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In sport, a goal may refer to either an instance of scoring, or to the physical structure or area where an attacking team must send the ball or Hockey puck in order to score points. The structure of a goal varies from sport to sport, and one is placed at or near each end of the playing field for each team to defend. Sports which feature goal scoring are also commonly known as invasion games.
For many sports, each goal structure usually consists of two vertical posts, called goal posts, supporting a horizontal crossbar. A goal line marked on the playing surface between the goal posts demarcates the goal area. Thus, the objective is to send the ball or puck between the goal posts, under or over the crossbar (depending on the sport), and across the goal line. Other sports may have other types of structures or areas where the ball or puck must pass through, such as the basketball hoop.
In several sports, sending the ball or puck into the opponent's goal structure or area is the sole method of scoring, and thus the final score is expressed in the total number of goals scored by each team. In other sports, a goal may be one of several scoring methods, and thus may be worth a different set number of points than the others.
In other sports, a goal is not the sole method of scoring. In these sports, the goal is worth a set number of points but there are other methods of scoring which may be worth more, the same, or fewer points. In these sports, the score is expressed as the total number of points earned by each team. In Australian rules football the score is expressed by listing the quantity of each team's "goals" and "behinds" followed by the total number of points.
In some games, such as association football or hockey, the object is to pass the ball between the posts below the crossbar, while in others, such as those based on Rugby football, the ball must pass over the crossbar instead. In Gaelic football and hurling, in which the goalposts are similar to those used in rugby, the ball can be kicked either under the crossbar for a goal, or over the crossbar between the posts for a point. In Australian rules football, there is no crossbar but four uprights instead. In basketball, netball or korfball, goals are ring-shaped. The structure is often accompanied with an auxiliary net, which stops or slows down the ball when a goal is scored. In netball, a single post at each end of the court supports a horizontal hoop that the ball must fall through. In basketball, the hoop and net used for scoring can be supported on a post or mechanism at each end, or on structures attached directly to the wall.
The goal structure is defined as a frame 24 feet (7.32 m) wide by 8 feet (2.44 m) tall. In most organized levels of play a net is attached behind the goal frame to catch the ball and indicate that a goal has been scored; but the Laws of the Game do not mandate the use of a net and only require that any net used not interfere with the goalkeeper.
In Beach soccer the goal is defined as a frame 5.50 m wide by 2.20 m tall.
In Futsal the goal is defined as a frame 3 m wide by 2 m tall.
The goal structure in Polo consists of two poles, at least high and exactly 8 yards apart. There is no crossbar and no net is required. The height at which a goal may be scored is infinite.
A basket scored during normal play is called a field goal and is worth two points if shot from within or on the three-point line, and three points if shot from beyond the three-point line. The three-point line's distance from the basket varies by level. Points are also awarded to the shooting team if the defensive team commits goaltending or basket interference while the ball is in flight towards the basket or is directly over it.
A basketball team can also score by , which score one point each. Free throws are awarded to a team after the opponent commits a foul in certain scenarios. The player taking the free throws (usually the player who was fouled) is entitled to take a specified number of shots unopposed with both feet behind the free throw line.
The basket consists of a metal ring in internal diameter, suspended horizontally above the floor such that the center of the ring is equidistant from each sideline and from the end line. The basket ring has a net attached below to briefly check the ball's downward progress and indicate a score. The ring is fastened to a rectangular backboard wide by tall, though in lower levels of play or recreational use the backboard may be smaller and/or fan-shaped. The entire structure is supported from behind and anchored to the floor beyond the end line at higher levels of play; the structure may be anchored to a wall or ceiling at lower levels of play. The ring, net, and the front, top, bottom, and sides of the backboard are all considered inbounds, while the back of the backboard and the support structure – even those parts suspended over inbounds areas of the court – are considered out of bounds.
