Jewellery is not automatically banned under the current Law 4.

The ruleset and competitions covered

This page applies The IFAB Laws of the Game 2026/27 for association football, principally Law 4, “The Players' Equipment”. The edition took effect on 1 July 2026. It is the international baseline used by FIFA, confederations and national associations; it is not a guide to futsal, beach soccer or other football codes.

IFAB Circular no. 32 gives one transition exception: a competition that started before 1 July 2026 could adopt the changes early or delay them until no later than the start of its next competition. If a match belongs to such an overlapping season, check the competition's adoption notice before applying the new accessory rule.

The blanket jewellery ban was removed

The 2025/26 wording required all jewellery to be removed and said taping it was not permitted. IFAB deleted that blanket wording for 2026/27. Law 4.1 now says accessories are permitted when they are not dangerous and are safely and securely covered; dangerous items must be removed and not taped or covered.

IFAB explained that the old term “jewellery” was confusing and that a blanket ban overlooked cultural, religious, medical and personal reasons for wearing items. This does not create an unrestricted right to play in jewellery. It replaces an item-category ban with a safety-and-covering test applied by the referee.

How to decide whether a player may take part

1. Confirm the edition. Has this competition implemented IFAB 2026/27?
2. Check the compulsory kit. Shirt with sleeves, shorts, socks, shinguards and footwear must be present.
3. Assess every additional item. If equipment or an accessory is dangerous to its wearer or anyone else, it must be removed.
4. Check the covering. A non-dangerous accessory may remain only when it is safely and securely covered.
5. Apply any specific Law 4 rule. Head covers, visible undergarments, colours, electronic systems and slogans have further requirements.
6. Correct and recheck. A player sent off the field to fix equipment needs a match official's inspection and the referee's permission before returning.

Safety is judged before participation

Law 4.1 requires players to be inspected before the match and substitutes before they enter. The controlling question is not whether an item is small, sentimental or unlikely to make contact. The referee decides whether the player's equipment or anything worn is dangerous.

IFAB's current FAQs show how the new test operates. Small earrings must be removed or safely and securely covered. A necklace that the referee considers dangerous must be removed before the player can play; if it is non-dangerous, it may remain only when safely and securely covered.

Five separate items are required

Law 4.2 lists a shirt with sleeves, shorts, socks, shinguards and footwear. Goalkeeper gloves are optional, not compulsory. Goalkeepers may wear tracksuit bottoms.

Shinguards must be made from suitable material, be an appropriate size to provide reasonable protection and be covered by the socks. The player is responsible for their size and suitability. The official's inspection confirms that shinguards are worn and covered; it does not transfer that responsibility from the player.

The captain must also wear the armband issued or authorised by the competition organiser, or the single-colour alternative described in Law 4.2.

An accidental loss creates a short grace period

A player who accidentally loses a boot or shinguard must replace it as soon as possible and no later than the next time the ball goes out of play. Until that stoppage, playing the ball is not automatically an offence and a goal scored by that player is awarded.

This narrow exception concerns accidental loss during play. It does not let a player begin without compulsory equipment or ignore an instruction to correct it.

Protection is legal when it is non-dangerous

Law 4.4 permits non-dangerous protective items such as gloves, headgear, facemasks and knee or arm protectors made from soft, lightweight padded material. Goalkeepers' caps and sports spectacles are also permitted.

A protective purpose does not settle the safety question by itself. The actual material, shape, fastening and condition matter. An otherwise familiar item can still be rejected if, in the referee's judgement, it creates a danger in that match.

Head covers have their own design conditions

A head cover other than a goalkeeper's cap must be black or the same main colour as the shirt, with teammates using the same colour. It must look consistent with professional player equipment, must not attach to the shirt, must not endanger any player and must have no protruding elements.

These conditions operate alongside the general accessory rule. Safely covering an item does not excuse a head cover that has a dangerous fastening or protrusion.

Officials must be able to distinguish everyone

The teams must wear colours that distinguish them from each other and the match officials. Each goalkeeper must also be distinguishable from the other players and officials. If only the two goalkeepers' shirts clash and neither has an alternative, Law 4.3 directs the referee to allow the match to be played.

External tape or material on a sock must match the colour of the part it covers. An undershirt must match the shirt sleeve's main colour or exactly reproduce its pattern and colours. Undershorts or tights must match the shorts' main colour or lowest part, and teammates must use the same colour.

Player communications remain prohibited

Players, substitutes, substituted players and sent-off players may not wear or use electronic or communication equipment, except where an electronic performance and tracking system (EPTS) is allowed. A smartwatch is therefore not made legal for a player merely because it can be covered.

