Start at the pass
For a teammate's kick, assess position at first contact. In the opponents' half, a relevant part of the head, body or feet must be beyond both the ball and second-last opponent to be offside. Arms do not count; being level is onside. Position alone is not an offence.
Then follow the action
Involvement matters: playing the ball, challenging an opponent or obstructing an opponent's view can change the decision. FIFA's explanation of offside technology makes a useful distinction: a positional line helps officials, while judging interference still requires their assessment.
Our viewing tip
Watch a replay twice. First, locate the teammate's touch and the relevant players. Then ignore the line and follow what the attacker actually does. If the camera does not show the goalkeeper's view or the whole challenge, leave that part unresolved. A single frozen image is a prompt to investigate, not the complete sequence.
