Section 4: Players & Officials
Team composition. A team consists of fifteen players: a goalkeeper and fourteen outfield players (Rule 2.1, The Players). The maximum number of substitutes permitted during Normal Time is five (Rule 2.3(i), The Players), with a maximum of three further substitutions during Extra Time where it is played (Rule 2.3(ii), The Players). A player who has been substituted may not return to the field of play for the remainder of the game.
The "3-up / 3-back" rule. Under the permanent 2026 rules, a team must during play have at least four players — which may include the goalkeeper — in its own half of the field, and at least three outfield players in the opposition half (Rule 2.14). A breach is penalised by a free kick from the centre point of the offending team's 20m line (Rule 4.36).
Match officials. Games are controlled by a referee, who has sole authority to enforce the Playing Rules, keep the time, and impose sanctions. The referee is assisted by two linesmen, who monitor the sidelines and assist with foul identification, and by four umpires, positioned two at each end, who signal scores and wides to the referee (Rules of Control, Rule 1.2 and Rule 2.2). At inter-county level, games are further supported by a standby/additional match official and, in competitions using it, a Hawk-Eye or equivalent score-detection system to adjudicate marginal scores.
Team officials. Each team nominates a captain, who is the sole point of contact with the referee on behalf of the team, along with team management (manager, coaches) and medical personnel, who are permitted within the technical area but may not enter the field of play without the referee's permission (Rules of Control, Rule 1.4). The captain, or a nominated deputy where the captain is the goalkeeper or is no longer on the field, is the only player who may speak to the referee to seek clarification of a decision, and only during a break in play (Rule 1.11).