How Long Is A Soccer Game? (Professional, Youth, College, School)

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Being a soccer enthusiast, you must know how long is a soccer game. In this post, you will get all the information about what is a soccer game length. How long do professional, youth, college, and high school soccer games last?

By reading this article, we will finish all your quests with a proper sequence. Let’s dive into the answers to all these questions that circulate in your mind.

How Long Is A Soccer Game? (Professional, Youth, College, School)

How long is a soccer game generally?

Usually, a soccer match in the FIFA world cup and some other football leagues consists of two halves of 45-minute. Sometimes a game doesn’t end within these specified 90 minutes. When both teams become the walls of concrete for each other, and the number of scored goals remains equal at this limited time, then for the final verdict, a governing body gives an extra time to the match so that a winner can be declared.

Half-time – Extra time or overtime in a soccer match consists of two periods of 15-minute each. There is a break of 5-minute before the extra time and a break of 1 minute between the two overtime periods.

Additional time – Additional time is also called allowance time. This time is announced by the referee at the end of the two 45-minute. It is referred to as the time lost through player’s replacement, injury to the players, a celebration of a goal, and break of drink,

Penalty Kick – If both teams are told to take or retake the penalty kick, the game will be continued, and the duration of halftime will be enhanced until the penalty kicking is finished.

Quick Reference: Duration of Different Types of Soccer Games

Type of GameDuration
Professional match90 minutes (45 minutes per half)
Amateur or youth matchTypically shorter than professional matches, but can vary depending on the league or organization. Starts from 6 minutes to 45 minutes per half.
Futsal40 minutes (20 minutes per half)
Beach soccer36 minutes (18 minutes per half)
Indoor soccerTypically shorter than outdoor matches, but can vary depending on the league or organization.
Seven-a-sideThey are shorter than 11-a-side matches, but can vary depending on the league or organization.
Five-a-sideTypically shorter than 11-a-side matches, but can vary depending on the league or organization.

How Long do Soccer Games Last in Professional Events?

According to rule 7 a professional soccer match lasts for 90-minutes. These 90-minute are divided into two halves of 45-minute each. Each half is played without any stoppage in time whenever a soccer ball is kicked out of the playing area. To get some rest, drink some fluids, and get some ideas from the seniors, the players are given the break of 15 minutes between the two halves of 45-minute.  

Furthermore, if a match during these 90-minute remains tied, so to declare the winner, law 7 announces extra time, additional time, and penalty kicking time, as I have mentioned above.

Let’s know how long do college and high school football games last? 

How Long Is A Soccer Game? (Professional, Youth, College, School)

The football rules book of the NCAA National College Athletes Association has specified two 45-minute halves and equal of 90-minute time and overtime for college and high school football games.

In case a game remains tied, law 7 has outlined some rules like:

  • The match can be prolonged due to the penalties. It means that penalties have to be taken.
  • The match is provided two 10-minute halves as extra time. It means if a team scores a goal during half-time wins the game.
  • The match will be drawn if both teams’ goals remain equal after overtime.
How long is a soccer game?

How long is a youth soccer game?

A youth soccer game depends on different age groups. The youth soccer association of the United States follows 7 different types of playing lengths. Youth soccer leagues’ matches basically follow their own rules that are very different from a regular match regulations, such as a number of substitutions of more than three.

How Long Is A Soccer Game? (Professional, Youth, College, School)

Let’s have a look at the different lengths of youth soccer games.

  • Players under-6: play 6-minute quarters without extra time.
  • Players under-8: play 12-minute quarters without extra time.
  • Players under-10: play two 25-minute halves without extra time.
  • Players under-11 & 12: play two 30-minute halves with two 10-minute extra times.
  • Players under-13 & 14: play two 35-minute halves with two 10-minute extra times.
  • Players under-15 & 16: play two 40-minute halves with two 15-minute of extra time.
  • Players under-17, 18 & 19: play two 45-minute halves with two 15-minute of extra time.
How Long Is A Soccer Game? (Professional, Youth, College, School) - infographic
infographic for different soccer games’ length

Conclusion

In this article, we have explained how long is a soccer game. You have read that a soccer game generally consists of two 45-minute halves, a penalty shootout, and extra time. We have also learned that there is a huge difference in time between a youth soccer game and a professional football match. The laws have specified different time limits for different age groups for a youth soccer game.

Please let us know if you think we have missed something about how long are football games.

FAQs

Halftime and extra time extend the duration of a soccer game, with halftime typically lasting 15 minutes and extra time varying depending on the circumstances, such as overtime or penalty shootouts.

A regular soccer game consists of two 45-minute halves, totaling 90 minutes of playing time. However, additional time may be added for stoppages and injuries, and in special cases like overtime or penalty shootouts, the game can extend beyond the initial 90 minutes.

The duration of a soccer game for kids can vary depending on the age group. Typically, games for younger kids range from 20 to 30 minutes per half, while games for older kids may be around 40 to 45 minutes per half.

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