A drop ball in football is a method of restarting play when the referee has stopped the match for any reason not covered by other restart methods such as free kicks, throw-ins, goal kicks, or corner kicks. The drop ball procedure involves the referee dropping the ball to a player of the team that last touched it, with all other players required to remain at least four metres away until the ball touches the ground. This restart method was significantly reformed in 2019, changing from a contested situation where players from both teams could compete for the ball to an uncontested procedure that simply returns possession to the team that had it before the stoppage.
When Is a Drop Ball Used?
Drop balls occur in several specific situations during a football match. The most common scenario is when the referee stops play for an injury to a player and no foul has been committed. If a player goes down with a head injury, for example, the referee is required to stop play immediately regardless of which team has the ball. When play resumes, a drop ball is awarded to whichever team was in possession at the moment of the stoppage. This ensures that the team that had the ball is not disadvantaged by the referee’s decision to stop play for safety reasons.
Another situation that triggers a drop ball is when the ball strikes the referee or another match official and one of several outcomes occurs: a team starts a promising attack, the ball goes directly into the goal, or possession changes. In these cases, play is stopped and restarted with a drop ball to the team that last had possession. This rule was introduced because the referee is considered part of the playing field, meaning the ball normally remains in play when it hits an official, but the three specific outcomes listed above are deemed unfair enough to warrant a stoppage.
Drop balls are also used when play is stopped for reasons outside the normal flow of the game, such as a spectator entering the pitch, an object being thrown onto the field, a floodlight failure, or any external interference that requires the referee to halt proceedings. In these situations, the team that was in possession receives the drop ball. If the ball was in the penalty area when play was stopped, the drop ball is given to the goalkeeper of the defending team, regardless of which team had possession, to prevent any unfair advantage from a restart in such a dangerous area.
If the referee incorrectly awards a goal, corner kick, goal kick, or throw-in and then realizes the error before play resumes, a drop ball is used to restart play. This corrective use of the drop ball is relatively rare at the professional level, where VAR technology helps ensure that major decisions are correct, but it remains an important backup mechanism in the Laws of the Game for situations where an error needs to be rectified after the initial decision has been made.
The 2019 Rule Change: From Contested to Uncontested
Before the 2019 rule change, drop balls were contested — the referee would drop the ball between two opposing players, and both could compete for it as soon as it touched the ground. This procedure was widely regarded as unsatisfactory because the outcome was essentially random, with neither team able to claim a fair right to possession. The contested drop ball also created an awkward social convention where one team was expected to kick the ball back to the opposition if they had been in possession before the stoppage, leading to occasional controversies when a team failed to observe this unwritten rule of sportsmanship.
The reformed drop ball procedure eliminated these problems by making the restart entirely uncontested. The ball is dropped to a specific player from the team that was in possession, with all other players — including teammates of the receiving player — required to stay at least four metres away until the ball touches the ground. This means the receiving player has complete freedom to play the ball without any pressure from opponents, effectively guaranteeing that possession is returned to the team that had it before the stoppage.
The change was universally welcomed by players, managers, and fans. The old contested drop ball was considered one of football’s most awkward and unsatisfying procedures, often producing chaotic scrambles for the ball that bore no relationship to the tactical state of the match before the stoppage. The new procedure is cleaner, fairer, and faster, allowing play to resume with minimal disruption to the flow of the game. It also eliminated the occasional controversies that arose when teams scored from contested drop balls, particularly when the other team felt they should have been given the ball back.
One practical implication of the rule change is that drop balls no longer create any meaningful goalscoring opportunity for either team. Under the old rules, a contested drop ball near the goal could theoretically lead to a shot and a goal, though this was extremely rare. Under the new rules, the ball is simply returned to the team that had it, and play continues from that point. This makes drop balls effectively neutral events from a prediction and betting perspective, with no impact on the expected scoreline or match outcome.
Drop Balls in Match Context
While drop balls are relatively minor events in the overall flow of a football match, they can have indirect effects on the game in certain situations. A drop ball awarded deep in one team’s defensive third returns possession to them in a potentially dangerous position, requiring them to play out from the back under pressure. Conversely, a drop ball in the attacking third returns possession to a team in a promising area where they can immediately resume their attack, potentially catching the opposition out of position if they have not reorganized during the stoppage.
The frequency of drop balls varies between matches but is generally low. Most matches feature only one or two drop balls, and many matches have none at all. The most common cause — injury stoppages — occurs more frequently in physically intense matches such as derbies and cup ties, where aggressive tackling increases the risk of injuries that require the referee to stop play. In calmer, more technically oriented matches, drop balls may not occur at all.
Head injury protocols have increased the frequency of drop balls in recent years. Football’s governing bodies have implemented stricter guidelines requiring referees to stop play immediately whenever a head injury is suspected, regardless of the match situation. This heightened awareness of head injuries has led to more stoppages and consequently more drop balls, as the priority is player safety rather than the continuity of play. The concussion substitution rule, which allows teams to make an additional substitution for a player with a suspected concussion, has further increased the number of injury-related stoppages.
Drop Balls and Correct Score Predictions
Drop balls have minimal direct impact on correct score predictions because they are neutral restarts that simply return possession to the team that had it. Unlike free kicks, corners, or penalties, a drop ball does not create any inherent goalscoring advantage or disadvantage for either team. The ball is returned to its approximate previous state, and play continues as it would have before the stoppage.
However, the circumstances that cause drop balls — particularly injury stoppages — can have indirect effects on match outcomes. A key player being injured and forced off the pitch changes the tactical balance of the match and may affect the expected scoreline. If a team’s star striker suffers an injury that leads to a drop ball and subsequent substitution, the team’s expected goals output decreases, which should be factored into any updated correct score prediction.
The time consumed by drop ball situations also contributes to overall stoppage time, which as discussed elsewhere has implications for late-goal probabilities and correct score outcomes. While each individual drop ball consumes only 10 to 20 seconds, the cumulative effect of multiple stoppages contributes to the total added time at the end of each half, providing more minutes in which the scoreline can potentially change.
At Correct Score Predict, our focus is on the factors that meaningfully influence match outcomes, and while drop balls themselves are neutral events, the contexts in which they occur — injuries, tactical disruptions, momentum shifts — are all relevant to our prediction methodology. Understanding every aspect of how football matches flow and restart helps create the most comprehensive and accurate scoreline forecasts.
