# "Floating" goalposts **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [September 11, 2026, 11:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floating-goalposts/1032990 "2026-09-11T11:28:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2026, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floating-goalposts/1032990/21 "2026-09-12T02:44:34Z")
> [@Railer13](#): > > My idea is to have a ‘top’ crossbar on the goalposts. Kick attempts have to land between the goalposts and between the upper and lower crossbars. Sort of like a soccer goal turned 90 degrees. So a box; a square loop. It would definitely decrease the number of successful field goals. Would it have a net in the back like a soccer goal? ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2026, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floating-goalposts/1032990/22 "2026-09-12T03:04:40Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Couldn’t you do without the wall attachments entirely, and just hang the goal from the ceiling? About a decade ago, I worked a few games as scoreboard operator and assistant statistician for a minor-league arena football team. They played in a multipurpose indoor athletic arena, which primarily served as an indoor soccer field; they had the goalposts for arena football set up in exactly that way, which, AIUI, is typical for arena football. Below is a picture of goalposts for an arena football game; the “girders” to either side of the uprights hold nets, which are used to bounce a kickoff back into the field of play. [![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d8/AFL_Goalpost_and_Rebound_Nets_2015.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=index&utm_content=original) ](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d8/AFL_Goalpost_and_Rebound_Nets_2015.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=index&utm_content=original) ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2026, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floating-goalposts/1032990/23 "2026-09-12T03:17:02Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > Would it have a net in the back like a soccer goal? Absolutely. If the ball lands in the net, the attempt is successful. If not, no good. Judgement calls will no longer be required. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2026, 6:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floating-goalposts/1032990/24 "2026-09-12T06:43:56Z")
I like it. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2026, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floating-goalposts/1032990/25 "2026-09-12T12:35:02Z")
> [@Railer13](#): > > My idea is to have a ‘top’ crossbar on the goalposts. Kick attempts have to land between the goalposts and between the upper and lower crossbars. How high up would it be? If it’s high enough, it’d be a fairly small change from the current setup. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2026, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floating-goalposts/1032990/26 "2026-09-12T12:43:21Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > How high up would it be? At the top of the goalposts, which are 35 feet higher than the crossbar. And it wouldn’t necessarily be a ‘small’ change. Right now, kicks can be higher than the goalposts and still be successful. In my proposal, those kicks would no longer be good. And a kick could hit the top crossbar and be unsuccessful. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2026, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floating-goalposts/1032990/27 "2026-09-12T12:52:04Z")
> [@Railer13](#): > > At the top of the goalposts, which are 35 feet higher than the crossbar. Huh, I thought that varied in different stadiums. Yeah, at only 35 feet up, that’d definitely make a difference. If you put the top at 50, though, much less so, and at 75, it basically wouldn’t matter at all. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2026, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floating-goalposts/1032990/28 "2026-09-12T13:00:08Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > I thought that varied in different stadiums. It probably does vary from stadium to stadium, at the high school level, and perhaps in college as well. But the NFL official height is 35 feet. From the [NFL rulebook](https://operations.nfl.com/rules-officiating/2026-nfl-rulebook) > Article 2. Goal Posts > All goal posts will be the single-standard type, offset from the end line, bright gold in color, and padded in a manner prescribed by the League. The uprights will extend 35 feet above the crossbar and will be no less than 3 inches and no more than 4 inches in diameter. An orange-colored ribbon 4 inches by 42 inches is to be attached to the top of each post. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2026, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floating-goalposts/1032990/29 "2026-09-12T17:48:06Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > I question the designation of this design as “the 8th wonder of the world”. Bolting a piece of metal to a nearby wall is an interesting idea but I wouldn’t call it amazing. A subsequent post has this info: > [@](#): > > When it was finished in 1975, the Kibbie Dome was the longest wood roof span in the world. So, while [it’s not alone in being called the “Eighth Wonder,”](https://www.history.com/articles/eighth-wonders-of-the-world) there’s at least some tongue-in-cheek rationale for it. Though, personally, I stand by the “Eighth Wonder” being [Andre the Giant](https://www.everything80spodcast.com/andre-the-giant-the-life-legacy-of-the-8th-wonder-of-the-world/). ---
**Author:** ![Cugel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cugel/32/1199_2.png) [@Cugel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cugel)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2026, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floating-goalposts/1032990/30 "2026-09-12T23:36:19Z")
Mal Meninga approves. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floating-goalposts/1032990.md?page=1)