# Penalty Shootout · Football Level 2: Elementary

Football · Level 2: Elementary · Insporta Book (https://book.insporta.app/football/level-2/penalty-shootout/)

Penalty Shootout in Football (Level 2: Elementary) on Insporta: 100 sourced facts behind 10 tests. Covers: definitions; numbers and procedure; and more.

Law 10 — kicks from the penalty mark: alternating order (ABAB), 5 kicks each then sudden death, eligibility (only players on the field at the end of extra time), 'reduce to equalise' rule, GK substitution restrictions, ABBA trial (2017-2021, abandoned), history (introduced 1970s).

## Test 1: Definitions

- A penalty shootout (officially 'kicks from the penalty mark') is used to determine the winner of a match that is tied after extra time, in knockout competitions.
- IFAB officially calls it 'kicks from the penalty mark' — though 'penalty shootout' is the colloquial term used everywhere.
- The initial round is five kicks each; if that ties, sudden death continues one kick at a time until it is settled.
- ABAB = the standard system. Teams alternate one kick each. Used since penalty shootouts began.
- ABBA was an experimental order trialled (e.g., 2017-2019) to reduce the advantage of going first. Inspired by tennis tiebreaks. IFAB abandoned it in 2021.
- Reduce to equalise works by the larger team naming and recording their excluded players before the shootout starts, so both sides field the same number of kickers.
- Only players on the field (or temporarily off for injury/equipment) at the final whistle of extra time can take kicks. Sent-off players cannot. Substitutes who didn't enter cannot.
- A 'shootout penalty' is a kick during the shootout itself — same penalty mark, same procedure as in-match penalty, but with no rebounds and one shot only.
- Two coin tosses: 1) decides the goal at which the kicks will be taken; 2) decides which team kicks first or second.
- Every eligible player waits in the centre circle during the shootout, except whoever is taking the current kick and the two goalkeepers.

## Test 2: Numbers and procedure

- Each team takes up to 5 kicks in the initial round. After 5 each, if scores are level, sudden death begins.
- After 5 kicks each, if level, kicks continue alternately (sudden death). The first team ahead after equal kicks wins.
- Each team has one goalkeeper defending while the other team kicks. Both goalkeepers are on the field; one defends each team's kicks.
- Only the defending goalkeeper is inside the penalty area during a shootout kick. All others (eligible players + kicker's GK) are outside.
- Standard penalty rules apply: players (other than kicker and defending GK) must be at least 9.15m from the penalty mark.
- IFAB trialled ABBA from 2017. The experiment was abandoned around 2021 due to mixed results and complexity. ABAB remains the standard.
- The first major international tournament settled by penalty shootout was the 1976 Euro Championship final. Czechoslovakia won, with Antonin Panenka's famous chip.
- The 1982 World Cup in Spain saw the first shootout — a semi-final between West Germany and France.
- The referee tosses a coin to decide which goal will be used. May be changed only for safety/playability reasons.
- After the goal-end coin toss, a second coin toss decides who kicks first. The winner chooses to take the first or second kick.

## Test 3: Roles and authority

- The referee tosses the coin twice — once for goal end, once for kick order. The team winning the second toss chooses first or second.
- The order of kickers is decided by the team's coach. Players to take kicks aren't pre-named — coaches choose flexibly within sudden death.
- The defending goalkeeper must have at least one foot on or in line with the goal line when the kick is taken.
- The kicker's goalkeeper must remain on the field of play, outside the penalty area, on the goal line at the boundary of the penalty area.
- A first encroachment only earns the goalkeeper a warning; a further one in the shootout is carded.
- If a goalkeeper is unable to continue (injury), they can be replaced by an eligible player or a named substitute (if subs aren't fully used). Only allowed when GK cannot continue.
- Reduce to equalise starts by identifying which team has more players, then that team reports its exclusions to the referee before kicks begin.
- An eligible player on the field may change places with the goalkeeper. The referee must be informed.
- All disciplinary rules apply. Cards can be issued to players, substitutes, substituted players, or team officials during the shootout.
- If a player leaves the shootout (e.g., voluntarily), the opposing team must remove a player to equalise. The referee must be informed.

## Test 4: Allowed and forbidden

- Eligibility for the shootout is fixed at the exact moment extra time ends — only those players (or those briefly off for injury or equipment) may take part.
- A player sent off during the match is not eligible for the shootout. They cannot return.
- Goalkeeper replacement is only allowed for inability to continue (injury, illness) with subs not fully used. Tactical replacement is forbidden.
- Tap penalties are NOT allowed in shootouts. Each kick is one shot only — no rebounds or passes to teammates.
- In shootouts, rebounds aren't in play. Kicker has only ONE shot. Touching the ball again = recorded as miss.
- No player may take a second kick until every eligible teammate has taken a first one; sudden death only follows if the initial round is tied.
- During a shootout kick, the penalty area holds only the kicker and the goalkeeper defending that kick — everyone else waits outside it.
- The kicker's goalkeeper stands OUTSIDE the penalty area, on the goal line where the penalty area boundary meets it.
- Goals are reviewable by VAR. In a shootout, VAR can review whether a goal scored or not.
- Cards apply during the shootout. Misbehaviour (dissent, unsporting behaviour) can result in cautions or sending-off.

