# Throw-In · Football Level 2: Elementary

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

Throw-In in Football (Level 2: Elementary) on Insporta: 100 sourced facts behind 10 tests. Covers: definitions; numbers and key rules; and more.

Throw-in mechanics: both hands, over the head, from behind, both feet on or behind the touchline, both feet on ground at release; foul throw; cannot score directly; cannot be offside directly; goalkeeper restriction on teammate throw-ins; history of throw-in technique.

## Test 1: Definitions

- A throw-in restarts play when the ball wholly crosses the touchline (sideline). It is awarded against the team that last touched the ball.
- The touchlines are the two longer boundary lines of the pitch — the sidelines, where throw-ins are taken from.
- A foul throw is a throw-in taken with incorrect technique — the restart then goes to the opposing team.
- The thrower must hold the ball with both hands and throw it. Single-hand technique is a foul throw.
- The ball must be thrown from behind the head and continuing over the head — both hands, continuous motion.
- Both feet must be on the ground (not lifted) AND on or behind the touchline at the moment of release. Lifting either foot or stepping over = foul throw.
- A 'long throw' is a specialist throw-in launched deep into the penalty area, used tactically like a corner kick.
- The thrower must face the field of play — typically with the chest pointing inwards. Throwing while facing away is a foul throw.
- The throw-in is taken from where the ball went out. Taking it from a different point may be allowed by the referee for minor variations, but significant moves = retake.
- Any player from the awarded team can take the throw-in.

## Test 2: Numbers and key rules

- Opponents must stand at least 2 metres from the point where the throw-in is taken.
- Both feet must be on the ground at the moment of release. Lifting either foot is a foul throw.
- Both hands must hold the ball. Single-handed throws are foul throws.
- Like other restarts, the thrower may not touch the ball a second time until someone else has played it.
- Only a player from the team awarded the throw-in takes it. Opposing players cannot interfere with the thrower.
- The throw-in's technique was built up gradually: one hand (1863), then two hands (1882), then over the head (1895).
- In 1895, IFAB added the requirement to throw from above the head. Before that, throws could be from any position.
- In 1925, when offside was reformed (3 → 2 opponents), the throw-in was also explicitly exempted from offside.
- Both feet must be on or behind the touchline. Stepping in front (into the field) is a foul throw.
- No fixed time limit. The referee can caution the thrower for delaying the restart if excessive time is taken.

## Test 3: Roles and procedure

- The team that did NOT last touch the ball before it went out is awarded the throw-in, judged by the officials.
- The assistant referee on that side typically signals which team gets the throw-in by pointing in the direction of attack.
- The thrower releases the ball with both hands. Procedural violations = foul throw.
- Any player can take the throw-in, including the goalkeeper. They take normal field position thereafter.
- The referee judges throw-in technique. Foul throw = throw-in awarded to the opposing team.
- An opponent who fails to retreat 2 metres, or otherwise interferes with the thrower, can be cautioned for encroachment.
- Quick throw-ins are allowed if the technique is correct. The thrower can throw immediately without waiting for opponents to retreat.
- A goalkeeper is free to take a throw-in like any other player, then simply returns to their goal.
- The ball can be handled by anyone before the throw, but the throw must be from the correct location.
- Anyone (including ball boys/girls) can retrieve the ball. The thrower then takes the throw-in.

## Test 4: Allowed and forbidden

- A goal cannot be scored directly from a throw-in. If the ball goes directly into the goal: own goal = corner kick to opponents; opponents' goal = goal kick to defending team.
- Offside is exempt from throw-ins (since 1925). Offside can only be called on subsequent plays.
- Both feet must be on the ground at release. Lifting (e.g., during a 'flip throw' approach) = foul throw at the moment of release if feet leave the ground.
- A flip or somersault throw-in is legal, as long as the standard technique requirements are still met at release.
- The goalkeeper cannot handle a deliberate throw-in from a teammate. Indirect free kick to opponents from where the goalkeeper handled the ball.
- Both feet must stay on or behind the touchline right up until the ball is released, or it becomes a foul throw.
- Pretending to take a throw-in but suddenly leaving it for a teammate is a delaying tactic — yellow card.
- A defender may not stand closer than 2 metres to the thrower, front or otherwise.
- The throw direction is free — backwards, forwards, sideways. Just the technique requirements must be met.
- Teammates have no distance restriction. They can stand close to receive the throw.

## Test 5: Consequences when things go wrong

- Foul throw = opposing team gets the throw-in from the same location. The throwing team loses possession.
- If the ball doesn't enter the field (e.g., thrower throws too softly or misses), it's a retake by the same team.
- Double-touch by the thrower (before another player has played the ball) = indirect free kick to opposing team.
- If the throw is taken from a clearly wrong location, the referee orders a retake from the correct spot.
- Like an indirect free kick, a throw-in cannot result in a goal without another player touching the ball first.
- A throw-in going directly into the thrower's own goal is not an own goal — it results in a corner kick instead.
- The goalkeeper cannot handle a teammate's deliberate throw-in. Result: indirect free kick to opposing team from where handled.
- Encroachment does not automatically stop play — the thrower may proceed anyway, and the referee decides separately whether to caution the encroacher.
- If an outside agent interferes, play is stopped and a drop ball restart is used (per Law 8).
- Pretending to take a throw-in but leaving for a teammate is a delaying tactic — yellow card.

