This article has been updated to comply with the Laws of the Game 2023/24. It lists all the rule changes in the Laws of the Game and other association football codices before 1886 I know of. More on trials or withdrawn and defeated football rule proposals discussed at the Annual General Meeting of The IFAB on request (Contact).
In this article the development of the penalty kick is described.
| Year (Source) | new or changed laws (proposing club/association, if known) |
| 1891 (IFAB) | Deliberately tripping or holding an opposing player, or deliberately handling the ball shall be penalized on appeal within the penalty area (12 yards in front of each goal) with a penalty kick. penalty area: within 12 yards of his own goal-line penalty mark: a line 12 yds in front of every goal. The penalty kick can be taken from any point 12 yards from the goal-line. It is specified that – with the exception of the player taking the penalty kick and the opposing goal-keeper – all player stand at least 6 yd behind the ball. The goalkeeper may approach the ball up to 6 yd until the penalty kick is taken. The ball is in play as soon as it’s kicked (all IFA). |
| 1892 (IFAB) | Repeated touching of the ball by the player taking the kick is prohibited (SFA). |
| 1893 (IFAB) | Pushing an opponent within the penalty area is added as an offence that is punished with a penalty kick (FA). |
| 1896 (IFAB) | Charging an opponent from behind within the penalty area shall be added as an offence punishable by a penalty kick. It is added to the passage that only wilfully played handball in the penalty area is punished with a penalty kick, no longer deliberately handling of the ball. Also changed is that the referee determines whether a penalty kick is awarded. The ball must be kicked forward (SFA, FA). |
| 1898 (IFAB) | Not every wilfully committed handball will be punished, but only if intentionally handling the ball within the penalty area. |
| 1902 (DFB) | The passage is changed so that the penalty kick may only be taken by the penalty mark („penalty kick mark“). It is specified that – with the exception of the player taking the penalty kick and the opposing goal-keeper – all player stand outside of the penalty area. The passage is changed so that the goalkeeper must be in his goal area until the penalty kick is taken. A free kick shall also be awarded to the opposite side if the ball is not kicked forward, or is played a second time by the player who takes the penalty kick, until it has been played by another player (FA). |
| 1903 (IFAB) | It is added to the passage that the referee does not have to punish the offences if this gives an advantage to the offending team. It is also added that a penalty kick can be awarded irrespective of the position of the ball at the time the offence is committed. In the event of the ball touching the goal-keeper before passing between the posts, when a penalty kick is being taken at the expiry of time, a goal is scored (FA). |
| 1905 (IFAB) | The passage is changed so that the goalkeeper is not allowed to stand behind his goal line in the field. It is added to the passage that if when a penalty kick is taken the ball passes between the goal posts, under the bar, the goal shall not be nullified by reason of any infringement by the defending side (FA). |
| 1923 (IFAB) | It is specified that – with the exception of the player taking the penalty kick and the opposing goal-keeper – all player stand outside of the penalty area and at least 10 yards from where the kick is being taken (IFA). |
| 1929 (IFAB) | It is added to the passage that all players must stand within the field. The goalkeeper must stand still on the goal line until the penalty kick is taken (FA). |
| 1937 (IFAB) | It is added to the passage that the goalkeeper must stand on the goal line between the two goalposts until the penalty kick is taken (FA). |
| 1938 (IFAB) | For the performance of the penalty kick, both halves of the playing time are extended by the appropriate duration (FAW). For clarification the following is added: „stand (without moving his feet)“. It is summarized that when a goal is scored it (a) continues to count for an infringement by the defending team (otherwise: the penalty kick will be retaken), (b) it will be disallowed and the kick is retaken, for any infringement by the attacking team, other than by the player taking the kick, if a goal is scored by this player, (c) it will be disallowed and the game will continue with an IDFK, for any infringement by the player taking the penalty-kick, a player of the opposing team shall take an indirect free-kick from the sport where the infringement occurred. |
| 1939 (IFAB) | The passage is changed so that the ball is only in play once it has travelled the distance of its circumference (FA). |
| 1967 (IFAB) | It is emphasized that for a misdemeanour of this law for any infringement by the player taking the penalty-kick only offences after the ball is in play are decisive (IFAB). |
