How long is a soccer game? Football match length explained

Law 7 of the Laws of the Game sets the length of a match:

The clock doesn't stop when the ball goes out of play, as it does in some sports. Instead, the referee keeps track of lost time and adds it at the end of each half.

Stoppage time (also called added time or injury time) makes up for time lost during the half. The Laws list what the referee should add for:

• substitutions,
• assessing and removing injured players,
• time-wasting,
• disciplinary sanctions (cards),
• medical stoppages permitted by the competition, such as drinks or cooling breaks,
• VAR checks and on-field reviews,
• goal celebrations,
• any other cause, such as a delayed restart.

The fourth official shows the minimum added time on a board. The referee can play more than that, but not less. Stoppage time can itself be extended if there are more delays during it.

Why stoppage time got longer from 2023

At the 2022 World Cup, referees were told to add the actual time lost more precisely, particularly for goal celebrations, substitutions and injuries. Many competitions, including the Premier League, adopted the same approach from the 2023/24 season. The result: second halves regularly run 8–10 minutes past 90, and 90+10 is no longer unusual.

The IFAB has kept pushing in the same direction. Since 2025/26 a goalkeeper who holds the ball for more than eight seconds concedes a corner, and from 2026/27 slow throw-ins and goal kicks can be penalised after a five-second countdown. These rules aim to keep more of the 90 minutes as actual playing time.

Ninety minutes on the clock doesn't mean 90 minutes of football. The ball is out of play for throw-ins, free kicks, goal kicks, injuries and VAR checks, so the time the ball is actually in play is often well under an hour. That's why stoppage time exists, and why matches with lots of fouls, substitutions and checks tend to run longer.

• Women's football uses exactly the same Laws: 2 × 45 minutes, plus stoppage time.
• Youth football is often shorter. The Laws allow shorter halves for youth, veterans, disability and grassroots football if the competition sets it. Many under-17 competitions, for example, play 2 × 40 minutes, and younger age groups play less.
• Friendlies follow the normal length unless the teams agree otherwise.

In a league match, a draw after 90 minutes is final. In a knockout tie that's level at the end, the competition rules may call for extra time (two halves of 15 minutes) and then a penalty shoot-out. Some competitions go straight to penalties. Full details, including how bets settle, are in extra time and penalties.

This is the most important part for anyone betting. Almost all football markets are settled on regular time, which means 90 minutes plus stoppage time, but not extra time or penalties.

The same logic applies to first-half bets: a goal at 45+3 is a first-half goal. For more on the match result market, read 1X2 betting; for goals lines, see over/under goals.

Longer stoppage time changes in-play prices. A team trailing by one goal has more time to equalise than it did a few years ago, and late goals have become a bigger factor in goals markets. If you bet in-play, watch the board: four minutes and ten minutes of added time are very different. Our live scores show the minute and the events as they happen, and live betting explains how odds move with the clock.

You can see when teams tend to score, including late goals, on our trends page.