Zurich, Switzerland.
The International Council (IFAB) has agreed that, from 1 July, involuntary hand preceding a goal by a teammate will no longer be considered a crime, as well as maintaining the decision on changes caused by contusions and maintaining the possibility of making five replacements due to the covid-19 pandemic.
An accidental hand that causes a teammate to score a goal or have a goal opportunity will no longer be considered a crime, according to IFAB, which has decided to control the possibility of making up to five changes due to the impact of the pandemic covid -19 and concussion replacements, repeated at the Qatar Club World Cup last month.
The body responsible for the rules of the game held its 135th annual videoconference meeting on Friday and decided to postpone the entry into force of the changes from June 1 to July 1 to give players, coaches and players more time. to get acquainted with the match officials, although the competitions will have the flexibility to make changes before that date.
IFAB, attended by FIFA President Gianni Infantino, at today’s meeting, reported in a statement the decisions taken.
= Hands
. As the interpretation of hand violations has not always been consistent due to incorrect application of the rule, IFAB members have confirmed that every touch of the ball with a player’s hand / arm is not a violation.
. It is an offense 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 crime when he touches the ball with his hand / arm when he has unnaturally enlarged his body.
A player is considered to have unnaturally enlarged his body when the position of the hand / arm is not a consequence or can be justified by the movement of the player’s body for that specific situation. With this hand / arm in this position, the player risks having his hand / arm hit by the ball and being penalized; or score on the opponent’s goal:
. It will be an offense when he scores a goal in the opponent’s goal:
Directly with the hand / arm, even accidentally, even by the goalkeeper.
Or immediately after the ball touches your hand / arm, even if it is accidental.
An accidental hand leading a teammate to score a goal or to have a chance to score will no longer be considered a crime.
= Another clarification has been approved for the Laws of the Game 2021/22, including Law 11 (the definition in Law 12 for the hands, according to which the arm ends at the bottom of the armpit, should be used when judging whether a player is in position offside).
= Conclusions
IFAB confirmed that the decision to launch the concussion surrogate tests was based on the strong recommendation of the concussion expert group, consisting of top medical experts and footballers who examined his application. Key stakeholders and IFAB technical and football advisory groups were also consulted and supported.
The tests, which are expected to continue until August 2022, have already been introduced in international and national competitions around the world, with several competitions either about to join or have shown 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 a basis for any decision on possible implementation in the Laws of the Game.
= Replacements (up to 5)
Regarding the temporary amendment of Rule 3, which allows teams to use up to five substitutes in high-level competition matches (for club competitions ending on 31 December 2021 and national team competitions ending on 31 July 2022), members agreed that the current impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on football should remain under review.