How long is a rugby union match?
I · Intermediate · The fifteens game · 2 of 6Eighty minutes: two halves of no more than 40 minutes plus time lost, with a half-time of up to 15 minutes. When time runs out, play goes on until the ball is dead. Extra time is played only in a drawn knock-out match, and only if the match organiser has authorised it.
How it works
- The match: "no longer than 80 minutes (split into two halves, each of not more than 40 minutes plus time lost)".
- Half-time: "an interval not exceeding 15 minutes as decided by the match organiser".
- Shorter matches: in non-international matches the match organiser, or the teams, may reduce the length.
- The clock: the referee keeps time, or delegates it to the assistant referees or a time-keeper.
- Stoppages: up to one minute for an injury, more for a serious one. Time is also allowed for consulting other officials.
- The end of a half: "A half ends when the ball becomes dead after time has expired".
- Not yet: if a scrum, lineout or restart kick awarded before time expired is still to be completed.
- Nor: if the referee awards a penalty or free-kick, or a try is scored and the conversion is still to come.
- Extra time: only when "the match organiser has authorised the playing of extra-time in a drawn match within a knock-out competition".
- Water break: in very hot or humid weather the referee may allow a two-minute break midway through a half.
The glossary has the half, the playing time, the extra time entry, the referee and the penalty.
Tricky cases
The clock passes 80 minutes while the losing team is attacking. Does the match end?
Not until the ball becomes dead. The team in possession may keep playing for as long as it keeps the ball alive.
Time runs out and the referee then gives a penalty. Is there one more play?
Yes. A half does not end when the referee awards a penalty or free-kick. The team may kick the penalty into touch and still take the lineout.
A try is scored on full time. Is the conversion taken?
Yes. The referee allows time for the conversion.
How is a drawn knock-out match decided?
By extra time if the match organiser authorises it. The laws do not say how long it lasts or what happens if it is still level. Each competition's own rules set that.
Why the rule exists
Playing until the ball is dead means a team attacking when the clock runs out is not cut off mid-move. It also gives a team ahead on the score a clear way to finish: kick the ball into touch once time is up.
Where it differs
| Where | What changes | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Fifteens | Two halves of 40 minutes, break of up to 15 | WR Law 5.1; 5.2 |
| Sevens | Two halves of seven minutes, break of up to two | WR Sevens Law 5.1; 5.2 |
| Fifteens extra time | Only if the match organiser authorises it | WR Law 5.1 |
| Sevens extra time | Five-minute periods, first to score wins | WR Sevens Law 8.30 |
From the rule book
World Rugby, Laws of the Game: Rugby Union 2026, Law 5. Checked 21 October 2026. Official document: Laws of the Game, Rugby Union 2026 (PDF).