What are the substitution rules in football, explained simply

A football team can use up to five substitutes in a match, entering only during stoppages in play, and in the Premier League the bench holds nine players. The modern substitution rules come from Law 3 of the Laws of the Game: the number you can name is set by the competition, from three to a maximum of fifteen, and in top-division football each team gets a maximum of three substitution windows plus half-time. Once a player leaves the pitch in professional football they take no further part in the match, and from 2026/27 the departing player has ten seconds to get off or the replacement waits.

What are the substitution rules in football: the numbers first

The headline number is five. IFAB Law 3.2 states that the number of substitutes, up to a maximum of five, which may be used in a match is determined by FIFA, the confederation or the national football association. For men's and women's competitions involving first teams of top-division clubs where the competition permits five, each team has a maximum of three substitution opportunities and may additionally make substitutions at half-time. The Premier League uses the full allowance: nine substitutes named on the team sheet, five used in the match. The bench was increased from seven to nine from Match Round 14 of the 2020/21 season.

Competitions decide how many substitutes may be named, anywhere from three to fifteen. The Premier League names nine. The effect is that a manager has five usable changes and one window is shared across them: multiple substitutions in the same stoppage count as one used opportunity, and if both teams change at the same stoppage it counts against both. A triple change costs the same one window as a single change.

When a substitute can come on

The substitution procedure is strict. The names of the substitutes must be given to the referee before the start of the match, and any substitute not named by that time may not take part. To make a change, the referee must be informed first. The substitute only enters during a stoppage in play, at the halfway line, after the player being replaced has left the pitch and after receiving a signal from the referee.

The player coming off must leave by the nearest point on the boundary line unless the referee directs otherwise, and goes straight to the technical area or dressing room. If a player who is to be substituted refuses to leave, play simply continues, and the intended change falls apart. Once the substitute enters, the substitution is complete: the replaced player becomes a substituted player, takes no further part in the match.

From the 2026/27 season the timing of the exit is policed. A substituted player has ten seconds to leave the field after the substitution board is shown or the referee signals. If they are not off within ten seconds, the substitute cannot enter yet, play restarts, the substitution cannot be cancelled or swapped, and the replacement may enter only at the first stoppage after a full minute has elapsed. The team plays short in the meantime. Where there are multiple substitutions in the same stoppage, all departing players must be off within ten seconds of the last substitution being indicated. This sits alongside the wider 2026/27 pacing changes: a player receiving on-field treatment must leave for at least one minute, and a delayed throw-in or goal kick hands possession over.

Substitution windows and half-time

The three windows are per team and they do not multiply. Using one does not earn another. Substitutions can only be made during a stoppage in play, so a VAR review or injury stop is a natural moment to spend one of the three. Half-time is separate: changes at the interval do not touch the windows.

Filling five changes into three windows plus the break takes planning, and the shape of the season makes the rules matter. The Premier League runs 33 weekend rounds and 5 midweek rounds, and the five-sub rule arrived as a temporary measure: IFAB made a temporary amendment to Law 3 in May 2020 following a FIFA proposal so competitions resuming after the pandemic could increase substitutions. The Premier League used five from nine at the June 2020 restart, then reverted to three for 2020/21. At a shareholder meeting in March 2022 the clubs voted five substitutions in permanently, and from 2022/23 the rule has been five from nine. It is now permanent in the Laws themselves for top-division football.

Substitutions in extra time and edge cases

Cup matches add a layer. If a team has not used its maximum number of substitutes or opportunities by the end of ninety minutes, the unused ones carry over into extra time. Where the competition allows one additional substitute in extra time, each team gets one extra opportunity. Changes made between full-time and the start of extra time, and at half-time in extra time, do not count as used opportunities at all.

Goalkeepers follow their own rules. Any outfield player may change places with the goalkeeper if the referee is informed before the change and it happens during a stoppage. Once a keeper is replaced by a substitute, the goalkeeper who came off takes no further part, like any other substituted player.

Players sent off cannot be replaced, and the rule has two edges. A player sent off after being named on the team list but before kick-off may be replaced by a named substitute, who then cannot be replaced; the number of substitutions is not reduced. A player sent off after kick-off cannot be replaced at all, and a named substitute who is sent off before or after kick-off may not be replaced either.

The substitutions that do not count

Concussion substitutes are the safety valve. The Premier League introduced IFAB's additional permanent concussion substitution trial from Matchweek 23 of 2020/21, starting 6 February 2021, and IFAB made the protocol permanent at its 138th annual general meeting on 2 March 2024, effective 1 July 2024. Each team is permitted one concussion substitute per match, and it does not count against the five normal substitutions or the three windows. The player with concussion takes no further part, and when a team uses one, the opposition gets the option of an additional normal substitute to keep the numbers fair.

Return substitutions are the opposite case, and people get this wrong. A substituted player is not allowed back on in professional football. Return substitutes exist only in youth, veterans, disability and grassroots football, with the agreement of the national FA, confederation or FIFA. In the Premier League, once you are off, you are off.

The rules also feed into fantasy football, because a substitute's points depend on when they come on: in FPL an appearance under 60 minutes scores 1 point and one of 60 minutes or more scores 2, which is why the FPL scoring rules reward the earlier introduction. For the deeper history of the five-sub rule, the clubs who fought for it and the exact window maths, our guide to five substitutions has the full detail, and the 2026/27 rule changes cover the ten-second rule alongside the rest of the new pacing laws. That is the complete shape of the substitution rules in football: the numbers, the windows, the procedure, and the timing limits that make them feel different this season.

FAQ

How many substitutes are allowed in the Premier League? Five per match, from a bench of nine. The changes must fit into a maximum of three stoppages in play plus half-time; multiple changes in the same stoppage count as one window.

Can a substituted player come back on? No, not in professional football. A substituted player takes no further part in the match. Return substitutions only exist in youth, veterans, disability and grassroots football.

How long does a player have to leave the pitch from 2026/27? Ten seconds from when the board is shown or the referee signals. If a player is not off in time, the replacement is held out until the first stoppage after a full minute has elapsed.

Do concussion substitutes count against the five? No. Each team gets one concussion substitute per match under the permanent protocol, and it does not count against the five normal substitutions or the three windows.

Key takeaways

• The Premier League allows five substitutes per match from a bench of nine, used across a maximum of three stoppages plus half-time.
• Law 3 rules that substitute can enter only during a stoppage, at the halfway line, after the player being replaced has left and the referee has signalled.
• From 2026/27 the departing player has ten seconds to leave the field, or the replacement is held out until the first stoppage after a full minute.
• A substituted player takes no further part in the match: professional football has no return substitutions, but one concussion substitute per team does not count against the normal limits.
• Five subs became permanent after a March 2022 shareholder vote, and the rule is now written into the Laws themselves for top-division football.