One of the most polemic aspects of the game, penalty kicks are dreaded by fans and derided by casuals, but just what does the science say?

At the World Cup, every knockout match must produce a winner. When 120 minutes of soccer still can’t separate two teams, the tournament turns to one of its most dramatic traditions: the penalty ...

Here's a complete guide to penalty kicks in the World Cup, including penalties during regulation and the differences from the penalty shootouts that decide knockout games.

Penalty kicks are already proving critical to big wins at this year’s World Cup. But the advantage in penalty kicks has more to do with psychological effects than who kicks first. In a World Cup, some ...

The goal looks so large. The keeper looks so small. For a professional soccer player to get the ball past the opponent and into the target seems not so terribly challenging. Until there is the element ...

The 2026 FIFA World Cup has reached the knockout stage, where—unlike the group stage—matches can no longer end in a draw. If the score is level after 90 minutes, a winner must be decided. Matches will ...