## Test 5: Consequences and outcomes

- Per IFAB Circular 31 (2025), accidental double-touch (e.g., standing foot grazes ball) leads to a retake — not disallowed.
- Deliberate double-touch in shootout = recorded as missed (the kicker forfeits the kick).
- GK offence + miss/save = retake. First offence: warning; subsequent: yellow card.
- Kicker offence + ball in = miss + yellow card.
- A sent-off goalkeeper who had already kicked is replaced by an eligible player, but that replacement waits until the next round to take a kick.
- Outfield players who drop out of a shootout are not replaced; instead the opposing team reduces to match, just as in the reduce-to-equalise rule.
- A burst ball is nobody's fault, so the kick is simply retaken from the penalty mark.
- Outside interference = retake, unless the goalkeeper clearly couldn't have saved it (then goal counts).
- Once one team has scored more after equal kicks have been taken, that team wins.
- Tied after 5 kicks each = sudden death. Kicks continue 1 each until a team leads after equal kicks.

## Test 6: History

- The shootout was approved in 1970, first used at a major tournament in 1976, and first used at a World Cup in 1982.
- The 1976 Euro final was the first major international tournament decided by shootout. Czechoslovakia won. Antonin Panenka's chip became iconic.
- Spain '82 saw the first World Cup shootout — semi-final WG vs France (West Germany won).
- Antonin Panenka famously chipped the decisive penalty in the 1976 Euro final, beating Sepp Maier (Germany). His name is now used for the technique.
- Before FIFA/IFAB approved the shootout in 1970, a drawn knockout match was normally replayed, or very occasionally settled by drawing lots.
- IFAB trialled ABBA from 2017 before abandoning it a few years later, leaving ABAB as the standard order.
- ABBA was abandoned around 2021 after trials showed mixed results. ABAB (alternating order) remains the standard.
- The rule that sent-off players cannot take kicks has been in place from the beginning. Modern wording is in Law 10.
- Pre-2019: both feet on the line. From 2019: at least one foot on/in line with the goal line.
- Antonin Panenka pioneered the technique. Modern players who've emulated: Zinedine Zidane (2006 WC final), Andrea Pirlo, and many others.

## Test 7: Exceptions and edge cases

- A player who leaves for a reason other than injury is simply not replaced, and the opponents reduce their own numbers to match.
- If a player cannot return in time, their kick is forfeited — not scored.
- An injured goalkeeper who had already kicked is replaced by an eligible player, who then waits until the next round before taking a kick.
- The rule requiring at least seven players to continue a match does not apply during the shootout itself.
- In shootouts, simultaneous offences = recorded as missed + yellow card to kicker (regardless of outcome of kick).
- Stopping in the run-up is part of legal feinting. The kick continues normally.
- Feinting after run-up complete = miss + yellow card.
- GK red card during shootout = replaced by an eligible player on the field. The replacement may need to come from someone already excluded for equalisation.
- Each eligible player must kick once before anyone takes a 2nd kick. The 'each player kicks before repeats' rule applies.
- If outside interference happens AFTER the ball was clearly going in (GK couldn't save), the goal counts.

## Test 8: Comparisons

- The goal area is where goal kicks are taken from — a different restart from the penalty-mark shootout kick shown elsewhere.
- ABAB = standard alternating. ABBA = tennis-tiebreak-style: A, B, B, A, A, B, B, A. ABBA was trialled but abandoned.
- In-match: must have at least 7 to continue. Shootout: minimum 7 doesn't apply, but teams must have equal numbers (reduce to equalise).
- In-match: 5 tactical subs in 3 windows. Shootout: only GK can be replaced for injury (if subs not fully used).
- Same cautionable/sending-off categories. But cards/cautions from the match itself are NOT carried into the shootout.
- Replays and, rarely, drawing lots were the old method, replaced once FIFA/IFAB approved the shootout in 1970.
- Panenka: chipped/dinked into the centre (banking on GK diving). Placement: powerful shot to a corner. Different psychological approaches.
- Shootouts are individually scrutinised; in-match penalties happen in a fluid game. Many studies suggest shootouts feature higher psychological stress.
- The 1976 Euro final shootout came six years before the first one at a World Cup, in 1982.
- Studies show going first has a slight psychological/statistical advantage (~60% win rate). This is what motivated the ABBA experiment.

## Test 9: Mini scenarios

- A tied initial round of five kicks each moves into sudden death, continuing one kick at a time until it is decided.
- GK offence + save = retake. Warning for first; yellow card for repeated.
- Everyone except the current kicker and the two goalkeepers must wait in the centre circle, well clear of the penalty area.
- Eligibility: only on-field players at the final whistle of extra time. Subs cannot enter for the shootout.
- Per Circular 31 (2025), accidental double-touch leads to retake.
- GK who has taken a kick + injured + replaced. Replacement cannot kick until next round.
- In sudden death, after equal kicks, the team that has scored more wins. A scores + B misses = A wins.
- Substituted players are NOT on the field at the end of extra time. Not eligible.
- All 5 initial kicks must be taken. If after 5 each the score is 5-4, the leading team wins.
- Once no possible result of the remaining kicks could change the winner, the referee ends the shootout there and then.

## Test 10: Mixed review

- Every shootout kick covers the 11 metres between the penalty mark and the goal line, the same distance as an in-match penalty.
- Sudden death = alternating kicks (1 each) after the initial 5 kicks. First team to lead after equal kicks wins.
- Only players on the field (or temporarily off for injury/equipment) at the final whistle of extra time can participate.
- Unused subs cannot take part. Eligibility is on-field players at end of extra time.
- The shootout was approved in 1970 and first used at a major tournament, the Euro final, six years later in 1976.
- For fairness, teams must have equal numbers in the shootout. Excess players are excluded.
- Tactical GK replacement is forbidden. Only injury/red card replacements allowed.
- All eligible players (other than kicker and the two goalkeepers) stay in the centre circle.
- ABAB has always been the standard kicking order; ABBA was only trialled later, from 2017, before being abandoned.
- Disciplinary record from the match is NOT carried forward. Discipline restarts for the shootout.

Sources: 

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