In American football, a touchback is a ruling that is made and signaled by an official when the ball becomes dead on or behind a team's own goal line (i.e., in their end zone) and the opposing team gave the ball the momentum, or impetus, to travel over the goal line, but did not have possession of the ball when it became dead.[1] Since the 2018 season, touchbacks have also been awarded in college football on kickoffs that end in a fair catch by the receiving team between its own 25-yard line and goal line.[2] In the 2023 season, the NFL adopted the same rules as college football in regard to awarding touchbacks on kickoffs that end in a fair catch.[3] In 2024, the NFL moved the placement of the ball after a touchback on a kickoff to the receiving team's 30-yard line; this was part of a radical change to the league's kickoff procedure.[4] Such impetus may be imparted by a kick, pass, fumble, or in certain instances by batting the ball. A touchback is not a play, but a result of events that may occur during a play. A touchback is the opposite of a safety with regard to impetus since a safety is scored when the ball becomes dead in a team's end zone after that team — the team whose end zone it is — caused the ball to cross the goal line.
The result of a touchback is that the team in whose end zone the ball became dead receives possession of the ball and starts play with a first down at its own 20-, 25-, or 30-yard line, depending on the situation and league.