Zurich, Switzerland.
The International Board (IFAB) has agreed that from July 1, the involuntary hand preceding a teammate’s goal will no longer be considered a foul, as will the decision on concussion changes and the ability to make five substitutions. to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The unintentional hand that leads a teammate to score or score a goal opportunity is no longer considered a foul, according to the IFAB, which decided to continue to consider the possibility of scoring up to five changes due to the impact of the covid. pandemic -19 and concussion rehearsed at the World Cup for clubs in Qatar last month.
The body responsible for the Laws of the Game held its 135th annual video conference meeting on Friday and decided to delay the entry into force of its amendments from June 1 to July 1 in order to give players, coaches and players more time to familiarize themselves with match officials. although leagues have the flexibility to make changes before that date.
The IFAB, attended today by FIFA President Gianni Infantino, reported the decisions taken in a statement.
= Hands
As the interpretation of hand violations has not always been consistent due to incorrect application of the rule, IFAB members confirmed that any touch of the ball with a player’s hand / arm is not a violation.
It is a violation when a player deliberately touches the ball with his hand / arm, for example by moving his hand / arm towards the ball.
It will be a violation if he touches the ball with his hand / arm while unnaturally enlarging his body.
A player is considered to have unnaturally enlarged his body when his hand / arm position is not a consequence of or can be justified by the body movement of the player for that particular situation. By keeping his hand / arm in this position, the player runs the risk of his hand / arm being hit by the ball and being penalized; or to score on the opponent’s goal:
It will be a violation if he scores a goal in the opponent’s goal:
Directly with his hand / arm, even accidentally, even by the goalkeeper.
Or immediately after the ball has touched your hand / arm, even if it happened accidentally.
An inadvertent hand that causes a teammate to score a goal or have a scoring opportunity is no longer considered a violation.
= Another clarification was approved for the 2021/22 Laws of the Game, including Rule 11 (the definition in Article 12 for the hands, according to which the arm ends at the bottom of the armpit, should be used to judge if a player is in an offside position).
= Concussion
The IFAB confirmed that the decision to initiate concussion surrogate trials was based on the strong recommendation of the Concussion Expert Group, made up of leading medical experts and football players who reviewed the application. Key stakeholders and IFAB’s football and technical advisory panels were also consulted and supported.
The trials, which are expected to last until August 2022, have already been introduced in international and national competitions around the world, with more competitions about to enter or have expressed an interest in participating.
In the meantime, IFAB and FIFA will continue to collect, analyze and discuss comments and data related to football and medicine that will serve as the basis for any decision about possible implementation in the Laws of the Game.
= Substitutions (maximum 5)
With regard to the temporary amendment to Rule 3, allowing teams to use up to five substitutes in high-level league matches (for club competitions ending December 31, 2021 and national team competitions ending July 31, 2022), members agreed that the current impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on football must remain under scrutiny.