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Futsal · Level 1: Beginner · Sub-level 1.4

Scoring, Restarts and the Four-Second Rule

10 tests · 100 facts · updated 15 October 2026 · markdown

This sub-level teaches how the ball comes back into play and the count that hangs over every restart — the four seconds a team has to take a kick-in, corner, goal clearance or free kick, and the four seconds a goalkeeper may hold the ball in his own half; the kick-in that replaces football's throw-in, taken with the foot from the touch line with no goal scored directly; the goal clearance the goalkeeper throws from inside his area rather than kicks, and the corner that is kicked from the arc; what makes a goal, when the ball is out over a line or off an official, the dropped ball, and the ball striking the ceiling; the penalty kick; which restarts can score directly and which cannot; special cases of the ball in and out of play; the distances opponents keep at each restart; and, once more, that futsal has no offside.

Each test below is ten questions on Insporta. The list under a test is what the questions check: one fact per question, with the source it was written from. Read it before the test, or come back from a wrong answer.

Test 1The four-second ruleTake a test

  1. A team has four seconds to take a kick-in, corner kick, goal clearance or free kick; the kick-off and the penalty kick are not under the count.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 13 · recall

  2. Hands or feet, the count is the same for a goalkeeper on his own side of halfway; once he takes the ball over the halfway line the four-second limit no longer applies.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 12 · recall

  3. The referee holds an arm up and counts the four seconds down visibly with his fingers, so players can see how long is left.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 13 · recall

  4. If a kick-in is not taken within four seconds, it is awarded to the opponents; the same swap of possession applies to a corner and, in effect, a free kick.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 15 · applied

  5. Holding the ball too long in his own half earns the goalkeeper an indirect free kick against his team, taken from where he was holding it, or from the six-metre line if that is inside the area.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 12 · applied

  6. A goal clearance held longer than four seconds turns possession over: the opponents restart from the six-metre line, closest to where the delay happened.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 16 · applied

  7. The count begins when the player is ready to take the restart and there is nothing preventing him; it is not started while players are still getting into place.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 15 · applied

  8. Because the clock stops at every restart, a time limit stops teams running it down or slowing the game; four seconds keeps play flowing.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 13 · recall

  9. A free kick not taken within four seconds is turned over: the other team gets an indirect free kick from the same place.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 13 · applied

  10. The count only runs when nothing is stopping the taker; a defender who fails to retreat is delaying the restart and can be cautioned, and the four seconds do not run against the attacker meanwhile.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 13 · applied

Test 2The kick-inTake a test

  1. Futsal replaces football's throw-in with a kick-in: the ball is placed on or just outside the touch line and played with the foot.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 15 · recall

  2. The kick-in goes to the opponents of the team that last touched the ball before it fully crossed the touch line.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 15 · recall

  3. The ball is stationary on the touch line where it went out, and at that moment only the kicker may be off the court.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 15 · recall

  4. Five metres is the standing rule for a kick-in, wider than the gap defenders keep at a kick-off, and it holds until the taker actually plays it.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 15 · recall

  5. A goal cannot be scored directly from a kick-in; if the ball goes straight into the opponents' goal, the restart is a goal clearance.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 15 · applied

  6. Steering a kick-in straight past your own goalkeeper does not count as an own goal; it hands the other side a corner instead.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 15 · applied

  7. The taker may not play the ball again until another player has touched it; a second touch is an indirect free kick to the opponents.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 15 · applied

  8. The ball is in play once the kick-in is taken and the ball clearly moves; it does not have to travel any set distance or fully enter the court first.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 15 · recall

  9. Only a goal scored directly from a kick-in is disallowed; once a second player touches the ball, a goal counts as normal.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 15 · applied

  10. An opponent who moves closer than 5 m and impedes the kicker is cautioned; once the kick-in has been taken, the restart is an indirect free kick.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 15 · applied