For wearable EPTS in an official competition under FIFA, a confederation or a national association, the competition organiser must ensure the attached technology is not dangerous and meets the FIFA Quality Programme requirements. If the organiser provides the system, it is also responsible for the reliability and accuracy of data sent to the technical area.

Bench communication follows a different rule

Team officials may use small mobile or handheld communication equipment when it directly concerns player welfare or safety, tactics or coaching. Law 4.4 gives examples including an earpiece, phone, smartwatch, tablet or laptop.

A team official who uses unauthorised equipment, or behaves inappropriately because of its use, is sent off. Do not extend this team-official permission to players: the player restriction is separate.

Approval depends partly on competition rules

Law 4.5 prohibits political, religious or personal slogans, statements and images on equipment. A player must not reveal an undergarment carrying those messages, or advertising other than the manufacturer's logo. Offensive, insulting, abusive, provocative, derisory or inflammatory content is also not permitted.

Names, numbers, crests, match facts, approved football initiatives and advertising can be permitted, but competition, national-association, confederation and FIFA regulations may control their size, number and position. Law 4 assigns sanctions for a prohibited equipment message to the competition organiser, national association or FIFA; the referee should still act under Law 12 if conduct or a message itself amounts to misconduct.

An equipment problem does not require an instant whistle

Under Law 4.6, play need not be stopped for an equipment offence. The referee instructs the player to leave to correct the equipment, and the player leaves when play next stops unless it has already been corrected. This is the specific Law 4 procedure, not a ruling that every equipment defect automatically cancels the next action.

For an unauthorised or dangerous item found during the match, IFAB's FAQ likewise says it is not necessary to stop play. The player removes the item, is checked by a match official and waits for the referee's signal before re-entering; permission may be given while the ball is in play.

Non-compliance and illegal re-entry are separate

A player who refuses an instruction to remove or correct an item, or wears it again, must be cautioned. Leaving to correct equipment is not itself a caution.

A player returning without the referee's permission must also be cautioned. If play is stopped to issue that caution and the player has not interfered, the restart is an indirect free kick from the ball's position when play stopped. If the player interfered, it is a direct free kick from the place of interference, or a penalty kick if that place is inside the returning player's own penalty area.

A covered earring is checked before kick-off

Situation: a player has a small earring under a secure covering. The referee finds no dangerous edge, movement or fastening.

IFAB 2026/27 ruling: the item may remain. The decisive facts are that it is non-dangerous and safely and securely covered. Under a competition still using 2025/26 during the permitted transition, the earring would instead have to be removed.

Tape does not cure a dangerous necklace

Situation: the referee considers a necklace dangerous because it can catch or tighten. The player offers to tape it to the body.

IFAB 2026/27 ruling: it must be removed before the player takes part. Covering is relevant only after the item passes the non-dangerous test; Law 4.1 expressly says a dangerous item is not to be taped or covered.

A striker loses a boot and scores

Situation: the boot comes off accidentally during an attack. Before the ball next goes out of play, the striker immediately shoots and scores.

IFAB 2026/27 ruling: award the goal. Law 4.2 allows until the next stoppage to replace accidentally lost footwear or a shinguard and expressly preserves a goal scored before replacement.

A checked player returns without permission

Situation: a player has corrected the footwear and the fourth official has checked it, but the player re-enters without the referee's signal and touches the ball in the opponents' half.

IFAB 2026/27 ruling: stop play, caution the player and award the opponents a direct free kick from the place of interference. Passing the equipment check did not replace the separate requirement for the referee's permission.

Claims that are no longer safe shortcuts

• “All jewellery must always come off.” That was the 2025/26 baseline; IFAB 2026/27 permits a non-dangerous accessory if safely and securely covered.
• “Tape makes any item legal.” A dangerous item must be removed, not taped or hidden.
• “Goalkeepers must wear gloves.” Gloves are optional under Law 4.
• “A lost boot cancels a goal.” Not when it was lost accidentally and the goal comes before the next stoppage.
• “The referee must stop play as soon as kit is wrong.” Law 4.6 says play need not be stopped.
• “A fourth official's check is permission to return.” The referee must separately permit re-entry.

Governing-body sources and effective version

• The IFAB — Laws of the Game 2026/27, Law 4: The Players' Equipment (sections 4.1–4.6 and official FAQs)
• The IFAB — Changes to the Laws of the Game 2026/27, Law 4.1 accessory amendment and explanation
• The IFAB — Circular no. 32, 31 March 2026: 2026/27 decisions, effective date and competition transition

Checked against IFAB's 2026/27 live Law 4, the published Law-change text and Circular no. 32. The baseline took effect on 1 July 2026, but a competition already under way could defer it until its next competition. Competition rules may add equipment, EPTS, colour, armband, advertising and message requirements.