World Cup overtime rules: How long extra time lasts

DOHA, Qatar — While the World Cup group stage matches could end in a tie, now that we’re in the later rounds of the tournament the rules have changed. 

So here’s a refresher if you’re new to soccer or need to catch up with all the excitement surrounding the quarterfinals. 

Soccer matches are 90 minutes, not accounting for stoppage time. 

World Cup matches have two 45-minute halves, but games have regularly been stretching past 100 minutes because of added time from referees.

Unlike most American sports, soccer matches have a running clock that does not stop when the ball is not in play. Because of that, officials add time at the end of each half to account for stoppages like injuries and goal celebrations. 

Referees have been particularly generous with stoppage time at the 2022 World Cup, which was a directive from the top. FIFA instructed officials to add more time at the end of World Cup matches to compensate for goal celebrations. FIFA also wanted referees to add at least one minute for an injury delay and 30 seconds for each pause to make a substitution.

In the group stage, World Cup matches could end in a draw because teams advanced based on a points and tiebreaker system. 

Starting in the round of 16, the tournament shifted to a single-elimination style. Extra time and penalty kicks come into play if the score is a tie at the end of regulation.

Extra time, which is essentially overtime in soccer, consists of two 15-minute halves, and teams play both full halves even if one team scores — there is no “Golden Goal” or “sudden death” rule. After the first 15-minute half, there’s a brief break and the teams change ends. 

If teams are still tied at the end of extra time, teams face off with five rounds of penalty kicks. Whichever team makes the most penalty kicks out of five wins. 

If there is no leader, the game ends with a sudden-death penalty shootout.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.