Question Number: 35897

Law 3 - The Players 3/25/2025

RE: completive Adult

Peter of Melbourne , Australia asks...

This question is a follow up to question 35896

Thank you for responding to my questions.

However, I am still not fully convinced by this situation.

My understanding is that if the referee is not informed, a field player who changes positions with the goalkeeper is still considered a field player in the eyes of the referee. If that player subsequently touches the ball and prevents it from entering the goal, they would be committing a DOGSO offense.

According to Law 12: "Where a player denies the opposing team a goal or an obvious goal-scoring opportunity by committing a deliberate handball offense, the player is sent off, regardless of where the offense occurs (except for a goalkeeper within their own penalty area)."

Could you please provide further clarification on this matter?

Thank you.

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Peter

One has to go back to before the season 1972/73 to when this was an offence punished by a penalty kick.

IFAB back then updated Law 3 to make it only a caution, issued when the ball goes out of play. It clearly stated that play should NOT be stopped and that referees should wait until the ball goes out of play.
No explanation was given in the IFAB minutes yet I assume that the law makers saw that if there was a change in goalkeeper with jerseys exchanged that it did not merit a playing sanction of a penalty or free kick
That is still the Law in 2025.

Law 3 is very clear about this and I quote
** If a player changes places with the goalkeeper without the referee’s permission, the referee:
# allows play to continue
#  cautions both players when the ball is next out of play but not if the change occurred during half-time (including half-time of extra time) or the period between the end of the match and the start of extra time and/or penalties (penalty shoot-out)**

The de-facto goalkeeper cannot commit a handling offence inside the penalty area. It can only be a DOGSO offence if all 4 DOGSO conditions are present. What is punished is the change of goalkeeper without permission.

Answer provided by Referee Peter Grove

Hi Peter,
I'm with my esteemed colleague ref McHugh on this one. There is nothing in the laws currently that says or even suggests that a player remains an outfield player after changing places with the goalkeeper without permission, nor that a player who handles the ball after such a change has taken place should be penalized by the awarding of a penalty.

In fact, as he points out, the law was changed in the early seventies to specifically remove the provision for a penalty to be awarded if a player touches the ball with their hands after changing places with the goalkeeper without the referee's permission.

Since this is the case and the law has not changed since that time it is clear that the lawmakers are still of the view that a penalty should not be awarded in such circumstances. That means there would be no handling offence, so it would not be a denial of a goal by handling either.