Test 3The goal clearanceTake a test

The goal clearance: thrown by the goalkeeper from inside his area within four secondsA futsal court seen from above, the goalkeeper in the left-hand penalty area with the ball in his hands. He throws it out of the area to a team-mate near the halfway line; the ball is in play once it has left the area. Two opponents wait outside the penalty area until the ball is in play, and a note beside the goalkeeper reads four seconds, the time he has to release it.GKAABB4 SECONDSSTAY OUTSIDE
The goal clearance: thrown by the goalkeeper from inside his area within four seconds. A goal clearance is thrown, not kicked, from anywhere inside the area within four seconds; opponents stay outside the area until the ball has left it.SVG

  1. A goal clearance is given when the whole ball passes over the goal line, no goal being scored, having last been touched by an attacker.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 16 · recall

  2. In futsal the goalkeeper puts the ball back into play from a goal clearance by throwing it with his hands from any point inside the penalty area; it is not kicked.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 16 · recall

  3. The goal clearance in futsal must be thrown by hand; if the goalkeeper kicks it, the restart is taken again.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 16 · applied

  4. The ball is in play when it is thrown or released and clearly moves; it no longer has to leave the penalty area.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 16 · recall

  5. A clearance that stays inside the area is not taken again: under the 2025/26 Laws it was already live once thrown.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 16 · applied

  6. Opponents must stay outside the penalty area until the ball is in play; a goal clearance taken while an opponent is inside is retaken.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 16 · recall

  7. Once the goal clearance is in play the goalkeeper may not touch the ball again with his hands in his own half until an opponent has played it; doing so is an indirect free kick.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 12 · applied

  8. No goal is given when the keeper's throw-out lands in the far net untouched; the opponents simply get a goal clearance of their own.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 16 · recall

  9. The goalkeeper must release a goal clearance within four seconds of being able to play it; a fast, legal clearance is a strong way to start an attack.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 16 · applied

  10. An opponent who had no time to leave the area does not stop play; the goal clearance is retaken only if an opponent in the area touches or challenges for the ball before it is in play.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 16 · applied

Test 4The corner kickTake a test

  1. The defending side put it behind themselves last, so a corner follows: possession stays with the attack, restarting from the nearer arc.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 17 · recall

  2. The ball is placed inside the quarter-circle corner arc and kicked; unlike the goal clearance it is not thrown.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 17 · recall

  3. Opponents must be at least five metres from the corner arc until the ball is in play.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 17 · recall

  4. If the corner is not taken within four seconds, it is turned over and the defending team gets a goal clearance.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 17 · applied

  5. Unlike a kick-in or an indirect free kick, the corner is a restart that carries the direct-scoring right, so no other player needs to touch it first.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 17 · applied

  6. The ball has to be at rest inside the corner arc before the kick is struck; a corner kick not taken correctly gives the defending team a goal clearance.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 17 · recall

  7. The taker cannot play the ball twice in a row; a second touch before anyone else plays it is an indirect free kick to the opponents.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 17 · applied

  8. The corner kick is taken from the corner arc on the side of the goal where the ball went out.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 17 · recall

  9. Once a corner is in play the normal rules apply, so a ball that then crosses a touch line is a kick-in to the team that did not touch it last.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 17 · applied

  10. A defender who fails to keep five metres from the arc and interferes with the corner is cautioned, and the corner is retaken.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 17 · applied

Test 5Goals, out of play and no offsideTake a test

  1. A goal is scored when the whole of the ball passes over the goal line, between the posts and under the crossbar, with no offence by the scoring team.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 10.1 · recall

  2. As long as any part of the ball is still on or above the line, the whole ball has not crossed, so no goal is given.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 10.1 · applied

  3. The ball is out of play when it has wholly crossed a touch line or goal line, on the ground or in the air, or when it strikes the ceiling; otherwise it is in play.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 9 · recall

  4. If the ball hits an official and a promising attack starts, a team gains possession, or a goal results, play is stopped and restarted with a dropped ball.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 9 · applied

  5. The ball is dropped for a player of the team that had or would have gained possession (failing that, the team that last touched it), where it was when play stopped, with everyone else at least 2 m away; inside the defending penalty area it goes to an attacker on the area line when the attackers had the ball.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 9 · recall

