Drop goal

A drop goal, field goal, or dropped goal is a way to score points in sports like rugby union and rugby league. It can also sometimes be used in American football and Canadian football. To score a drop goal, a player drops the ball and kicks it as it bounces up, sending it over the crossbar and between the goal posts. The ball must not touch the ground again before going through the posts.

In rugby union, a drop goal is worth three points. In rugby league, it is usually worth one point. When a drop goal is successful, the game stops, and the team that did not score starts the next play with a kick from the middle of the field. If the kick misses, the game keeps going.

Rugby union

World Rugby, the group that controls rugby union around the world, calls this way of scoring a "dropped goal," but many people just say "drop goal."

A drop goal gives a team three points. Before 1948, it was worth four points. Sometimes people talk about changing the points for drop goals.

A drop goal is also sometimes called a field goal today. Long ago, a field goal was a different way to score where players kicked from the ground, not by drop kicking. This old way was stopped in 1906.

Main article: Field goal (rugby)

Rugby league

In rugby league, a drop goal can be worth one or two points. Teams often try to score with a drop goal at the end of a game to win or to increase their lead.

When the golden point rule was added in the Australasian National Rugby League, drop goals became a popular way to win close games. Before 1970, in the NSWRL, drop goals were worth two points. But in 1971, they were changed to be worth just one point. In 2020, the NRL announced that drop goals from more than 40 metres would be worth two points. Adam Reynolds was the first to score this new type of drop goal in 2021.

In other football codes

Main article: Field goal

In American football and Canadian football, a drop kick can be used to score points, but it is very rare. The ball used in these sports is shaped differently from a rugby ball, making it harder to kick this way. The last time a player used a drop kick in a big American football game was in 2006, when Doug Flutie kicked an extra point for the New England Patriots at the end of his career.

In Australian rules football, a drop kick can also score points, but players usually choose an easier way to kick the ball.