What changed in grassroots football for 2026/27

Under 7 now plays 3v3

From the start of the 2026/27 season, England Football’s FutureFit pathway (opens in a new tab) makes 3v3 the entry format at Under 7, replacing 5v5. It is a different game rather than a smaller version of the old one: no goalkeepers, no substitutes and no referee, with one adult facilitator per pitch and short games played on a carousel so every child plays.

Our England age group rules guide sets out the 3v3 rules in full, mini soccer rules explains how Under 7 differs from Under 8 to Under 11, and when can my child start playing football covers where Under 7 sits for a family starting out.

Every format moved up a year, and 11v11 starts at Under 14

England Football announced in February 2025 (opens in a new tab) that each format would be played one year later from 2026/27. The maximum formats are now 5v5 at Under 8 and Under 9, 7v7 at Under 10 and Under 11, 9v9 at Under 12 and Under 13, and 11v11 from Under 14. Ball sizes follow the format: size 3 up to Under 11, size 4 at Under 12 and Under 13, and size 5 from Under 14.

These are maximums, and a smaller format can still be used. The England age group rules guide has the full table, and our guide to formats from Under 12 covers 9v9 and the move to 11v11.

No throw-ins from Under 7 to Under 11

FutureFit also changed how the game restarts at the younger ages. From Under 7 to Under 11, a pass-in or dribble-in replaces the throw-in when the ball goes out over the touchline, and throw-ins return at Under 12. The aim England Football gives is more time with the ball at players’ feet and less time with it in the air. Mini soccer rules explains how a pass-in works.

Deliberate heading is now out of Under 7 to Under 11 matches

This season completes a change The FA phased in over three seasons. Deliberate heading (opens in a new tab) was removed from affiliated grassroots matches at Under 7 to Under 9 in 2024/25 and Under 10 in 2025/26, and Under 11 was added in 2026/27. A deliberate header gives the other team an indirect free kick, with no card unless the offence is persistent. Heading returns in matches at Under 12.

Training guidance is separate and runs by age group. Our guide to heading in youth football covers both, including the exception for matches involving professional clubs’ teams.

The jewellery ban has been replaced by a safety test

The Laws of the Game changed for 2026/27. IFAB’s change note (opens in a new tab) removes the old wording that forbade all jewellery and banned taping it. In its place, accessories are allowed as long as they are not dangerous and are safely and securely covered, and dangerous items must be removed rather than taped.

IFAB’s own Law 4 page may still show the old sentence, so use the change note. Our guide to kit and equipment for youth football explains what this means for a player on matchday.

New time limits in 11v11 matches

Several Laws changes target time-wasting. They are in the 11v11 Laws used from Under 14, subject to the permitted modifications and competition rules that apply. Mini soccer runs under its own laws, and for 9v9 ask the league how it applies them. The FA’s summary of the 2026/27 Laws changes (opens in a new tab) lists them.

If a team deliberately delays a throw-in or a goal kick, the referee can start a five-second countdown with a raised hand. If the restart has not been taken when it ends, a delayed throw-in goes to the other team and a delayed goal kick becomes a corner to the other team. A player being substituted must now be off the field within ten seconds of the referee’s signal, except where safety or injury prevents it; if not, the substitute has to wait until the first stoppage after one minute has passed.

A new one-minute rule after on-field injury treatment

Under the 2026/27 Laws, a player who is treated or assessed on the pitch, or whose injury causes play to be stopped, must leave the field and stay off for one minute after play restarts. IFAB’s change note (opens in a new tab) sets out exceptions, including an injured goalkeeper and a player hurt by a challenge for which the opponent is cautioned or sent off. The referee can let the player back on while the ball is in play.

The one-minute rule is about time on the pitch, not about health. A player with a suspected concussion must not return that day at all, whatever the Laws allow. Our guide to concussion in grassroots football covers what to do.

Other Laws of the Game changes

A handful of smaller changes can come up in a grassroots match. The referee can now play advantage when a team takes a restart incorrectly and the other team gains the ball. A dropped ball goes to the team that would have taken the restart if the ball was going out of play, and is dropped where it hit a referee or an outside agent. A penalty taker who accidentally touches the ball twice sees the kick retaken if it goes in, and counted as missed or given as an indirect free kick if it does not. And a player who denies an obvious goal-scoring opportunity is not cautioned if the referee plays advantage and a goal is scored.

Cooling-off periods

England Football is rolling out cooling-off periods across grassroots football for the 2026/27 season. If tempers rise, the referee can pause the match, send the players to their own penalty areas and speak to the coaches and captains. A match can have no more than two cooling-off periods, and a third means it is abandoned. England Football’s 2026/27 behaviour update (opens in a new tab) explains how it works.

More volunteer coaches now need a barred list check

This change comes from the law on safeguarding rather than from football. From 1 September 2026, the supervision exemption was removed (opens in a new tab) from the definition of regulated activity with children, in England, Wales and Northern Ireland (opens in a new tab). Before, a volunteer who coached children regularly under a head coach’s supervision could sit outside regulated activity. Now, if they coach often enough, they are in it, and volunteers in regulated activity need an enhanced DBS check with children’s barred list information.

It changes eligibility, not everybody’s obligations overnight. Our guides to becoming a grassroots football coach, setting up as a self-employed coach and private football coaching for children explain what it means for each role.

A new course for adult team officials

For clubs with adult teams, the FA’s 2026/27 affiliation requirements (opens in a new tab) add the Player Welfare Course. All named team officials of open-age teams, other than the team secretary, must complete it as part of affiliation, and the club’s Welfare Officer for adult teams needs it too. Our club welfare officer guide covers the welfare roles.

Announced for later

IFAB has given advance notice that its “only the captain” guidelines, under which only a team’s captain approaches the referee, become a compulsory protocol for all competitions from 1 July 2027. It is listed here so clubs and referees can prepare for it. In England, The FA already applies its Captains Only approach at every level of the game.

Elsewhere in the UK

The FutureFit formats, restarts, heading phase-out and affiliation requirements are England’s. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland set their own youth rules through their own associations. The Laws of the Game are international, although permitted modifications and competition rules can affect how they apply, and the DBS change applies in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.