  6. Like several restarts, the dropped ball carries no direct-scoring right of its own; an untouched shot that beats the keeper is waved out and the defenders restart instead.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 9 · applied

  7. Law 11 in the Futsal Laws exists only to record that there is no offside in futsal; it sets out no offence.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 11 · recall

  8. With no offside law, a team may leave an attacker high up the court permanently; whether it is wise is tactical, but it is not an offence.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 11 · applied

  9. The ball is out once the whole of it has crossed the line, whether on the ground or in the air; it does not have to touch anything to be out.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 9 · applied

  10. A goal counts whichever team's player put the ball in; an own goal is awarded and play restarts with a kick-off, taken by the team the goal was scored against.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 10.1 · applied

Test 6The penalty kickTake a test

  1. Any player may take the kick, the goalkeeper included, as long as he is clearly identified to the referees.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 14.1 · recall

  2. The goalkeeper stays on the goal line, facing the kicker and between the posts, until the ball has been kicked.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 14.1 · recall

  3. When the ball is kicked the goalkeeper must have at least part of one foot touching, in line with or behind the goal line.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 14.1 · applied

  4. Every player other than the kicker and the goalkeeper must be on the court, outside the penalty area, behind the penalty mark and at least 5 m from it. A is inside the penalty area; B, C and D are behind the mark and far enough away.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 14.1 · applied

  5. The kick must be played forwards; a back-heel is allowed as long as the ball moves forwards.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 14.1 · recall

  6. A rebound off the frame does not count as another player, so a second touch by the kicker is punished with an indirect free kick to the defenders.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 14.2 · applied

  7. If the goalkeeper offends and the ball still enters the goal, the goal is awarded.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 14.2 · applied

  8. Inside a player's own area, the fouls that would otherwise earn a direct free kick are punished by a penalty instead.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 14 · recall

  9. The ball sits on the penalty mark, six metres out, and the players position themselves; only then does a referee signal, and the kick must be played forwards.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 14.1 · applied

  10. When the goalkeeper's offence is followed by a save, the kick is retaken; the goalkeeper is warned for a first offence and cautioned for any later one.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 14.2 · applied

Test 7The dropped ballTake a test

  1. The ball is dropped for one player of the team that had, or would have gained, possession when play stopped.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 8.2 · recall

  2. If possession cannot be determined, the ball is dropped for a player of the team that last touched it.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 8.2 · applied

  3. All other players, from both teams, must remain at least 2 m from the ball until it is in play.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 8.2 · recall

  4. The ball is in play when it touches the court, and from then any player of either team may play it.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 8.2 · recall

  5. It is a one-player restart: the ball goes down for a single player, not for a contest between two.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 8.2 · recall

  6. The ball is dropped again if it touches a player before touching the court, or goes out of play after bouncing without touching anyone.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 8.2 · applied

  7. If play stopped inside the defending team's penalty area while the attackers had the ball, it is dropped for an attacker on the penalty-area line, at the point reached by a line parallel to the touch line from where the ball was.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 8.2 · applied

  8. A dropped ball must touch at least two players before a goal can count; if it enters the goal of the player it was dropped for, the opponents get a corner kick.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 8.2 · applied

  9. A dropped ball is the restart when play stops and no other restart applies; once it touches the court it is in play for everyone.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 8.2 · applied

  10. A ball that touches a player before it reaches the court is dropped again; it is in play only once it touches the court.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 8.2 · applied

Test 8Scoring straight from a restartTake a test

  1. A goal may be scored directly from a corner kick, but not from a kick-in, a goal clearance or an indirect free kick.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 17 · recall

  2. A goal may be scored directly from a sixth-foul free kick, and the kicker must attempt to score directly.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 13.5 · recall

  3. A goalkeeper who throws the ball directly into the opponents' goal does not score; the opponents get a goal clearance.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 10.1 · applied

  4. If the referees fail to signal that a free kick is indirect and it goes straight in, the kick is retaken.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 13.1 · applied

  5. A goal may be scored directly from a corner only against the opponents; if it enters the kicker's own goal, the opponents get a corner.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 17 · applied

