Permanent concussion player substitution system introduced in soccer law

A permanent substitution system for concussions will be introduced into the Football Act, MPs from the competition have confirmed.

The measures are being trialled in a number of competitions, including the Premier League, Women's Super League, FA Women's Championship and FA Cup, and will come into force from 1 July 2024.

A team may make additional substitutions beyond the allotted amount if a player shows signs of a concussion, regardless of the number of substitutions already made.

However, the International Football Association Board (IFAB)'s annual general meeting in Scotland on Saturday failed to approve attempts to make temporary concussion substitutions as requested by the Premier League and the players' association.

The Premier League is understood to maintain the view that allowing professional leagues to trial temporary concussion replacements would be of significant benefit to player welfare and the sport.

Ian Maxwell, chief executive of the Scottish Football Association, said: “Our trial regarding permanent substitutions due to concussion has effectively ended and this will now be enshrined in the Law of the Game. ” he said.

“As per protocol, it will be up to the competition to decide whether to use a concussion substitute permanently.”

Other legal changes approved at the general meeting include that non-intentional handball offenses will now be treated like any other offense, and that trespassing by an outfield player during a penalty kick will now result in a fine. This includes things such as being punished only in certain cases. impact.

Trials, such as allowing only team captains to approach referees in certain circumstances, and the introduction of cooling-off periods, where referees can request teams to go to their own penalty area, will be carried out below the top two tiers.

There will also be a trial in which the time limit for goalkeepers to hold the ball will be extended from six seconds to eight seconds, and the ball will be returned to the opposing team after possession.

The Sin Bin trial will continue at a grassroots level, but will not expand due to the huge backlash against the blue card plan from many prominent figures in the game.

How do permanent concussion replacements work?

The Permanent Concussion Replacement Protocol, now in law, states that if a player leaves the field for concussion evaluation, he or she must be permanently substituted and cannot return, or the team must play at the match venue. This means that the match will continue either way. Numerical disadvantage.

According to FIFA data, around 650 concussion incidents were reported in 277 of the 317 trial competitions over the three seasons.

“I think there's a real emphasis on the educational part of reaching out to teams, team doctors and players,” FIFA Director General Matthias Grafström said. “We really have to make a concerted effort.

“As an IFAB body, we have set out options for competition organizers, but it is up to them to apply them. We need to work with these leagues to collect more data going forward. However, this topic does not end today. We will continue to monitor and educate further, and this will continue.”

The Premier League, together with the players' association, had sought to secure a temporary replacement due to concussion.

There is an element of confusion as to why the IFAB did not take note of the research the Consensus Group has carried out on the subject for many years and does not follow the same model used in rugby and the National Football League.

Teams will give extra substitutions to players with suspected concussions (MB Media/Getty Images)

Wasn't there supposed to be a blue card and a box of sins?

The blue card was due to be set up as part of the guilt bin trial, but FIFA president Gianni Infantino said on Friday night that he would give “a red card to a blue card” and the proposal was put before a general meeting of shareholders. It was previously withdrawn.

Although aimed at providing greater protection for referees, discussions about the introduction of sin boxes at elite level remain open despite speculation that IFAB and FIFA could approve them at their General Assembly. It will continue.

“The sin bin proposal is in no way a step backwards,” Maxwell said. “This has obviously been widely tested in England and Wales and has proven to be very successful.

“We have reviewed our protocols and updated our protocols, so before we decide what the next step for those trials will be and whether we start moving it further up the football pyramid. We’re going to evaluate how that works in that environment.”

“There are two changes to the Sin Bin protocol. Currently, if you receive a yellow card and receive a 10-minute suspension, it effectively does not count as a yellow card against your total,” Bullingham explained. did.

“So it's changed to simplify it. So now it's a proper yellow card, you get a yellow card for the sin bin, then you get a yellow card for something else, then it's a red card. It is a case.

“Another point is that once the match is 10 minutes old, even if play continues, the referee must essentially keep watching the clock for that entire time and call players back. Thing.

“We felt that was not appropriate for the referee. So it would essentially be 10 minutes, after which we would wait for the next stoppage in play, before considering deploying elsewhere.” , we want to make sure we understand the protocols correctly.”

Jurgen Klopp is one of those opposed to the bin of sin (Justin Tallis/AFP via Getty Images)

What about other exams?

When asked to explain how the time-consuming trial would work, Bullingham said it could be introduced at any level below League One and that he wanted to involve supporters.

“The idea is that when the goalkeeper controls the ball and the referee raises his hand and the five-second countdown begins, the crowd reacts to that and the other players react as well,” he said. He said.

“And the protocols being discussed in terms of how to pass the ball to the opposing team are either a throw-in along the penalty spot or a corner kick.”

IFAB and FIFA discussed penalties for wasting time and considered giving the opposing team a corner or a throw-in at the 18-yard line.

“There are advantages and disadvantages to both. They're still considering it.”

What about VAR?

Grafström said expanding the scope of VAR was not discussed at the general assembly, but confirmed that referees will announce VAR decisions to supporters inside stadiums at Olympic soccer tournaments.

“We are extending the trials because we are very satisfied with the trials so far and we have received a lot of interest from competition organizers,” the FIFA Secretary-General said.

On a similar theme of improving communication around VAR, Maxwell said he understands the frustration of long checks and fans not knowing what's going on.

“If the check takes a long time to clear, that can be far from ideal,” Maxwell said.

“We need to take on opportunities to increase engagement and understanding of why it's happening. But again, it's a journey.”

(Bradley Collier/PA Image via Getty Images)