Editing Touchdown (section)

==Description==
To score a touchdown, one team must take the [[football (ball)|football]] into the opposing team's [[end zone]]. In all gridiron codes, the touchdown is scored the instant the ball touches or "breaks" the [[Plane (geometry)|plane]] of the front of the goal line (that is, if any part of the ball is in the space on, above, or across the goal line) while in the possession of a player whose team is trying to score in that end zone. This particular requirement of the touchdown differs from other sports in which points are scored by moving a ball or equivalent object into a goal where the whole of the relevant object must cross the whole of the goal line for a score to be awarded. The play is dead and the touchdown scored the moment the ball touches plane in possession of a player, or the moment the ball comes into possession of an offensive player in the end zone (having established possession by controlling the ball and having one or both feet depending on the rules of the league or another part of the body, excluding the hands, touch the ground). The slightest part of the ball touching or being directly over the goal line is sufficient for a touchdown to score. However, only the ball counts, not a player's helmet, foot, or any other part of the body. Touching one of the pylons at either end of the goal line with the ball constitutes "breaking the plane" as well.

Touchdowns are usually scored by the offense by [[rush (American football)|running]] or [[forward pass|passing]] the ball. The former is called a ''rushing touchdown'', and in the latter, the quarterback throws a ''touchdown pass'' or ''passing touchdown'' to the receiver, who either catches the ball in the field of play and advances it into the end zone, or catches it while already being within the boundaries of the end zone; the result is a ''touchdown reception'' or ''touchdown catch''. However, the defense can also score a touchdown if they have recovered a [[fumble]] or made an [[interception]] and return it to the opposing end zone. [[Special teams]] can score a touchdown on a [[Kickoff (American football)|kickoff]] or [[punt return]], or on a return after a missed or blocked [[field goal (football)|field goal]] attempt or blocked [[Punt (gridiron football)|punt]]. In short, any play in which a player legally carries any part of the ball over or across the opponent's goal line scores a touchdown, as is any play in which a player legally gains possession of the ball while it is on or across his opponent's goal line and both the player and ball are legally in-bounds - beyond this, the manner in which he gained possession is inconsequential. In the [[NFL]], a touchdown may be awarded by the referee as a penalty for a "palpably unfair act", such as a player coming off the bench during a play and tackling the runner, who would otherwise have scored.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nfl.com/rulebook/penaltysummaries |title=NFL Rules Digest: Summary of Penalties |work=Nfl.com |access-date=November 23, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120121051208/http://www.nfl.com/rulebook/penaltysummaries |archive-date= Jan 21, 2012 }}</ref>
[[File:D'Andre Goodwin scores TD at Washington at Cal 2010-11-27.JPG|thumb|right|300px|A touchdown celebration]]
A touchdown is worth six points. The scoring team is also awarded the opportunity for an [[extra point]] or a [[two-point conversion]].<ref name="NCAA rules">{{cite web|url=https://www.ncaa.org/library/rules/2006/2006_football_rules.pdf|title=2006 NCAA Football Rules and Interpretations|publisher=National Collegiate Athletics Association|year=2006|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080624213428/http://www.ncaa.org/library/rules/2006/2006_football_rules.pdf|archive-date=June 24, 2008}}</ref>  Afterwards, the team that scored the touchdown [[Kickoff (American football)|kicks off]] to the opposing team, if there is any time left in the half. In most codes, a conversion is not attempted if the touchdown ended the game and the conversion cannot affect the outcome.

The officials' hand signal for a touchdown is both arms extended vertically above the head, with palms facing inward—the same signal used for a [[field goal]] or conversion.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://static.nfl.com/static/content/public/image/rulebook/pdfs/23_2012_Official_Signals.pdf|title=NFL Rulebook: Official Signals|work=NFL.com|access-date=April 29, 2020}}</ref>

Unlike a [[Try (rugby)|try]] scored in [[Rugby football|rugby]], and contrary to the event's name, the ball does not need to touch the ground when the player and the ball are inside the end zone. The term ''touchdown'' is a holdover from gridiron's early days when the ball ''was'' required to be touched to the ground as in rugby, as rugby and gridiron were still extremely similar sports at this point. This rule was changed to the modern-day iteration in 1889.