Youth Soccer Heading Rules 2026: US Soccer & FA Age Restrictions Explained

US Soccer heading rules at a glance

US Soccer introduced age-based heading restrictions in 2016 as part of its Player Safety Campaign, and they remain the baseline for youth soccer across the country. US Youth Soccer, US Club Soccer, AYSO and MLS NEXT all apply them. Leagues may be stricter, never looser.

The under-11 heading ban

For players aged ten and under, heading is removed entirely — from matches, from training, and from warm-ups. Referees award an indirect free kick to the opposing team when a player deliberately heads the ball; if the offence occurs inside the goal area, the restart is taken on the goal-area line parallel to the goal line, nearest to where the header happened. Incidental contact, such as a ball striking a player's head unintentionally, is not penalised.

The reasoning is developmental as much as it is medical. Young players have proportionally heavier heads, weaker necks, and less developed technique, so they absorb a greater share of impact force. Removing heading also pushes coaches toward the ball-on-the-floor play that develops better footballers anyway.

U11 to U13: limited, supervised heading

From U12, heading is legal in matches. Training volume is what is controlled: approximately 30 minutes of heading work per week, with no more than 15 to 20 headers per player in that time. Coaches should log volume, use a properly inflated ball one size down, and start every block with soft or foam balls. Quality over quantity is the operating principle — this is the window where correct proper heading technique is established for life.

FA (England) heading guidelines for youth football

England's FA, alongside the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish associations, took a stricter route than US Soccer. Deliberate heading is removed entirely from training for under-12s. From U12 it is reintroduced gradually with recommended caps — a small number of low-impact headers per session, rising slowly through the age groups, and no more than one heading session in a week up to U18. Lighter, correctly sized and under-inflated balls are recommended throughout, and the guidance applies to grassroots and academy football alike. The FA has also trialled removing deliberate heading from matches in youth competitions, and the direction of travel is toward less heading, later, with tighter volume caps.

FIFA and international guidance

FIFA has not issued a global heading ban. Its position is to support concussion recognition protocols — including the "suspect and protect" substitution guidance — and to defer to member federations on age restrictions. Several have gone further than FIFA requires. The English, Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish FAs prohibit deliberate heading in training for under-12s and phase it in gradually to U18, and England has trialled removing deliberate heading from matches in youth grassroots and academy competitions. The direction of travel internationally is clear: less heading, later, with tighter volume caps.

Can U11 players head the ball?

In the United States, US Soccer prohibits heading for players U11 and under entirely. Players aged U11-U13 are limited in how much heading practice they can do per session. The restriction applies to training, not just matches — a deliberate header in an U11 match is punished with an indirect free kick, and structured heading practice at that age is against federation guidance everywhere it applies.

What age are headers allowed in soccer?

Full heading practice without restriction begins at U14 under US Soccer guidelines. The FA in England introduced similar guidance in 2020, restricting deliberate heading practice for players under 12 and phasing it back in gradually — with recommended caps on headers per session and per week — right through to U18.

Can children head the ball in football?

In England, the FA prohibits deliberate heading practice for under-12s entirely. In matches, accidental heading still occurs but coaching deliberate technique is banned at this age group. The same logic underpins the US rules: the years before 12 are for building the movement skills — flight reading, jump timing, body positioning — that make heading safe and effective once it is introduced.

What coaches should do instead

• Train ball flight reading. Have players call out where a lofted ball will land, then move to it and catch or chest it. This is the single most transferable heading skill.
• Train jump timing. Contested catch games in a small grid teach the same approach, take-off and body position an aerial duel demands.
• Train neck and trunk strength. Bodyweight isometrics, bridges and planks build the stability that later makes heading safer.
• Train chest control and volleys. Most balls in the air can be legally dealt with using another surface — and doing so is usually the better football decision.
• Educate parents. Explain the rule and the reason at the first team meeting so nobody thinks their child is being held back.

Is FIFA banning headers?

No — heading remains legal at every level of the senior game. Read more about FIFA's position on heading and the research behind the youth restrictions.

Concussion protocol basics

Rules on heading do not replace concussion management. Any player suspected of a head injury must be removed from play immediately and may not return the same day without medical clearance. When in doubt, sit them out — the risk of a second impact before recovery is far greater than the cost of missing a match.