page_title: Multiball system
hierarchical_section_title: Multiball system
caption_attribution_description: English: FC Barcelona - Bayer 04 Leverkusen, 1/8 Final UEFA Champions League, Season 2011/2012
context_page_description: The multiball system in football permits a match immediately to resume with another ball when the original match ball goes out of play.
  Traditionally, professional football matches employ the use of a single ball, and when the ball leaves the field of play, the game pauses until the ball is returned. According to the Laws of the Game, the ball may be changed on the "authority of the referee" if it "bursts or becomes defective," though typically it will also be replaced if kicked out of the stadium. However, a new system was introduced by some football leagues and associations to increase the number of match balls used per game. In the multiball system, a number of match balls, often seven, are held by ball boys around the edge of the pitch. When one ball leaves the field of play, the nearest ball boy will release another ball to a player, allowing the game to resume immediately. The system is currently used for UEFA European club tournaments, international competitions and the FIFA World Cup. Home teams are free to choose whether to use the system in the English Football League, though the referee may discontinue the system during a match.
context_section_description: The multiball system in football permits a match immediately to resume with another ball when the original match ball goes out of play.
  Traditionally, professional football matches employ the use of a single ball, and when the ball leaves the field of play, the game pauses until the ball is returned. According to the Laws of the Game, the ball may be changed on the "authority of the referee" if it "bursts or becomes defective,"  though typically it will also be replaced if kicked out of the stadium. However, a new system was introduced by some football leagues and associations to increase the number of match balls used per game. In the multiball system, a number of match balls, often seven, are held by ball boys around the edge of the pitch. When one ball leaves the field of play, the nearest ball boy will release another ball to a player, allowing the game to resume immediately. The system is currently used for UEFA European club tournaments, international competitions and the FIFA World Cup. Home teams are free to choose whether to use the system in the English Football League, though the referee may discontinue the system during a match.
caption: A ball tender at a UEFA Champions League match in 2012. All UEFA competitions use a multiball system.
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