# Players, Substitutions and the Bench · Futsal Level 1: Beginner

Futsal · Level 1: Beginner · Insporta Book (https://book.insporta.app/futsal/level-1/players-substitutions-and-the-bench/)

Players, Substitutions and the Bench in Futsal (Level 1: Beginner) on Insporta: 50 sourced facts behind 5 tests. Covers: the five on court and the min.

This sub-level teaches who is on the court and who is off it — five players a side, one of them the goalkeeper, counted in the five and not extra, with a match abandoned if a team drops below three; rolling substitutions made on the fly through a team's own five-metre zone, unlimited in number, with the player coming on waiting until the one going off has left; the improper-substitution caution and the indirect free kick that follows; changing the goalkeeper only during a stoppage with the officials told, the goalkeeper's freedom to play anywhere, and the flying goalkeeper as a tactic rather than a Law; the bench and the technical area, who may sit there and who answers for their conduct; and playing short after a send-off, two minutes of playing time with an early return if the fuller team scores.

## Test 1: The five on court and the minimum

- A team has at most five players on the court, and one of them must be the goalkeeper; every other position is a tactical choice. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.1)
- Three on the court is the floor for both sides; drop below it and the game cannot begin or go on. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.1)
- Once a team has fewer than three players, whether through send-offs or injury, the match is abandoned. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.1)
- Only players and substitutes named on the official team list before the match may take part; anyone else is an outside agent. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.2)
- The cap of five names a total headcount, not five outfielders plus a keeper, so whoever is guarding the goal uses up one of the five places. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.1)
- If a team has too many players on the court, play is stopped, the extra person leaves and is cautioned, and play restarts with an indirect free kick to the opponents. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.9)
- Nine named substitutes is the ceiling for official competition; other matches may use more if the teams agree beforehand and the referee is informed. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.2)
- Only a set number of team officials, named beforehand, may sit in the technical area with the substitutes; the number is fixed by the competition rules. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.3)
- Any of the team's players may take over in goal; the new goalkeeper must wear colours that set him apart from the others and the officials. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.4)
- Only the goalkeeper may handle the ball, and only inside his own penalty area; outside it he is treated like any other player. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.1)

## Test 2: Rolling substitutions

![The top touchline of a futsal court, the bench side, with a 5 m substitution zone marked either side of the halfway line and a 5 m stretch in front of the timekeeper kept clear between them. In the left zone the player wearing 4 runs off the court through the zone while the substitute wearing 12 waits outside the touchline; only once 4 has completely left may 12 step on through the same zone.](https://book.insporta.app/diagrams/futsal-rolling-substitution.svg)
*A rolling substitution through the team's own 5 m substitution zone.*

- Futsal uses rolling substitutions: any number of them, made while the ball is in or out of play, and a player who has been substituted may come back on. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.3)
- There is no rule tying the two players to one exact point; both may cross anywhere within the zone's five-metre width. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.3)
- The substitute may only enter after the player being replaced has completely left the court, and he must enter through the substitution zone. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.3)
- Substitutions may be made whether the ball is in play or out of play; the restriction is on where players enter and leave, not on the moment. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.3)
- A player who has been substituted may come back onto the court later as a substitute himself; there is no rule keeping him off for the rest of the match. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.3)
- Rolling substitutions do not interrupt play; a change can be made as a restart is being taken, as long as players use the substitution zone. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.3)
- The incoming player waits until the outgoing player has left, so the team is never briefly six on the court during the change. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.3)
- Entering before the other player has left is an improper substitution: play is stopped, the player is cautioned, and the restart is an indirect free kick to the opponents. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.9)
- Both players in a change must use the team's own substitution zone; leaving over the touch line elsewhere is an infringement, cautioned like any improper substitution. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.9)
- Play restarts with an indirect free kick to the opposing team from where the ball was when play stopped; if that is inside the penalty area, it is taken from the six-metre line. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.9)

