Browser notifications 30 min before every match. All 104 fixtures, all 48 nations, time-zone aware, from the group stage through the new Round of 32 to the Final. Free, no ads, no tracking.
In the group stage a match can end in a draw. In the knockouts it cannot. Every tie from the new Round of 32 to the Final at MetLife Stadium must produce a winner, and the World Cup has a fixed way of getting one: 30 minutes of extra time in two halves, and if the teams are still level, a penalty shootout. Here is exactly how a level knockout tie is decided in 2026: extra time and the sixth substitute, the shootout format, sudden death, the goalkeeper rules, and why the cruel maths of spot-kicks has broken so many hearts.
Updated 4 July 2026 · WorldCuply.com editorial · Sources: FIFA, IFAB, Al Jazeera, Sports Illustrated
30
Minutes Extra Time
5
Penalties Each
6
Subs In Extra Time
11m
Penalty Distance
The short version. A knockout tie level after 90 minutes goes to 30 minutes of extra time, played in two 15-minute halves with no golden goal. If it is still level, a penalty shootout decides it: five kicks each, taken alternately, and sudden death if the teams cannot be separated after five. It applies to every round in 2026, right up to the Final.
Group Stage vs Knockouts
Why the rules change after the group stage
The 2026 World Cup has two very different phases, and the tiebreakers are different in each.
In the group stage, the 48 teams play three matches each and a draw is a perfectly good result: one point apiece. Positions are settled by the group table, using goal difference, goals scored and the other tiebreakers set out in our format explainer. No group game ever goes to extra time.
The knockouts are the opposite. From the Round of 32 onward the tournament is single-elimination, so every tie has to end with one team going through and one going home. There is no second leg and no replay. That is why football keeps two mechanisms in reserve for a level match: extra time first, then penalties. Both are written into the Laws of the Game maintained by the International Football Association Board (IFAB), the body that sets football's rules worldwide.
Step One
Extra time: 30 minutes, always played in full
If a knockout tie is level at 90 minutes plus stoppage time, the match goes straight to extra time.
Two halves of 15 minutes. Extra time is 30 minutes in total, split into two 15-minute halves with a short change of ends, not a full interval, in between.
No golden goal. FIFA experimented with the golden goal (match ends the moment someone scores) in 1998 and 2002, and briefly with the silver goal. Both were scrapped. Today the full 30 minutes are always played, so a team that concedes early in extra time still has time to respond.
A sixth substitution. Since 2022, teams that were already allowed five substitutions in normal time get a sixth if the match reaches extra time, plus an extra substitution window. Managers use it to freshen legs or, tellingly, to bring on a specialist penalty-taker before a possible shootout.
Still level after 120 minutes? If neither side has edged ahead by the end of extra time, the tie goes to a penalty shootout.
Step Two
The penalty shootout, kick by kick
The shootout is not part of the match itself; it is a separate procedure to determine the winner. It follows a strict sequence.
Coin toss first. The referee tosses a coin. The winner of the toss chooses which goal the kicks are taken at; a second toss decides which team kicks first.
Five kicks each, alternating. The teams take turns, one penalty at a time, up to five each from the penalty mark 11 metres (about 12 yards) out. The side that has scored more once both have taken five wins.
It can end early. As soon as one team cannot mathematically be caught, the shootout stops. A shootout can be over after as few as six or seven kicks, so not every one runs to all ten.
Only players on the pitch can take part. Only players on the field at the final whistle of extra time are eligible, and both teams must finish with an equal number of eligible players. Every eligible outfield player and the goalkeeper must take a kick before anyone can go again.
Each side sets its own order of takers and does not have to declare the full list in advance, which is why you often see a manager and captain conferring on the touchline as the shootout unfolds.
Step Three
Sudden death: when five each is not enough
If the shootout is level after five penalties each, it moves to sudden death.
In sudden death both teams take one kick per round. If one team scores and the other misses in the same round, the scoring team wins immediately. If both score or both miss, the shootout rolls on to another round. There is no cap: the takers keep coming until a round separates the teams, which is how some shootouts have run to fifteen kicks or more.
Because every outfield player and the keeper must take a kick before anyone repeats, sudden death can eventually put a centre-back or even the goalkeeper on the spot, one of the reasons these finishes are so unpredictable.
The Fine Print
The goalkeeper rules, and what VAR checks
The keeper is the one player with special restrictions in a shootout, and the rules were tightened in recent years.
Stay on the line. When the kick is struck, the goalkeeper must have at least part of one foot on or in line with the goal line. Coming fully off the line early is an offence.
Retakes. If a keeper moves too soon and saves the penalty, the referee can order it to be retaken. VAR reviews shootout kicks for exactly this. If the keeper offends but the kick is missed anyway, the miss stands and no retake is given.
One warning system. Under current guidance a keeper who encroaches is cautioned only in defined circumstances, but a decisive early move that affects a save will still be punished with a retake.
Injured keepers only. A team cannot simply swap in a shootout specialist goalkeeper; a change is allowed only if the keeper is injured and the team has substitutions remaining.
Common Myths
What the World Cup does not use
A few tiebreakers people expect simply do not apply at the World Cup.
No away goals. World Cup knockout ties are single matches, so there is no away-goals rule. Away goals only ever applied to two-legged ties, and even UEFA abolished the rule for club competitions in 2021.
No replays. Unlike some domestic cups of the past, there is no rematch on another day. Extra time and penalties settle everything on the night.
No golden or silver goal. Both were tried and dropped. Extra time is always the full 30 minutes.
