Football explained clearly

Clear, straightforward guides to the rules, tactics, competitions, history and language of football.

Illustrated football pitch graphic showing tactical lines, player positions and ball movement.

Learn the rules

Understand the basic laws of football, including offside, fouls, cards, penalties, match length and restarts.

Guide

Football rules explained

Football has a long set of rules, known as the Laws of the Game, but most of the game can be understood through a small number of clear ideas. This guide walks through the rules that come up in almost every match.

Rules

Match basics

Before looking at fouls, offside or restarts in detail, it helps to understand the basic shape of a football match — how teams are set up, how long the game lasts, and what counts as a goal.

Rules

The offside rule explained

Offside is one of the most asked-about rules in football. The idea behind it is simple, but the detail is where most confusion comes from. This guide explains it step by step.

Rules

Referee decisions and VAR

Football matches are controlled by a small team of officials, supported in many competitions by a video assistant referee. This guide explains how decisions are made on the pitch and how they are reviewed.

Rules

Restarts and set pieces

Football matches stop and restart constantly. Knowing which restart is used in which situation makes the game much easier to follow, especially when watching a match without commentary.

Rules

Fouls and other offences

Many stoppages in football come from fouls or other offences. This guide explains what referees look for, how offences are punished, and how fouls, handball, time wasting and misconduct connect to free kicks, penalties and cards.

Understand positions

Learn what goalkeepers, defenders, midfielders and attackers do, where each one lines up and how the positions fit together to form a team.

Guide

Football positions explained

A football team is made up of eleven players in four broad areas — goalkeeper, defence, midfield and attack. This guide walks through each area and the positions within it, in plain English.

Position

Football shirt numbers explained

Football shirt numbers used to map directly onto positions, with each number worn by the player in a specific role. Squad numbers have changed that — but the traditional link is still part of the language of the game.

Position

The goalkeeper

The goalkeeper is the only specialist position on the pitch — and the only player allowed to use their hands inside their own penalty area. This guide explains the responsibilities of the position, how they have changed and how a modern goalkeeper helps build attacks as well as stop shots.

Position

Defenders and the back line

The back line is the foundation of any football team. This guide explains how defenders are organised, what each one does, and the difference between a back four and a back three.

Position

Midfielders and the engine room

Midfielders are the players who link defence to attack. They are usually among the players who cover the most ground and help decide how a team controls the ball. This guide explains the main midfield positions and how they fit together.

Position

Attackers and forwards

Attackers, also called forwards, are the players furthest up the pitch. Their main job is to score and create goals. This guide explains the main forward positions and how front lines are arranged in modern football.

Explore football tactics

Discover how teams set up and play, from formations and playing styles to the roles given to individual players, set-piece routines and match strategy.

Guide

Football tactics explained

Football tactics are the set of decisions a manager makes about how their team will play. This guide walks through what tactics actually are and how the different parts fit together.

Formations

Football formations

A formation is the basic reference shape a team plays in, written as a sequence of numbers from defence to attack. This guide explains how formations work, the main formations in modern football, and how teams move between them.

Playing styles

Playing styles and systems

A playing style is how a team chooses to attack, defend and react when possession changes. A playing system is the wider framework around it — style, formation and roles combined. This guide covers the main style families, the different ways teams combine them, and how style fits into a team's overall system.

Roles

Tactical roles in football

A tactical role is the specific job a player performs inside a team's system. This guide explains the main football roles by position group, and how those roles connect to formations, playing styles and player profiles.

Set pieces

Set piece routines

Set pieces are the moments when the game pauses and both teams have time to organise. They produce many important goals and are among the most rehearsed parts of football.

Match strategy

Match strategies

Match strategy is the in-game side of tactics — the decisions a manager makes once the match has started. This guide covers the main situations teams plan for and the adjustments they make during a match.

Football competitions explained

Understand how the game's competitions fit together, from domestic leagues and cups to continental club football, the World Cup and other international tournaments across both the men's and women's game.

Guide

How football competitions work

Club football is built from domestic leagues and cups into continental and intercontinental competitions. International football is separate, with national teams qualifying for continental tournaments and the World Cup. This guide explains the main competition formats, how club and international football are organised, and how teams qualify from one competition to another.

International

International football

International football is played between national teams rather than clubs. This section covers the World Cup, the major continental tournaments, and how they fit together across the international football cycle.

Intercontinental

Intercontinental club football

Intercontinental club football brings together leading clubs from different continents to compete for a global title. This section covers the FIFA Club World Cup, the annual FIFA Intercontinental Cup, and the older competitions they grew out of.