The primary method of scoring is a touchdown. Whether running, Forward pass, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the end zone. A touchdown scores 6 points in both versions of the sport. The front line of the end zone is the "goal line", its back line is the "end line", and each corner is marked with a pylon. Each end zone in American football is about wide, while each end zone in Canadian football is about wide. Unlike other sports which require the ball/puck to pass completely over the goal line to count as a score, both Canadian and American football merely need any part of the ball to break the vertical plane of the outer edge of the goal line to count as a touchdown.
A field goal is a secondary method of scoring; it is scored when the ball is or completely over the crossbar and between or directly over the goal posts. A field goal scores 3 points in both versions of the sport. In the American game, the now rarely used fair catch kick, if successfully made, also scores 3 points. A goal kicked during a try following a touchdown is worth one point. These are the only methods of putting the ball through the goal posts that award points to the kicking team; no points are scored if the ball is punted or thrown through the goal posts, or if the ball goes through the goal posts on a kickoff (except, in the latter case, in indoor American football, where some leagues award a single point).
In both sports, the goal structure consists of a horizontal crossbar suspended above the ground and vertical goal posts ("uprights") placed apart and extending at least above the crossbar. In lower levels of play the goal posts may be placed further apart and/or not extend as far above the crossbar; for example, in high school football the posts are apart. NFL and CFL rules mandate that a ribbon be attached to the top of each goal post. Goals are centered on the field, but on different lines: in American football, they lie on the "end line" (far end of the end zone) and in Canadian football, on the "goal line" (beginning of the end zone). A retractable net may be placed behind the goal posts, well beyond the field of play, to prevent the ball from entering spectator areas.
Until the mid-1960s, the goal posts were similar in design to rugby posts, with the crossbar and uprights supported by stanchions installed directly underneath the uprights (in the shape of the letter 'H'). A transitional design from this time retained the twin set of stanchions but placed them behind the crossbar. In this design, the crossbar and uprights were supported by a set of horizontal, vertical, and diagonal stanchions behind each upright. This design was last used professionally in the first Super Bowl in January 1967. The modern goal posts supported by a single "goose-necked" stanchion (in the shape of the letter 'Y') made their debut in the 1966 CFL playoffs and were adopted by all three professional leagues (CFL, NFL, and AFL) the following year, with many (but not all) College football teams following suit in the years since. The NFL, which merged with the AFL in , had its crossbar over the goal line until .
In Arena Football, a field goal also scores three points, unless it is , in which case it scores four points. The goal structure in arena football is much smaller than the outdoor game; it consists of a crossbar above the playing surface and wide; this size is also used for most other indoor leagues as well. Uniquely in arena football, the goal posts are attached to nets on either side of the crossbar which are taut to allow the ball to rebound back onto the field of play. The nets are wide and high. These nets do not represent a scoring area, but keep the ball in play and prevent it from entering the crowd.
Canadian football also offers a secondary form of goal, the rouge or single point; it is awarded if a ball enters the end zone by way of any kick (either a missed field goal or a punt) and is not returned by the opposing team; this is not offered in American football (such a play results in a touchback instead).
A goal is scored in either rugby code by place kicking or a ball over the crossbar and between the uprights of H-shaped goalposts. The goalposts are positioned centrally on the goal line (the front line of the in-goal area). The crossbar is from the ground; the uprights are apart in rugby league and in rugby union.
| +Rugby goal types and points values |
| Scored from open play. |
| Usually place-kicked. |
| Usually place-kicked. |
| Abolished in 1922 in league and 1977 in union. |
In the early years of rugby, only goals counted in scoring, and a "try" counted only if "converted" into a goal. The official name "goal from a try" for a converted try persisted until 1979.
