---
slug: touchdown
title: Touchdown
depth_tier: entry
side: OFFENSE
category: Rules
source_id: "FF-0055"
created: 2026-04-06
updated: 2026-05-16
canonical: https://learningfootball.xyz/terms/touchdown
aliases:
  - TD
  - score
  - six points
  - six
  - pay dirt
---
# Touchdown

## Short Definition

The primary scoring play worth 6 points, awarded when a player carries or catches the ball across the opponent's goal line or into the end zone.

## Definition

A touchdown is the primary scoring play in football, worth 6 points, awarded when a ball carrier crosses the plane of the opponent's goal line with possession of the ball, or when a receiver catches a pass in the end zone. The ball crossing the plane—the vertical extension of the goal line—is the legal standard; the player's body does not need to touch the ground in the end zone. After a touchdown, the scoring team attempts a conversion from the 2-yard line for either 1 point (kicking) or 2 points (scrimmage play).

The touchdown is the central event of football—the moment everything on a drive is building toward and the moment defenses are designed to prevent. Every down and distance decision, every personnel grouping, every play call on both sides is shaped by the proximity to or distance from a touchdown. Field goals exist because touchdowns are hard; extra points exist because they are not automatic.

The rule has evolved significantly from football's early era. In rugby-derived football, a touchdown originally counted for fewer points than a kicked goal—the try (as it was called, like in rugby) had to be "converted" by a kick to score the major points. The point values shifted over decades until the touchdown became the primary score and the kick became the supplementary conversion. The two-point conversion, adopted by the NFL in 1994, restored a scrimmage-play option that college football had used for decades.

Touchdowns are scored in multiple ways: rushing (carrying the ball across the goal line), receiving (catching a pass in the end zone), returning (bringing a kickoff, punt, or interception to the end zone), or on special defensive plays like a safety that converts to a scoring play. Each type carries the same point value but different strategic implications—a defensive touchdown, in particular, is one of the highest-leverage plays in football because it scores points and creates a possession change simultaneously.

## Example

"She catches the ball at the 3-yard line, takes one step, and crosses the goal line before the cornerback can pull the flag. Touchdown—six points."

## Common Confusion

A touchdown scores 6 points, not 7. The extra point is a separate conversion attempt after the score and is not automatic—a missed extra point leaves the score at 6. The ball crossing the plane of the goal line while in the player's possession is sufficient for a touchdown; the player does not need to be standing, running, or upright. A receiver who catches the ball in the air and breaks the plane of the goal line before going out of bounds scores a touchdown even if he never touches the ground in the end zone.

## Related

- extra-point
- two-point-conversion
- end-zone
- goal-line
- field-goal
- red-zone

---
Source: https://learningfootball.xyz/terms/touchdown