Last updated: August 2026
Key Takeaways
- A futsal penalty is taken from 6 m, and it is awarded for the same ten offences that give a direct free kick, committed inside a team’s own penalty area.
- Futsal has a second penalty mark at 10 m. From a team’s sixth accumulated foul in each half, the opposition gets a direct free kick from it — with no wall.
- At both restarts, the defending goalkeeper must stay on the line or at least 5 m from the ball, and all other players must be at least 5 m away.
- The 10 m kick is a shot, not a free kick: the taker may not pass, and no one may touch the ball until the goalkeeper has touched it, it has hit the frame, or it has left the court.
Every futsal team learns the second rule on that list the hard way. You commit five fouls, the referee raises a hand, and from that point every single foul in your half gives the other team an unopposed shot from ten metres. It is the rule that makes futsal discipline a tactical problem rather than a moral one.
All of the below comes from the FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game.
«Nobody counts fouls one to four. Everybody counts foul five. From that moment your defenders stop tackling and start showing players outside, because the alternative is a free shot from ten metres every time you touch someone.» — Anthony Molina, FOOTBOLNO.COM
The Ordinary Penalty: 6 Metres
A penalty kick is awarded against a team that commits, inside its own penalty area and while the ball is in play, any of the ten offences that would otherwise give a direct free kick. Where the ball is at the time does not matter.
A goal may be scored directly from a penalty kick, and additional time is allowed for one to be taken at the end of either half or either period of extra time.
Where everyone stands:
| Who | Where they must be |
|---|---|
| The ball | On the penalty mark, 6 m out |
| The kicker | Properly identified to the referees |
| The defending goalkeeper | On the goal line, facing the kicker, between the posts, until the ball is kicked |
| Everyone else | On the court, outside the penalty area, behind the penalty mark, and at least 5 m from the penalty mark |
The procedure is the same shape as outdoor football: a referee signals, the kicker must kick the ball forward, and the ball is in play the moment it is kicked and moves forward.
When a Penalty Goes Wrong
The Laws are specific about who infringed and what follows.
The kicker does not kick the ball forward — play is stopped and restarted with an indirect free kick to the savunmak team, taken from the penalty mark.
A team-mate takes the kick instead of the identified player — play is stopped, the player is cautioned for unsporting behaviour, and the defending team gets an indirect free kick from the penalty mark.
An attacking player encroaches before the ball is in play — the kick is allowed to proceed. If it scores, it is retaken. If it does not, the defending team gets an indirect free kick from where the offence occurred.
A defending player encroaches — the kick proceeds. If it scores, the goal stands. If it does not, the kick is retaken.
Both teams infringe — the kick is retaken, whatever the outcome.
The kicker touches the ball again before anyone else — indirect free kick to the opposition from where it happened. If they handled it deliberately, it is a direct free kick and an accumulated foul against their team.
That last one matters more than it sounds, because in futsal an accumulated foul is not a bookkeeping detail.
The Ten Offences That Give a Penalty
«The ten offences» is the phrase the futsal Laws use, and it is worth knowing exactly which ten, because every one of them is also an accumulated foul.
Seven of them count only when the referees judge them careless, reckless or committed with excessive force:
- kicking or attempting to kick an opponent
- tripping an opponent
- jumping at an opponent
- charging an opponent
- striking or attempting to strike an opponent
- pushing an opponent
- tackling an opponent
The other three count regardless of how they were done:
- holding an opponent
- spitting at an opponent
- handling the ball deliberately — except the goalkeeper inside their own penalty area
Committed anywhere on the court, these give a direct free kick and an accumulated foul. Committed by a defender inside their own penalty area, the same ten become a penalty kick.
Note the seventh entry on the first list. Tackling an opponent is on it, which is why sliding tackles are rare in futsal. A tackle is only an offence when it is careless, reckless or uses excessive force — but on a hard court, with an opponent a metre away and no room to slide through the ball, that is a narrow margin to work in.
What Is Not a Penalty, Even Inside the Area
This is where futsal diverges most sharply from the outdoor game, and it catches referees as well as players.
Offences punished with an indirect free kick do not become penalties when they happen inside the penalty area. They stay indirect free kicks, and they are taken from the penalty area line at the point nearest to where the offence occurred.
That covers all four goalkeeper-specific offences — the four-second violation, the second touch after a pass back, and both handling restrictions — plus playing in a dangerous manner, impeding an opponent, and preventing the goalkeeper from releasing the ball.
So a goalkeeper who stands on the ball in their own area for five seconds concedes an indirect free kick from the edge of the area, not a penalty. With opponents 5 m away on a court that is at most 25 m wide, that is still a serious chance, but it is not six metres and a free shot.
