Sheffield F. C., principally on the grounds that it would be difficult to judge whether a ball that went above the height of the posts should count as a goal; Thring correctly predicted that a crossbar "w[ould] be adopted in the end". Nevertheless, this feature of the game was preserved in the Association's first published set of laws, which read:

Subsequent developments

Introduction of tape / crossbar