ASK THE REF
What's the Call: "HAND BALLS"
Aaron Wollerton
USSF Certified Referee since 2016
Published: Aug 13, 2025
Being a referee is hard. Really hard. Soccer is fast. There are a lot of players. The field is big. And the referee is tasked not only with the safety of every player on the field, but to see, recognize, and enforce every rule of the game. And a lot of our referees are kids. Now imagine being a teenaged referee and knowing every call you make is probably going to mean someone – usually a parent, a coach, maybe both – is going to yell at you. Like I said, hard.
It’s even harder when spectators, players, even coaches don’t necessarily understand the rules as well as they could. And that’s where this new feature comes in. With each article, we’ll dig in – briefly – to an important rule or feature of the game that is all too often, and all too easily, misunderstood.
First up: THE “HAND BALL”
This one should be easy, right? I mean, it’s right there in the name: “hand” + “ball” = “handball.” How hard could that be? So anytime a player touches a ball with their hand or arm, it’s a “handball.” Nope, not even close.
First off, it’s not actually called a “handball.” Yeah, FIFA and the IFAB have allowed the term “handball” as a kind of slang, but the proper term is “handling.” So, already, we start to see a difference. “Handball” is a noun that describes a simple condition. “Handling” is a verb that describes an intentional act. And that difference, well, makes all the difference.
Okay? So, let’s dive in.
DISCLAIMER: Now, before we go to too far, let me make one really important disclaimer: everything that follows is about FIFA soccer and US Youth Soccer. If you read this and go, “but that’s not the way they call it in High School!” You’re right. Those are a completely different set of rules. (Please, don’t even get me started.)
WHAT IS A HANDBALL HANDLING? Handling is defined in the Laws of the Game under Law 12, “Fouls and Misconduct.”
“It is an offence if a player:
-
deliberately touches the ball with their hand/arm, for example moving the hand/arm towards the ball
-
touches the ball with their hand/arm when it has made their body unnaturally bigger…
-
scores in the opponents’ goal:
-
directly from their hand/arm, even if accidental, including by the goalkeeper
-
immediately after the ball has touched their hand/arm, even if accidental”
And just so there’s no confusion (okay,… less confusion), Law 12 first says, “For the purposes of determining handball offences, the upper boundary of the arm is in line with the bottom of the armpit.” So, we’re only talking about a player’s upper arm, elbow, forearm, and hand. If a ball hits a player’s shoulder, it’s fair every time. (See Illustration.)
And then the Laws say something VERY important. “Not every touch of a player’s hand/arm with the ball is an offence.”
WHEN IS HANDLING A PENALTY? So, when IS it an offense? Well, let’s work through these backwards.
Number 3 is the easy one. It’s an offense if a player scores either by (a) the ball touching their hand or arm and going directly into the goal, or by (b) playing the ball into the goal immediately after the ball has touched their hand or arm, even if either of those are accidental. In other words, you can’t score off a “handball.” (Unless you're Diego Maradona, of course.)
Number 2 is a little harder. It’s an offense if a player touches the ball when their hand or arm has made their body unnaturally bigger. The key phrase there is “unnaturally bigger.” Law 12 then goes on to clarify this. “A player is considered to have made their body unnaturally bigger when the position of their hand/arm is not a consequence of, or justifiable by, the player’s body movement for that specific situation.” In other words, if the player is doing something completely normal with their hands or arms and the ball happens to hit their hands or arms, it’s not a penalty. Examples of this “justifiable” or “natural” position could be: their hands hanging freely at their sides, their arms pumping as they’re running, their arms moving outward as they quickly turn. None of those are handling offenses. And players accidentally touching the ball when trying to catch themselves while falling is also a crucial exception and is not penalized. Law 12 finishes up on this one by saying, “By having their hand/arm in such a position (i.e. “unnaturally bigger”), the player takes a risk of their hand/arm being hit by the ball and being penalized". But again, it’s “unnaturally bigger.” “Naturally bigger” is not an offense.
And that brings us to Number 1, when a player “deliberately touches the ball with their hand/arm.” Finally, an easy one! Yeah, not really… See, the question here is not whether you or I think the player did it deliberately, it’s whether the Laws of the Game think it’s deliberate. Fortunately, Law 11 spells out what the Laws consider deliberate. A player is considered to deliberately play the ball if:
-
The ball travelled from distance and the player had a clear view of it
-
The ball was not moving quickly
-
The direction of the ball was not unexpected
-
The player had time to coordinate their body movement, i.e. it was not a case of instinctive stretching or jumping, or a movement that achieved limited contact/control
-
A ball moving on the ground is easier to play than a ball in the air
So, if the ball is kicked at them quickly at short range or in an unexpected direction and the player didn’t have time to change their body movement – i.e. get their hands out of the way – it’s not a handling penalty.
Also, if the ball first hits a player's body (like their knee or thigh) and then deflects onto their hand, it's less likely to be called a handball.
And in Grassroots Soccer, there’s one other important exception: PLAYER SAFETY. If a player throws their hands or arms up to protect themselves, especially if they’re protecting their face or vital body parts, referees will often give the player a pass. And the younger the player, the more lenient we’ll be.
Okay, so just because a player touches a ball with their hand, it’s not necessarily a “handball.” Got it. But when IS it a “handball” and when ISN’T it a “handball?”
THE HANDLING CHECKLIST:
✅ Did the player score a goal off their hand or arm, or immediately after it hit their hand or arm? YES, THAT’S A PENALTY
✅ Was it ON PURPOSE? Did the player do something to “deliberately” touch the ball? PENALTY
✅ Did the ball just happen to hit the player’s hand or arm when they were doing something completely normal – standing, running, turning – especially if the ball was moving quickly, or the player had no time to get out of the way? NOT A PENALTY
✅ Was it an instinctive, reflexive reaction? Or, was the player protecting vital body parts? PROBABLY NOT A PENALTY
Famed World Cup referee, Jack Taylor, lends a practical viewpoint: “It is sometimes difficult to decide if a player has handled intentionally or just been struck by the ball… give the benefit of the doubt, where players are not so highly trained or so swift to react.”