No group-style tiebreakers. Goal difference and disciplinary records decide group placings, not knockout ties. Once you reach the bracket, it is win or go home.
2026 So Far
Shootout drama in the 2026 knockouts
With 32 teams reaching a single-elimination bracket and every tie a one-off, the 2026 edition was always going to produce extra-time and shootout drama, and it already has.
The stand-out so far came in the Round of 32, where Paraguay knocked out Germany on penalties, one of the shocks of the tournament and a reminder that a shootout flattens the gap between a heavyweight and an outsider. For the surviving underdogs still riding that kind of nerve, see our dark horses still alive in the knockouts.
As the bracket narrows toward the quarter-finals and the Dallas and Atlanta semi-finals, the margins get finer and the chance of another 120-minute stalemate rises. The Final itself, at MetLife Stadium on 19 July, follows exactly the same rules: three of the last eight World Cup finals, in 1994, 2006 and 2022, were decided by extra time or penalties.
The Numbers
Why penalties feel so cruel
A shootout compresses 120 minutes of football into a handful of one-on-one kicks, and it rewards nerve as much as skill.
Statistically, a well-struck penalty is scored roughly three times out of four at elite level, so a shootout is a chain of high-pressure coin flips where a single miss can end a nation's tournament. Research by sports psychologist Geir Jordet has shown that much of the failure is mental rather than technical: the long walk from the halfway line, the weight of expectation, and players who rush their kick or avoid the goalkeeper's eyes tend to fare worse.
It also helps explain why some nations have a reputation at shootouts. Germany and Argentina have historically thrived on preparation and composure, while others have carried a psychological burden for years. The lesson for 2026 is simple: teams that rehearse penalties and manage the pressure give themselves the best chance when a knockout tie goes all the way.
Questions & Answers
Frequently asked questions
What happens if a 2026 World Cup knockout match is level after 90 minutes?
In every knockout round of the 2026 World Cup, from the Round of 32 through to the Final, a tie level after 90 minutes goes to 30 minutes of extra time, played as two 15-minute halves. If the teams are still level after extra time, the match is decided by a penalty shootout. Group-stage matches, by contrast, can end in a draw.
How long is extra time at the World Cup?
Extra time is 30 minutes in total, split into two halves of 15 minutes with a short change of ends in between. Both halves are always played in full. Unlike the golden goal experiment of 1998 and 2002, a goal in extra time no longer ends the match early; the full 30 minutes are completed.
Can teams make an extra substitution in extra time?
Yes. Since 2022, each team is allowed a sixth substitution if a knockout match goes to extra time, on top of the five permitted in normal time. Teams also get an extra substitution window, so a manager can freshen up tired legs or bring on a specialist penalty-taker before a shootout.
How does a penalty shootout work at the World Cup?
Each team takes five penalties, alternating kicks from the penalty mark 11 metres (about 12 yards) from goal. The side that scores more of its five wins. The shootout ends as soon as one team cannot be caught, so it does not always run to all ten kicks. Only players on the pitch at the end of extra time may take part.
What is sudden death in a penalty shootout?
If the shootout is level after five penalties each, it moves to sudden death. Both teams take one kick per round; if one scores and the other misses in the same round, the scoring team wins. Sudden death continues round by round until there is a winner, so a shootout can run well beyond ten kicks.
What are the goalkeeper rules in a penalty shootout?
The goalkeeper must keep at least part of one foot on or in line with the goal line when the kick is struck, and cannot come off the line early. If the keeper saves a kick after moving too soon and the miss mattered, the referee, helped by VAR, can order the penalty to be retaken. The keeper cannot be changed for the shootout unless injured, though a substitution is allowed if the outfield keeper is hurt.
Are away goals used in the World Cup knockouts?
No. World Cup knockout ties are single matches, not two-legged, so there is no away-goals rule. Away goals only ever applied to home-and-away ties, most notably in European club competitions, and UEFA scrapped the rule in 2021. At the World Cup a level match has always been settled by extra time and, if needed, penalties.
Which teams take penalties, and who decides the order?
Only the players on the field at the final whistle of extra time are eligible, and the two teams must finish with an equal number of eligible players. Each side names its own order of takers; managers do not have to declare the full list in advance, and the order can be adjusted as the shootout unfolds. A coin toss decides which end the kicks are taken at and which team goes first.
Has any 2026 World Cup match already gone to penalties?
Yes. The knockout rounds have already produced shootout drama, most notably Paraguay knocking out Germany on penalties in the Round of 32, one of the shocks of the tournament. With 32 teams reaching the single-elimination bracket and every tie a one-off, the 2026 edition is set up for more of the same deep into the knockouts.
Why are penalty shootouts considered so cruel?
A shootout compresses a match into a handful of one-on-one kicks under enormous pressure, so form and depth count for little. Research by sports psychologists such as Geir Jordet shows the mental load, the walk from the halfway line, the weight of a nation, and the fear of being the player who misses drive many failures more than technique. Teams that rehearse and manage the psychology, like Germany and Argentina historically, tend to fare better.
Does the World Cup Final go to penalties if it is level?
Yes. The Final follows the same rules as every other knockout tie. If the 2026 Final at MetLife Stadium on 19 July is level after 90 minutes it goes to extra time, and if still level after 120 minutes it is decided by a penalty shootout. The 1994, 2006 and 2022 finals were all settled on penalties.
Keep Reading
More 2026 World Cup coverage
Now you know how a level tie is settled, follow the knockouts through the WorldCuply.com guides:
This explainer was hand-written from the following reporting and reference pages, used to confirm the extra-time rules, the substitution allowance, the shootout procedure and the goalkeeper regulations: