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This page explains what lacrosse's rule books, governing bodies and standards bodies publish. It is not a substitute for coaching from a qualified coach, and it does not replace medical advice.
None of the items below is described as safe, certified or legal for any particular product: the standard, the rule in force and the officials decide. A ball to the chest or head needs medical care whatever is worn. Helmet and chest protector standards are on helmets and NOCSAE and chest protectors and ND200.
Men's field: World Lacrosse (2025-2027, version 1.0)
- Rule 17.1, required: a helmet designed for field lacrosse, a throat guard, a chest protector and a box or cup, along with the gloves and mouthguard every player wears. The rule names no standard for the helmet or chest protector.
- Rule 17.1, permitted: soccer-style shin guards, and compression shorts or American football pants that conform to the body, with or without pads made for the pants.
- Rule 17.1, purpose: apart from the stick, all goalkeeper equipment must be solely for protecting the head and body and must not help stop the ball; the jersey and shorts or pants go over it and conform to the body.
- Rule 18.3: shin guards, throat guards and chest protectors may not exceed standard equipment.
A version 1.1 dated January 2026 exists but was not read.
Women's field: World Lacrosse (2025-2026, version 1.0)
- Rule 6.A.20, required: a chest or body pad; a helmet designed for field lacrosse with a fastened chin strap; a facemask; and a throat protector attached to the helmet, hanging less than a ball's diameter from it. A wrap-around collar may be added.
- Rule 6.A.21: padded gloves are required. Shoulder or arm pads, soccer-style shin guards and conforming compression shorts or football pants are permitted. Hard plastic pieces in goalkeeper gloves and factory-attached thumb protectors are allowed.
- Rules 6.A.22 to 6.A.24: padding must fit securely and not widen the body beyond its own thickness, and may be at most 3 cm thick; gloves are tied at the cuff with no webbing; a shatter-resistant clear or tinted visor may be attached to the helmet.
- Rules 6.A.13 and 6.A.14: the goalkeeper's shirt matches the field players' colour and goes over the chest pad and any shoulder or arm pads.
A version 1.1 dated March 2025 exists but was not read. The women's goalkeeper wears a hard helmet; women's field players do not, as women's headgear explains.
Sixes: World Lacrosse (2026-2028, version 2.0)
Rule 2.4.3 requires a chest or body pad, a field lacrosse helmet with fastened chin strap, a facemask with an attached throat protector, and padded gloves, and permits shoulder or arm pads, leg pads and a box or cup. From the 2027 Sixes World Championships, goalkeepers at World Lacrosse owned and sanctioned events must wear goalkeeper-specific chest protection meeting NOCSAE or comparable standards, including for commotio cordis, and helmets bearing NOCSAE certification or a comparable standard.
Box: World Lacrosse (2026-2028, version 2.0)
The box rules set measured limits on most goalkeeper items:
| Rule | Item | Limit or requirement |
|---|---|---|
| 2.7.1 | Equipment list | Arm and chest protector, goalkeeper pants, throat guard, athletic cup or pelvic protection and shin guards, all solely for protection |
| 2.7.2 | Glove | At most 8.5 in wide and 14.5 in long; not bulked up or padded on the outside |
| 2.7.3 | Thigh pad | At most 11 in wide across the front of the leg, measured 5 in from the bottom of the pant with the goalkeeper standing |
| 2.7.4 | Shin pads | At most 9 in wide from the base of the kneecap, 7 in at the ankle and 11 in at or above the kneecap, and no more than 1.5 in thick; referees measure on the leg with an approved caliper |
| 2.7.5 | Helmet | Helmet and facemask approved by and bearing the mark of the CSA or NOCSAE, with an attached throat protector |
| 2.7.6 | Shoulders, arms, chest | Shoulder caps follow the shoulder, extend no more than 3 in beyond the body and rise no more than 2 in above it; arm padding at most 7 in across; chest protector no more than 2.5 in beyond each side of the chest and abdomen |
| 2.7.7 and 2.7.8 | Jersey and bulk | No inserts or tie-downs that make a webbing effect in the jersey, no jersey covering the area between the legs, and no surplus padding worn only for bulk |
| 2.6.2 | Lost equipment | If it cannot be repaired within 30 seconds of a stoppage, the goalkeeper leaves, and the substitute must be ready within 20 seconds or the team takes a bench minor |
Lacrosse Canada (box)
Lacrosse Canada's equipment regulations say box goalkeeper gear is sized by height, not age group, with adjustable straps required. Exemptions go to its Safety and Equipment Review Committee on the 2026 Goalkeeper Equipment Exemption Form, due by 31 May each year, with no appeal. Its memo of 28 January 2026 says box goalies must wear approved goalie masks and that cat-eye masks are not permitted.
United States high school
- NFHS boys' 2026 points of emphasis (19 February 2026): goalkeepers must wear a NOCSAE chest protector and a throat protector.
- NFHS boys' 2026, Rule 4-22-1c: the five seconds a goalkeeper had to get back into the crease on a restart were removed, so a goalkeeper outside the crease is treated as a field player for injury or equipment issues.
- NFHS boys' 2026, Rules 4-18-4 and 5-6-2: a field player who is not a properly equipped goalkeeper and enters the crease to block a shot commits a personal foul for illegal equipment.
- NFHS girls' 2024, Rule 2-6-1: the National Sporting Goods Association, a trade body, reported in July 2023 that goalkeepers must wear shorts or pants with built-in thigh padding. No NFHS original was read, so this is unconfirmed.
USA Lacrosse Magazine (31 March 2021) reported that from 1 January 2021 all goalkeepers at USA Lacrosse youth, NFHS high school and NCAA college level, men's and women's, must wear an ND200 chest protector. The NCAA's own goalkeeper equipment rules were not read.
The goalkeeper's stick, by code
| Code and rule | Overall length | Head |
|---|---|---|
| World Lacrosse men's field, 15.3 (2025-2027) | 40 to 72 in (101.60 to 182.88 cm) | 6 to 15 in (15.24 to 38.10 cm) inside at the widest point |
| World Lacrosse women's field, Appendix H B.2 (2025-2026) | 90 to 140 cm | No more than 41.9 cm long; 15.24 to 38.10 cm inside width |
| World Lacrosse sixes, 2.2.2 (2026-2028) | Men 100 to 140 cm; women 90 to 140 cm | 15.24 to 38.10 cm inside width |
| World Lacrosse box, 2.3 (2026-2028) | 40 to 72 in | No more than 13 in wide to the outside edges and 16.5 in from top of head to bottom of throat |
| NFHS boys', Rule 1-6-1 Art. 2 (2024 change summary) | 40 to 72 in | 10 to 12 in wide, no more than 16.5 in long |
The NFHS and World Lacrosse men's field goalkeeper head widths differ because they are different codes, each applying only in its own games. Full stick rules are on men's sticks, women's sticks and box sticks.
Sources
- World Lacrosse, Men's Field Lacrosse Official Playing Rules 2025-2027, v1.0 (copy hosted by BC Lacrosse with World Lacrosse's permission)
- World Lacrosse, Women's Field Lacrosse Official Playing Rules 2025-2026, v1.0 (copy hosted by Lacrosse Victoria)
- World Lacrosse, Sixes Lacrosse Official Playing Rules 2026-2028, v2.0 (May 2026)
- World Lacrosse, Box Lacrosse Official Playing Rules 2026-2028, v2.0 (May 2026)
- Lacrosse Canada, equipment regulations
- Lacrosse Canada, memo regarding equipment and rules in 2026 (28 January 2026)
- NFHS, boys' lacrosse points of emphasis 2026 (19 February 2026)
- NFHS, 2026 boys' lacrosse summary of rules changes with rationale
- NFHS, boys' lacrosse rules changes for 2024 (21 August 2023)
- National Sporting Goods Association, equipment and uniforms part of high school girls' lacrosse rules changes (July 2023)
- USA Lacrosse Magazine, new equipment standard an unprecedented breakthrough (31 March 2021)
- World Lacrosse, playing rules page (lists men's field v1.1, January 2026, and women's field v1.1, March 2025; read 23 October 2026)