The practical version: only the ten direct-free-kick offences turn into penalties. Everything else inside the area is an indirect free kick from the line.
The Second Penalty Mark: 10 Metres
This is the part with no equivalent in eleven-a-side football.
Accumulated fouls are the offences punished with a direct free kick or a penalty kick. They are counted separately for each team in each half and recorded in the match report. Referees may still play advantage if the team has not already committed five accumulated fouls and no goalscoring opportunity is being denied.
From the sixth accumulated foul onwards in each half, the free kick changes character entirely:
- The kick is taken from the second penalty mark, 10 m from the goal
- Bu defending team may not form a wall
- Bu goalkeeper must stay inside their own penalty area, at least 5 m from the ball
- The kicker is properly identified and must kick with the intention of scoring — passing to a team-mate is not allowed
- Once the kick is taken, no player may touch the ball until it has been touched by the defending goalkeeper, has rebounded off a post or the crossbar, or has left the court
- Additional time is allowed at the end of either half to take one
If extra time is played, the accumulated fouls from the second half carry over into it. They do not reset.
Where the Sixth Foul Happened Changes the Kick
The location rule is the detail most summaries skip, and it decides whether a foul costs you ten metres or considerably less.
| Where the sixth foul was committed | Where the kick is taken from |
|---|---|
| In the opponents’ half | The second penalty mark (10 m) |
| In your own half, between the halfway line and the imaginary 10 m line | The second penalty mark (10 m) |
| In your own half, between the 10 m line and the goal line, outside the penalty area | The attacking team chooses: the second penalty mark or the spot where the foul happened |
| Inside your own penalty area | It is a penalty — 6 m |
That third row is the interesting one. A foul committed eight metres from goal gives the attacking team a choice, and they will usually take the closer position rather than the second penalty mark, because a free kick from eight metres with no wall is better than a shot from ten.
Six Metres or Ten: Which Is Harder to Save?
The 6 m penalty is closer, but the goal is small — 3 m wide and 2 m high — and the keeper is on the line. Conversion is high but not automatic.
The 10 m kick looks easier for the goalkeeper and usually is not. There is no wall, the keeper has to stay 5 m from the ball rather than on the line, and the taker is shooting with a clear sight of a target they have practised at all season. Elite futsal teams treat the sixth accumulated foul as close to a conceded goal, which is exactly why they manage fouls so carefully in the second half.
The rules around the keeper at both restarts — and everything else that applies only to the position — are in our guide to futsal goalkeeper rules.
How Teams Actually Manage the Foul Count
Because the count is per half and resets at half-time, discipline in futsal is a resource to be spent rather than avoided.
Fouls one to four are cheap. A tactical foul that stops a break costs a free kick with a wall. Teams use them.
Foul five is the warning. From here every foul is expensive, and coaches switch to containing rather than tackling.
After foul five, defend without contact. Show the player wide, delay, block the shooting line — anything that does not risk a whistle. Sliding tackles largely disappear.
Half-time is a reset. A team on nine accumulated fouls at the break starts the second half on zero, which is why the last minutes of the first half look different to the last minutes of the second.
Extra time is not a reset. Fouls carry over from the second half, so a team that reaches extra time with seven fouls is already giving away 10 m kicks.
Common Questions
How far is a penalty in futsal? Six metres from the goal line, at the penalty mark. The second penalty mark, used from the sixth accumulated foul, is 10 metres out.
What is the sixth foul rule in futsal? From a team’s sixth accumulated foul in a half, the opposing team gets a direct free kick from the second penalty mark with no wall allowed. The count restarts at half-time but carries into extra time.
What counts as an accumulated foul? Any offence punished with a direct free kick or a penalty kick. Offences that give an indirect free kick — including the goalkeeper’s four-second violation — do not count.
Can you pass from the second penalty mark? No. The kicker must kick with the intention of scoring, and passing to a team-mate is an infringement.
Where does the goalkeeper stand at a futsal penalty? On the goal line, facing the kicker, between the posts, until the ball is kicked. At a 10 m kick the requirement is different: inside their own penalty area and at least 5 m from the ball.
How far away must other players stand? At least 5 m from the penalty mark, outside the penalty area and behind the mark.
What happens if the kicker touches the ball twice? Indirect free kick to the opposition — or a direct free kick and an accumulated foul if they handled it deliberately.
Do accumulated fouls reset at half-time? Yes. They reset for the second half, but fouls from the second half continue to accumulate through extra time.
Anthony Molina writes about soccer technique, gear and coaching at FOOTBOLNO.
