Beach Soccer Rules

Official Rules (detailed description)

Basic rules:
Team: five players, one being the goalkeeper

Substitutes: from three to five players stay in bench, as substitutes; substitutions are unlimited

Uniforms: shorts and shirts; wearing any kind of hard footwear is forbidden; wearing socks or ankle protectors is OK

Referees: two (first referee prevails over second in case of discordance)

Duration: each match has three periods of twelve minutes each, with a three minute break between periods; if the score is tied, there is a three minute "golden goal" overtime period; if the score is still tied after the overtime, there is an alternate penalty shoot-out, until one of the teams scores and the other misses a kick.

Fouls: in case of physical infraction, there is a free kick from the point of infringement, and the faulted player must take the free kick (unless he is injured, in which case his substitute will take place). In case of hand fault, any player may take the free kick.

Cards: depending on how the seriousness of the infraction, the referees will show advertence cards to the infringent players. The cards follow this order: yellow, blue (player is suspended during two minutes; the player isn't substituted, but he can return after the suspension is over) and red card (player is sent off and can't return; after two minutes, he may be substituted).

Free kicks: if a team commits a foul at the defensive field, the other team has a free kick with no walls (no players can be posted between the ball and the goal); if the foul is commited at the offensive field (of the team which commits the foul), then a wall is allowed (players can be positioned between the ball and the goal, but must keep a minimum distance of 5.0 m).
Penalty kicks are shot from a distance of 9.0 m from the goal line
On kick-off, a goal cannot be scored directly, but only after the ball has been passed at least once.

Goalkeeper
Goalkeepers must re-enter the ball using his hands, within five seconds after having controlled the ball. Goals with hands are not valid; goals with feet are valid, provided that the goalkeeper had received a pass from another player.



Back to Top