A hat-trick in football (soccer) is when one player scores three goals in a single match. All three must be scored by the same player in the same game, but they can come at any point — early or late, spread out or in quick succession — and in any order. It is one of the most celebrated individual achievements an attacker can manage.
The basic rule
There is nothing complicated about the core definition: three goals by one player in one match equals a hat-trick. It does not matter whether they are tap-ins, long-range strikes, penalties, or headers, and it does not matter how much time passes between them. A player who scores in the opening minute, again just before half-time, and once more late in the game has scored a hat-trick, exactly like a player who scores three in ten minutes. There is also no requirement that the goals come in a single half or a single passage of play — they simply have to be scored by the same player within the same match, including any added stoppage time. Goals scored in extra time of a knockout match usually count as well, though goals in a penalty shootout do not, because a shootout is a separate tie-breaker rather than part of the match itself.
Where does the term come from?
The phrase actually originated in cricket, not football. In cricket, a bowler who takes three wickets with three consecutive deliveries is said to have taken a hat-trick — and by tradition, the achievement was once marked by awarding the bowler a new hat. Football borrowed the term for a player scoring three goals, and it has since spread to hockey, rugby, and many other sports. If you are curious about the cricket side of things, our guides to the googly and LBW explain more of the game’s language.
What is a perfect hat-trick?
A “perfect hat-trick” is a special version in which a player scores their three goals in three specific ways: one with the right foot, one with the left foot, and one with a header. It is prized because it shows an all-round scoring ability rather than a strong preference for one foot. Some fans and commentators also apply the phrase to three goals scored one in each third of the match, but the foot-foot-head definition is the most widely recognized.
Do penalties count toward a hat-trick?
Yes. A goal is a goal for hat-trick purposes, so penalties, free kicks, and even goals that take a deflection all count, as long as they are officially credited to the same player. A player who scores three penalties in a match has technically completed a hat-trick, although purists sometimes distinguish it from an open-play treble. What is not counted is an own goal by an opponent, because that is not credited to the attacking player at all.
What happens to the match ball?
By long-standing tradition, a player who scores a hat-trick is allowed to keep the match ball as a memento, often getting teammates to sign it afterward. This custom is thought to trace back to the cricketing origins of the term and the idea of rewarding the achievement with a physical prize. It is not a rule written into the laws of the game — the laws themselves are maintained by the International Football Association Board (IFAB) and administered by FIFA — but it is a widely observed piece of football culture. Because scoring three in one game is a personal milestone, the ball becomes a lasting keepsake, and refusing it or handing it back is almost unheard of at any level of the sport.
What do you call more than three goals?
There is no single universally fixed term once a player passes three, but a few are common. Four goals in a match is sometimes called a “haul” or simply “four goals,” and occasionally a “super hat-trick.” Five goals is sometimes informally dubbed a “glut” or just noted as five. In practice, commentators usually just state the number once it climbs above three, because scoring four or five in one game is rare enough to speak for itself.
Is a hat-trick the same in every sport?
The core idea — three of something by one competitor — carries across sports, but the details differ. In football it is three goals; in cricket it is three wickets in three consecutive balls; in ice hockey it mirrors football with three goals and the tradition of fans throwing hats onto the ice. So while the word travels well, always check the sport’s own definition. For more football terms, see our explainer on what a clean sheet is, the defensive milestone that a hat-trick often works against.
How rare is a hat-trick?
Hat-tricks are uncommon enough to be a genuine highlight of any season, but they are not so rare that they never happen — top strikers may manage several over a career, while many capable players never score one at all. Much depends on position and role: out-and-out forwards and attacking midfielders get the most chances, while defenders and goalkeepers almost never come close. Their scarcity is exactly what makes them memorable: three goals in a single match usually means a player was at the center of a dominant team performance, which is why a hat-trick is remembered long after the final whistle and often becomes a defining moment in a player’s career.
