Question Number: 35912

Law 12 - Fouls and Misconduct 5/2/2025

Crebs Crem of Zagreb , Croatia asks...

Hi,

My questions is about goalkeeper's handling the ball for the second time after the ball was released into play.

The attacking team crosses the ball into goal area, the goalkeeper slaps the ball outside the penalty area, chases the ball, starts to dribble back towards his/her own penalty area before nobody else touches the ball and the goalkeeper picks the ball. In this scenario, will indirect free-kick be awarded to the attacking team?

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

Hi Crebs,
The key question is whether the referee interprets the goalkeeper’s action as a controlled parry or simply a save that resulted in an unintentional rebound. If the referee deems it a rebound off a save, the goalkeeper is within their rights to exit the penalty area, dribble the ball back inside, and legally pick it up again.

A parry, however, suggests that the ball could have been caught and dealt with in one motion—essentially meaning the goalkeeper intentionally controlled and released the ball. If the referee judges it as a parry, the keeper cannot handle the ball again until another player has touched it. Otherwise, it would be considered a second touch, resulting in an indirect free kick from the spot where the keeper used their hands inside the penalty area.

That said, relying on the referee's interpretation is a calculated risk. If they view the goalkeeper’s slap or deflection as deliberate control rather than just a rebound from a save, it could lead to an unexpected free kick.

Cheers

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Crebs
You state that the goalkeepers slaps the ball outside the penalty area. I assume that the slap is with the hand in which case it sounds more likely to be a punch.

The word slap suggests to me no control of the ball so it is not a catch and release which would then prevents a goalkeeper from picking the ball up after releasing it into play no matter if the ball is dribbled.
There will be many times where a goalkeeper will make a save with the hands and the ball is subsequently picked up with no offence committed.
What referees are looking for is a clear controlled catch and then the ball released with a throw down to the ground. I have seen questionable parries by goalkeepers and the opponents show no interest in a subsequent pick up by the goalkeeper.
Referees should not be adopting a GOTCHA approach to these scenarios yet looking for clear deliberate catch, control and release when then restricts subsequent pick up of the ball.

Answer provided by Referee Peter Grove

Hi Crebs,

As my colleague ref Dawson has pointed out, this all depends on how the referee judges the initial touch on the ball by the goalkeeper.

If the referee decides that this was a save and the goalkeeper did not have control of the ball then the keeper is free to dribble the ball back into the penalty area and pick it back up again.

If on the other hand, the referee decides that the first touch by the goalie constituted control of the ball and that the keeper then deliberately released the ball, then the keeper may not touch the ball with the hands again, even after dribbling it with the feet, unless another player has touched to ball in between times.

In this second scenario, if the goalkeeper touches the ball with the hands a second time after re-entering the penalty area, the result would indeed be an indirect free kick to the opponents.

For what it's worth, this does not really sound to me like a deliberate control of the ball with the hands and subsequent release of the ball. And as ref McHugh mentions, a much more obviously deliberate "control and release" would normally be required by most referees before deciding to penalise the keeper for a second touch with the hands.