| 1978 (IFAB) | It is added to the passage that, if the offence is committed by the player in his opponents‘ goal area, the free-kick shall be taken from a point anywhere within that half of the goal area in which the offence occurred (FA). |
| 1982 (IFAB) | If necessary, time of play shall be extended to admit of the penalty kick being taken (SFA). |
| 1986 (IFAB) | The player taking the penalty kick must be properly identified (FIFA). |
| 1995 (IFAB) | „When it is being taken, all players with the exception of the player taking the kick, properly identified, and the opposing goalkeeper shall be within the field of play but outside the penalty area and at least 10 yards from the penalty-mark and must stand behind the penalty-mark. |
| 1997 (IFAB) | The player taking the penalty kick infringes the Laws of the Game, the referee allows the kick to proceed. If the ball enters the goal, the kick is retaken, if the ball does not enter the goal, the kick is not retaken. The goalkeeper infringes the Laws of the Game, the referee allows the kick to proceed. If the ball enters the goal, a goal is awarded, if the ball does not enter the goal, the kick is retaken. A team-mate of the player taking the kick enters the penalty area or moves in front of or within 9.15 m (10 yds) of the penalty mark, the referee allows the kick to proceed. If the ball enters the goal, the kick is retaken, if the ball does not enter the goal, the kick is not retaken. A team-mate of the goalkeeper enters the penalty area or moves in front of or within 9.15 m (10 yds) of the penalty mark, the referee allows the kick to proceed. If the ball enters the goal, a goal is awarded, if the ball dies not enter the goal, the kick is retaken. A player of both the defending team and the attacking team infringe the Laws of the Game, the kick is retaken. If the ball is touched by an outside agent as it moves forward, the kick is retaken. If the ball rebounds into the field of play from the goalkeeper, the crossbar or the goalposts, and is then touched by an outside agent, the referee stops the play and the play is restarted with a dropped ball at the place where it touched the outside agent. IDFK: Repeated ball contact by the player taking the penalty kick. DFK: deliberately handling the ball by the player taking the penalty kick. It is added to passage that a penalty kick is awarded against a team which commits an offences for which a direct kick is awarded, inside its own penalty area and while the ball is in play. A goal may be scored directly from a penalty kick. The referee does not signal for a penalty kick to be taken until the player have taken up position in accordance with the law and decides when a penalty kick has been completed. The passage is changed so that the ball is in play once it has been kicked. It is added to the passage that both halves of the extra time are extended for the performance of the penalty kick. The game ends when the ball touches the goalposts, the crossbar or the goalkeeper. |
| 2005 (IFAB) | The passage is changed so that the game is restarted with an IDFK for the opposing team, if the player taking the penalty kick infringes the Laws of the Game or a team-mate of him enters the penalty area or moves in front of or within 9.15 m (10 yds) of the penalty mark (FIFA). |
| 2006 (IFAB) | It is added to the passage that the IDFK are executed at the place where the offence took place. In addition, the passage is deleted with the appropriate distance and is generally supplemented so that the penalty is awarded for each offence against the law. |
| 2008 (IFAB) | It is added to the passage that after the players have taken positions in accordance with this Law, the referee signals for the penalty kick to be taken. It is further added that the referee decides when a penalty kick has been completed. |
| 2016 (IFAB) | It is added that goalposts, crossbar, and goal net must not be moving. It is added in the text that backheeling is allowed as long as it move the ball forward. It is also added that the kick is completed when the ball stops moving, goes out of play or the referee stops play for any offence. The sanction for the infringement of the penalty kick are more concretely defined. |
| 2019 (IFAB) | It is added that the goalkeeper is not allowed to touch the goalposts, crossbar or goal net, until the ball has been kicked. Beside, he must have at least only part of one foot touching, or in line with, the goal line, when the ball is kicked. It is added that no free kick can be awarded if an offence occurs between the signal of the referee and the kick. |
| 2022 (IFAB) | One foot of the goalkeeper must be either on the goal line or behind it. |
| 2023 (IFAB) | The goalkeeper must not behave unfairly and distract the player during the taking of a penalty kick. Examples are delaying the taking of the kick or touching the goalposts, crossbar or goal net. |