In business, the concept is more abstract, with some performance measure or target being set as a goalpost while achieving the target is often known as achieving a goal.
| Cycle ball | UCI | Netted rectangular | 2 meters | 2 meters | ||
| Goalball | IBSA | Netted rectangular cuboid | 8.95-9.05 meters | 1.28-1.32 meters | 0.5 meters | |
| Korfball | IKF | Cylinder/truncated cone | Diameters: 0.39-0.41 meters (top edge), 0.4-0.42 meters (bottom side) | 3.5 meters above floor | 0.235-0.25 meters | |
| Netball | World Netball | Netted circle | (diameter) | above floor | (net) | |
| Shinty | Camanachd Association | Netted rectangular cuboid | ||||
| Basketball | ||||||
| 3x3 | FIBA | Netted circle | 0.45-0.459 meters (diameter) | 3.044-3.056 meters above floor | 0.45-0.459 meters (net) | |
| Basketball | ||||||
| NBA | (diameter) | above floor | (net) | |||
| Football | ||||||
| Soccer | FIFA | Netted rectangular | ||||
| Beach soccer | 5.5 meters | 2.2 meters | ||||
| Futsal | 3 meters | 2 meters | ||||
| American | IFAF | Carving fork | above ground | |||
| Canadian | Football Canada | |||||
| Arena football | Uppercase H, with bouncing nets/ Uppercase U (hanged) | - | ||||
| Rugby union | World Rugby | Uppercase H | 5.6 meters | 3 meters above ground | - | |
| Rugby league | IRL | 5.5 meters | - | |||
| Australian rules | AFL Commission | 4 posts | 2 goal posts (6.4 meters apart) + 2 behind posts (6.4 meters apart from each side of goal post) | Goal posts: 6-15 meters Behind posts: 3-10 meters | - | |
| International rules | AFL Commission and GAA | Uppercase H (netted bottom) + 2 post | 2 goal posts (6.4 metres apart) + 2 behind posts (6.4 metres apart from each side of goal post) | Goal posts: 6 meters, crossbar at 2.5 meters Behind posts: 3 meters | ||
| Gaelic football | GAA | Uppercase H (netted bottom) | 6.5 meters | 7 meters, crossbar at 2.5 meters | netted bottom 0.9 meters in depth | |
| Handball | ||||||
| Handball | IHF | Netted cuboid | 3 meters | 2 meters | 1 meter at floor, 0.8 meters at crossbar | |
| Beach handball | ||||||
| Wheelchair | Netted rectangular | 1.7 meters | ||||
| Hockey | ||||||
| Bandy | FIB | Netted cuboid | 3.5 meters | 2.1 meters | 2 meters at floor, 1 meters at crossbar | |
| Rink bandy | 1.22 meters | 1.83 meters | 0.6-1.12 meters | |||
| Field hockey | FIH | Netted cuboid | 3.66 meters | 2.14 meters | 1.2 meters at floor, 0.9 meters at crossbar | |
| Indoor hockey | 3 meters | 2 meters | 1 meter at floor, 0.8 meters at crossbar | |||
| Beach | Netted rectangular cuboid | 4 meters | 2 meters | 1 meter | ||
| Floorball | IFF | Netted rectangular cuboid | 1.6 meters | 1.15 meters | 0.65 meters at floor, 0.4 meters at crossbar | |
| Ice hockey | IIHF | Netted rectangular | 1.83 meters | 1.22 meters | ||
| NHL | at floor, at crossbar | |||||
| Inline hockey | World Skate | at floor (semiellipse), at crossbar | ||||
| Quad | 0.64 meters at floor (semiellipse), 0.65 meters at crossbar | |||||
| Unicycle hockey | IUF | Netted rectangular | 1.8 meters | 1.2 meters | ||
| Underwater | CMAS | Rectangular cuboid (through) | 3 meters | 0.02 meters | ||
| Lacrosse | ||||||
| Field lacrosse (men) | World Lacrosse | Netted square pyramid | ||||
| Women | 1.83 meters | 1.83 meters | 2.1 meters | |||
| Lacrosse sixes | ||||||
| Box lacrosse | Netted rectangular pyramid | |||||
| Intercrosse | Netted rectangular pyramid | |||||
| Polo | ||||||
| Polo | FIP | 2 posts | ||||
| Snow | ||||||
| Water sports | ||||||
| Canoe polo | ICF | Netted rectangular cuboid | 1.5 meters | 1 meter (above 2 meters from water) | 0.5 meters | |
| Water polo | World Aquatics | Netted rectangular | 3 meters | 0.9 meters | ||
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