Lesson 5 of 5 · 5 min
The most argued-about law in the game is really one sentence, plus one detail about timing that almost everyone gets wrong.
You are in an offside position if you are in the opponent's half and closer to their goal line than both the ball and the second-last opponent. The second-last opponent is usually the last outfield defender, because the goalkeeper is normally the last one of all. That is the whole geometry of it.
An attacker level with the last defender is onside — the law says closer, not level, and any doubt goes to the attacker. A stride beyond that line at the moment the pass is played is offside. This is why defensive lines step up together: they are moving the line that decides this, all at once.
This is the detail that causes the arguments. Offside is measured at the exact moment a teammate plays the ball, not at the moment the runner receives it. An attacker can be ten yards clear of every defender when the ball reaches them and still be perfectly onside, because they were level when it was struck. Timing the run late is a skill built entirely around this one word.
Standing in an offside position is not punished. It becomes an offence only when the player gets involved: playing the ball, interfering with an opponent, or gaining an advantage from being there. This is why you will see a player in an offside position deliberately step away from the ball and let a teammate run onto it instead.
Offside only exists in the opponent's half — you can never be offside in your own. It also does not apply at all from a throw-in, a corner kick, or a goal kick, which is part of why those restarts create such crowded penalty areas.
Try it
Open Explore, turn on the opponent overlay, and switch to In possession. The opponent's deepest outfield player is the line every one of your attackers is being measured against.
Quick check
At what moment is offside judged?
Key takeaways