## Test 6: History of throw-in rules

- The throw-in has been refined since its 1863 introduction: two hands (1882), over the head (1895), and offside exemption (1925).
- In 1863, throw-ins were one-handed and perpendicular to the touchline (no other direction). Both-hand and over-head requirements came later.
- In 1882, the FA mandated two-handed throw-ins.
- The requirement to throw the ball from behind and over the head was formally added to the Laws in 1895.
- In 1925, when IFAB reformed the offside rule (3 → 2 opponents), the throw-in was explicitly exempted from offside calls.
- Rory Delap, of Stoke City, was famous for his powerful long-throw deliveries into the penalty area — used as a major attacking weapon.
- The 2m rule for opponents at throw-ins is a long-standing IFAB rule. Modern wording is in current Laws of the Game.
- IFAB has discussed kick-in trials (replacing throws with kicks), but has not adopted them in the standard Laws of the Game. Futsal already uses kick-ins.
- The throw-in-to-goalkeeper handling ban (1997) followed the same logic as the earlier back-pass rule (1992), just for a different restart.
- The requirement that the ball must enter the field of play is long-standing. If it doesn't, the throw is retaken.

## Test 7: Exceptions and edge cases

- If the thrower contacts the ball again before another player touches it, it's a second touch — indirect free kick.
- The foot-on-the-ground requirement is judged at the moment of release, regardless of whether the lift was intentional.
- The touchline counts as 'on the line'. Both feet may be on the line itself or behind it.
- Standing on the touchline itself is allowed, as long as the required 2-metre distance from the throw point is respected.
- The thrower must complete the throw with proper technique. A teammate intervening from outside the field disrupts the throw.
- A throw-in directly into one's own goal: corner kick to opposing team. Cannot score directly from a throw-in.
- Goalkeepers can take throw-ins. They are then a normal field player until they return to goal.
- If the throw-in was a deliberate pass to the goalkeeper and they handled it = indirect free kick to opponents.
- Interfering with the thrower before the throw is taken is treated as encroachment and can be cautioned.
- The ball is in play once thrown. Striking a referee — like in any phase of play — generally allows play to continue (drop ball only in specific circumstances per Law 9).

## Test 8: Comparisons

- Throw-in: ball out over the side. Corner kick: ball out over the goal line off the defending team. Different restarts.
- Throw-in restarts after ball over the touchline. Goal kick restarts after ball over the goal line off an attacker.
- Futsal replaces the hand throw-in with a foot-taken kick-in, with the ball stationary on the boundary line.
- Three restarts are exempt from offside: throw-in, goal kick, corner kick. Free kicks are NOT exempt.
- Goalkeepers cannot handle a deliberate kick from a teammate (1992) or a throw-in directly from a teammate (1997). Both = indirect free kick.
- Today's over-the-head, two-handed technique is the result of two separate reforms layered onto the original 1863 rule.
- Long throws can be as dangerous as corner kicks for delivering the ball into the box. Specialists like Rory Delap exploit this.
- Neither can score directly. Throw-in = goal kick; indirect free kick = goal kick if it goes directly into the opposite goal.
- Both rules keep opponents back from a restart, but the free kick distance (9.15 m) is far larger than the throw-in distance (2 m).
- Both quick restarts are encouraged. Both can be banned only if ceremonial procedure has begun.

## Test 9: Mini scenarios

- A lifted foot at the moment of release is a foul throw, handing the restart to the opposing team.
- Both hands must hold and release the ball. One-handed = foul throw.
- Ball must enter the field. If not, the same team retakes from the same place.
- After the throw + teammate touches the ball, a goal can count. The 'no direct goal' rule only applies if no one else touches.
- Cannot score directly from a throw-in. The defending team gets a goal kick.
- Since 1997, goalkeepers cannot handle a deliberate throw-in from a teammate. Result: indirect free kick to opponents from where the goalkeeper handled.
- Significantly wrong location = retake from the correct spot.
- Standing well inside the required 2-metre distance is encroachment, punishable with a caution.
- Second touch by the thrower = indirect free kick to opposing team.
- Pretending to take a throw-in and handing it off to delay the game is a cautionable time-wasting offence.

## Test 10: Mixed review

- Both feet must be on the ground AND on or behind the touchline at the moment of release.
- Opponents must be at least 2m from where the throw-in is taken.
- Cannot score directly from a throw-in. Must touch another player first.
- Receiving the ball directly from a throw-in is exempt from offside (since 1925). Offside applies on subsequent plays.
- A foul throw simply hands the restart to the opposing team, from the same spot on the touchline.
- The two-hands rule (1882) sits between the throw-in's introduction (1863) and the over-the-head and offside reforms that followed.
- Opponents must stay at least 2 metres away from the point where the throw-in is taken.
- Both feet must be on or behind the touchline. Stepping in = foul throw.
- The referee judges throw-in technique.
- In 1895, the over-head requirement was added to throw-ins.

Sources: 

Take the tests: https://insporta.app/try?utm_source=book&utm_medium=referral