Laws of the Game guide
Why Added Time Is Given.
The board shows a minimum, the referee keeps the official time, and play can continue beyond the number displayed.
A match has 90 minutes, but the clock rarely stops
A standard match consists of two 45-minute halves. The stadium clock normally continues during substitutions, injuries, disciplinary action and other delays. Rather than pausing and restarting the visible clock, the referee accounts for time lost and adds it at the end of the half.
That is why added time is sometimes called stoppage time or injury time. Injury is only one reason for it.
What the referee accounts for
IFAB Law 7 lists the main sources of lost playing time. The referee makes an allowance for events such as substitutions, assessment and removal of injured players, deliberate time-wasting, disciplinary sanctions, medical stoppages, VAR checks and reviews, and goal celebrations.
Time used for players to leave and enter.
Assessment, treatment and removal from the field.
Time taken to manage cautions, dismissals or confrontations.
Checks, reviews and the communication of decisions.
Celebrations and the restart that follows.
Time-wasting, outside interference or permitted medical breaks.
The board shows a minimum, not a deadline
When the fourth official displays five minutes, the announcement means at least five minutes will be played. It does not require the referee to whistle at exactly 95:00. If a substitution, injury, VAR review or extended celebration occurs during those five minutes, the referee can add further time.
Example
Four minutes are indicated. A player then receives treatment for roughly 90 seconds. The final whistle may reasonably come well after 94:00 because that new delay also has to be considered.
Why the number is an estimate
The referee is the official timekeeper. The amount shown is based on the referee’s calculation and communication near the end of the half. It is not produced by simply adding every pause to the nearest second, and viewers should not expect the broadcast clock to be the legal authority.
Different matches can therefore produce different allowances even when they seem similar. A quick substitution does not consume the same time as a slow one; a brief check is not equal to an on-field review; and the referee may also increase the allowance for obvious attempts to delay the restart.
Can a half continue for a penalty kick?
Yes. If a penalty kick has to be taken or retaken at the end of a half, the period is extended until the penalty is completed. This is separate from the ordinary calculation of added time and prevents the clock from cancelling a penalty awarded before the period ended.
Added time is not extra time
Added time compensates for delays within a scheduled half. Extra time is an additional period used by some knockout competitions when the score or aggregate score is level. Extra time normally has two 15-minute periods, and each of those periods can also have its own added time.
The distinction matters when reading a match page. A goal at 90+6 belongs to the second half. A goal at 105+1 belongs to the first period of extra time.
The short version
- The match clock usually keeps running through stoppages.
- The referee allows for playing time lost during each half.
- The displayed number is the minimum to be played.
- Further delays during added time can extend it.
- Extra time is a separate knockout procedure.
Sources and further reading
The principles here follow IFAB Law 7. Individual competitions may publish operational guidance, but the referee remains the official timekeeper.
IFAB Law 7: The Duration of the MatchRelated: Extra time vs penalty shoot-outs