A player cannot be offside directly from a goal kick. According to the Laws of the Game, no offside offence is committed if a player receives the ball directly from a goal kick. This rule exists to allow goalkeepers and their teams to distribute the ball freely without the risk of an offside call immediately after the goal kick. The rule applies regardless of where the receiving player is positioned on the field, even if they are beyond the opposition defensive line at the time of receiving the ball from a goal kick. This exception is shared with other restarts such as throw-ins and corner kicks. In summary, offside is not called if the ball is received directly from a goal kick, allowing attacking players to be in advanced positions when the ball is played from the goalkeeper's restart.
