World Cup: IFAB confirm new VAR powers, 10-second substitutions and tactical timeout ban in major rule changes

The International Football Association Board (IFAB) has announced a raft of rule changes for the World Cup, including expanded powers for VAR, 10-second substitutions and clamping down on tactical timeouts.

The changes have been approved ahead of this summer’s tournament in the United States, Mexico and Canada.

Other new rules include:

Five-second countdowns for throw-ins and goal-kicks
Red cards for players covering their mouths during confrontations
Punishments for teams walking off the pitch in protest
Mandatory one-minute off-field treatment periods

New conduct rules introduced

Players who cover their mouth with their hand, arm or shirt during confrontational situations will now receive a red card.

However, players covering their mouths during friendly conversations with opposition players will not be punished.

Players who walk off the pitch in protest of a refereeing decision will also now be shown a red card, while teams causing matches to be abandoned will automatically forfeit the game.

The same punishment will apply to team officials who encourage players to leave the field of play.

Expanded VAR powers approved

VAR will now be able to intervene for wrongly-awarded second yellow cards, mistaken identity incidents and incorrectly-awarded corner kicks.

Officials will also now be allowed to step in if a foul is committed before the ball is in play at a set-piece, such as an attacker blocking a defender before a corner is taken.

If VAR identifies an offence before the restart, referees will be sent to the monitor for an on-field review before deciding whether disciplinary action should be taken and whether the set-piece should be retaken.

VAR checks on corners will only be used to correct obvious errors and must not delay the restart of play.

Officials will also only intervene for incorrectly-awarded second yellow cards and will not recommend a second booking where one was not originally shown on the pitch.

Tactical timeouts to be stopped

FIFA is also keen to clamp down on the growing issue of teams using injuries to break up play and hold team talks mid-game while players receive treatment.

IFAB discussed the issue in March but was unable to find a solution. However, FIFA’s chief refereeing officer Pierluigi Collina said the matter had been raised during a workshop involving the head coaches of all 48 teams heading to this summer’s World Cup.

Although referees will have no sanctions at their disposal, Collina said referees would be “proactive” in preventing teams from unfairly taking advantage of injuries.

“We will not allow the teams going to the benches when a goalkeeper is lying on the ground injured,” he said. “The goalkeeper has the right to be injured, but the players do not have the right to leave the field of play to have some sort of time out with their respective coaches-

“I’m afraid we didn’t get a shared solution (on sanctions), a solution agreed by everybody. For this season, IFAB didn’t take any decision. Certainly something will be done in the future. For the time being, we rely on players’ understanding of the problem.

“We told them, ‘Be aware that we know’ so what we can avoid is having all the players off the field of play. There are captains, there are coaches, so certainly referees will be ready to face something like this if it should happen

New anti-timewasting measures introduced

Referees will now use a visible five-second countdown for throw-ins and goal-kicks.

If a throw-in is not taken before the countdown expires, possession will be awarded to the opposition. If a goal-kick is delayed beyond the countdown, the opposing side will receive a corner kick.

Players being substituted will also now have just 10 seconds to leave the pitch after the substitution board has been shown and must exit using the nearest point on the boundary line.

If a player fails to leave within the time limit, their replacement will only be allowed onto the pitch at the first stoppage after one minute has elapsed following the restart.

Off-field treatment and hydration breaks introduced

Outfield players who receive treatment from medical staff on the pitch will now be required to remain off the field for at least one minute after play restarts.

Exceptions will apply in cases involving goalkeeper injuries, collisions, head injuries, concussions or situations where the injured player is due to take a penalty.

There will also now be a mandatory three-minute hydration break in each half during every World Cup match, with referees given flexibility over when the stoppage takes place depending on injuries or the flow of the game.

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