## Test 3: Changing the goalkeeper and the flying goalkeeper

- Any player may change places with the goalkeeper, but only when play is stopped and only after the referee has been informed. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.4)
- A goalkeeper change made during play, or without the referee knowing, is an infringement; the Law requires both a stoppage and prior notice. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.4)
- Swapping the goalkeeper for an outfield player lets a team attack five against four; the goalkeeper plays as a normal outfielder and keeps no handling rights away from his area. (Source: General futsal)
- The flying goalkeeper is a tactic, not a Law of its own; it relies on the ordinary rules for changing the goalkeeper and making substitutions. (Source: General futsal)
- With the goalkeeper committed upfield, a turnover leaves the net empty; the opposition can score from distance before he recovers, which is the price of the extra attacker. (Source: General futsal)
- A player taking over in goal must wear colours distinguishing him from the outfield players, the opponents and the officials, just like any goalkeeper. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.4)
- The goalkeeper is not confined to any zone; he may move and play the ball anywhere, and often does so as a spare man in attack. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3)
- A goalkeeper who controls the ball in his own half may not keep it for more than four seconds whether he uses hands or feet; exceeding that is an indirect free kick to the opponents. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 12)
- There is nothing in the Laws against scoring from long range in open play; a clearance that beats the unguarded net is a legitimate goal. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 10)
- When the change is noticed with the ball already out of play, the players are corrected and play resumes with the restart appropriate to why it stopped; a caution may still be given. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.9)

## Test 4: The bench and team officials

- Substitutes and the named team officials occupy the bench in the technical area on their team's side of the court, behind the touch line. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 1.4)
- The senior team official present, normally the head coach, is responsible for the behaviour of everyone in the technical area. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.3)
- Team officials may give instructions but must remain within the bounds of the technical area; one who will not stay inside it can be warned and then dismissed. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.3)
- A team official guilty of misconduct is shown a yellow or red card; if the offender cannot be identified, the senior official in the technical area receives it. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 12)
- The Laws leave the maximum number of substitutes and officials on the bench to the competition rules, which vary by tournament. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.3)
- Substitutes and substituted players are subject to the same cautions and send-offs as players on the court; misconduct on the bench is punished in the same way. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 12)
- An official sent from the technical area takes no further part and is not replaced; the team continues with the officials it has left. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.3)
- A team official is any non-player named on the team list, such as a coach, fitness or medical staff; they occupy the technical area but take no part in play. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3)
- Futsal does not cap how many officials may instruct at once, but everyone in the technical area must behave responsibly; conduct that is provocative or disruptive is punished. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.3)
- Extra time is a continuation of the match; substitutes and officials remain available under the same conditions, though no timeout may be taken. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 7)

## Test 5: Playing short after a send-off

- After a send-off the team is reduced by one for two minutes of playing time, timed by the timekeeper, before a substitute may take the sent-off player's place. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.8)
- If the team with more players scores while the other is short, the short-handed team may immediately restore its numbers; the remaining reduction time is cancelled. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.8)
- The reduction ends early only when the team with more players scores; a goal by the short-handed team leaves the two minutes running. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.8)
- The timekeeper counts the two minutes in playing time, stopping the count whenever the match clock stops, so it is not two minutes on the wall. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.8)
- A dismissal before the whistle for kick-off simply costs the team that player; one of the named substitutes steps straight into his spot, so five still line up. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.7)
- A player who is sent off must leave the vicinity of the court and the technical area; he does not sit on the bench. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 12)
- Each send-off brings its own two-minute reduction, timed separately, so the team is two players short until the first period expires or the opponents score against it. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.8)
- While a team is short by two, a goal by the fuller team lets one player return; a further goal lets the next return, one for each concession. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.8)
- If the two minutes have not run out when the period ends, the remainder is served at the start of the next period; the reduction is not cancelled by half-time. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.8)
- A team must have at least three players on the court; a send-off that would reduce it below three ends the match. (Source: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26, Law 3.1)

Sources: FIFA Futsal Laws of the Game 2025/26 (approved by the Bureau of the FIFA Council, effective 5 September 2025) for every rule; the FIFA Futsal Coaching Manual (2025), chapter 2, and general futsal history for the sport's origins and governance. Both FIFA publications are free to download but not open-licensed, so questions are authored in original wording from these sources, never reproduced. A specific clause reference sits in each question's source field, never in the stem.

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