Continental

Continental club football

Continental club football is the level above the domestic game and below the intercontinental tournaments. Each confederation runs its own competitions for the strongest clubs in its region, from the Champions League and Europa League in Europe to the Copa Libertadores in South America and similar tournaments across Asia, Africa, North America and Oceania.

Domestic

Domestic football

Domestic football is the league and cup football played within a national football system. Most countries have their own structure, usually built around a top-flight league, lower divisions and at least one national cup. These competitions decide national champions, create promotion and relegation battles, and provide the main route into continental club football.

Women's football

Women's football competitions

Women's football competitions follow the same broad layers as the men's game, covering international tournaments, continental club competitions and domestic leagues. This section explains how those layers fit together, from the FIFA Women's World Cup to the UEFA Women's Champions League, the WSL, the NWSL and other leading domestic leagues.

Football history

Explore the origins of football, the rise of the professional game, its great teams and matches, and how tactics evolved.

Origins

Origins of football

Football's modern form was shaped in the middle of the nineteenth century, when a patchwork of local games began to be pulled together into shared written rules. This guide explains how that happened and why it mattered.

Professionalisation

The rise of professional football

In the second half of the nineteenth century, football moved out of its amateur roots and into a paid, organised sport. This guide explains how clubs, leagues and national associations took shape, and how the game began to spread.

International history

The history of international football

International football began in 1872, when Scotland played England in the first match between two national teams. This guide traces how the international game grew from that first fixture into FIFA, the World Cup and the international football calendar.

Tactical history

Tactical evolution in football

Football tactics have changed many times since the 1870s. Each shift has been driven by new ideas about how to attack, how to defend and how to organise 11 players. This guide walks through the main tactical eras in order.

Iconic football

Iconic teams, players and matches

Some teams, players and matches have become reference points that football history returns to again and again. This guide is an introduction to the sides, individuals and games most often remembered when football's history is told.

Modern era

The modern era of football

From the 1990s, football changed more quickly than it had for generations. This guide covers the main forces — globalisation, broadcasting, the Champions League era and the rise of the women's game — that shaped the modern sport.

Equipment and pitch guides

Learn about the football pitch, balls, boots, shin pads, goalkeeper gloves and other essential equipment.

Guide

Football equipment explained

Football has a short list of equipment compared to most team sports, but the details matter — from the studs on a pair of boots to the markings on a match ball. This guide walks through every part of the kit bag and the matchday setup, in plain English.

Equipment

Football boots

Football boots are a personal piece of equipment, but the choice comes down to a clear set of categories — the type of stud, the surface the boot is made for, and the material of the upper. This guide explains each one.

Equipment

Match balls

A football match is played with one ball in play at a time, and the rules around that ball are more detailed than they might first appear. This guide covers ball sizes, the standards a match ball has to meet, and what separates a top-level ball from a training one.

Equipment

Football kit and shirts

A football kit is more than a shirt — it is the matching set of shirt, shorts and socks worn by every player on a team, designed to be clearly distinguishable from the opposition and the officials. This guide covers what goes into a kit and the rules around how it can be worn.

Equipment

Shin guards

Shin guards, also called shin pads, are the only compulsory item of protective player equipment under the Laws. The Laws of the Game require them at every level, and the rules around them are stricter than they look. This guide covers each part of the subject.

Equipment

Goalkeeper equipment

The goalkeeper is the only specialist position on the pitch, and the only player with position-specific equipment. This guide covers the goalkeeper kit, the gloves and the protective gear that the position commonly uses, plus the rules that govern how goalkeepers must be dressed.

Equipment

Match official equipment

Match officials carry their own kit, separate from either team. This guide covers what the referee, assistant referees and fourth official wear and carry, how they communicate with each other, and the technology that supports their decisions.

Equipment

Training and performance equipment

Training and performance equipment covers the kit a team brings to training and, at higher levels, to matchday. This guide explains the simple drill equipment used by coaches at every level, and the performance trackers that are common in professional and academy football.

Equipment

Pitch and goal equipment

Every football match is played on a pitch with the same basic features — two goals, a set of markings, and a clear boundary. This guide explains the dimensions, the equipment around the pitch, and how different formats of football adjust the setup for different age groups.

A clear football reference guide

Guide to Football is designed for anyone who wants to understand the game without hype, jargon or news noise.

Beginner-friendly

Clear explanations for people who are new to football or want to understand the game better.

Simple, not simplistic

Straightforward language that makes football easier to understand without oversimplifying the game.

Evergreen

Reference-style guides that stay useful beyond a single match, season or news cycle.

Start learning football properly

Begin with the basic rules, then explore positions, tactics, competitions and key football terms.

Read the rules guide Browse the glossary