  6. A goal cannot be scored directly from a kick-in, but once the ball has touched another player, here a defender, the goal stands.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 15 · applied

  7. A goal scored directly from an accidental touch of the hand or arm is not allowed; the opponents get an indirect free kick.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 12.2 · applied

  8. The corner is one of the restarts that can beat the opposing goalkeeper without a second touch, so white's goal counts.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 17 · applied

  9. No team scores from its own free kick into its own net; the other side is given a corner instead.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 13.1 · applied

  10. An indirect free kick shot directly into the opponents' goal does not count, and the opponents restart with a goal clearance.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 13.1 · applied

Test 9Ball in and out of play: special casesTake a test

  1. The ball stays in play after touching a match official unless a promising attack starts, it goes into the goal or possession changes.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 9.1 · applied

  2. The ball remains in play when it rebounds off a goalpost or the crossbar and stays on the court.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 9.2 · recall

  3. If a whistle from a spectator interferes with play, play is stopped and restarted with a dropped ball.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 5.3 · applied

  4. If the ball becomes defective as a restart is taken, that restart is retaken.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 2.3 · applied

  5. If the ball becomes defective during a penalty kick as it moves forwards and before it touches a player, the crossbar or a post, the kick is retaken.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 2.3 · applied

  6. A goal needs the whole ball over the goal line; a ball resting on the line after hitting the bar is still in play.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 10.1 · applied

  7. The ball is out of play when it hits the ceiling; touching a referee or a post normally leaves it in play.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 9.1 · recall

  8. When the ball touches a match official, stays on the court and the team in possession changes or a promising attack starts, play stops and restarts with a dropped ball.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 9.1 · applied

  9. If a referee signals a goal before the whole ball has crossed the line and immediately realises the error, play restarts with a dropped ball.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 10.1 · applied

  10. If the ball becomes defective after striking a post or the crossbar and goes directly into the goal, the referees award the goal.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 2.6 · applied

Test 10Distances at restartsTake a test

  1. Until a free kick is in play all opponents must be at least 5 m from the ball.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 13.2 · recall

  2. When two or more defenders form a wall, the attackers must stay at least 1 m from it until the ball is in play.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 13.2 · recall

  3. If a free kick is taken quickly and an opponent closer than 5 m intercepts it, the referees allow play to continue.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 13.3 · applied

  4. An opponent who deliberately prevents a quick free kick is cautioned for delaying the restart.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 13.3 · applied

  5. Free kicks to the defending team in its own penalty area may be taken from anywhere in that area.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 13.2 · recall

  6. If opponents are inside the penalty area only because they did not have time to leave, the referees allow play to continue.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 13.3 · applied

  7. Feinting to take a free kick is permitted as part of futsal.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 13.2 · recall

  8. A white player standing right beside the grey wall, as A is, breaks the one-metre gap; if he is still there at the kick, grey get an indirect free kick.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 13.2 · applied

  9. Attackers keep 1 m from a wall, other players 2 m from a dropped ball, opponents 3 m from the ball at a kick-off and 5 m at a free kick.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Laws 8 and 13 · recall

  10. Standing within a metre of the wall at the moment of the kick costs the attacking side the ball: the defenders restart with an indirect free kick.

    Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 13.3 · applied

Sources

FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26 (approved by the Bureau of the FIFA Council, effective 5 September 2025) for every rule; the FIFA Futsal Coaching Manual (2025), chapter 2, and general futsal history for the sport's origins and governance. Both FIFA publications are free to download but not open-licensed, so questions are authored in original wording from these sources, never reproduced. A specific clause reference sits in each question's source field, never in the stem.

  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 1513
  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 1713
  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 1610
  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 8.210
  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 10.16
  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 14.16
  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 135
  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 95
  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 13.25
  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 13.34
  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 123
  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 14.23
  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 13.13
  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 9.13
  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 112
  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 2.32
  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 141
  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 13.51
  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 12.21
  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 9.21
  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 5.31
  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 2.61
  • FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Laws 8 and 131