Eight second goalkeeper rule???
From this summer onwards, goalkeepers will be allowed eight seconds from catching the ball to releasing it, in the latest attempt to cut down on time-wasting.
Positive results in trials across England, Italy and Malta have prompted the games rule-makers, the International Football Association Board (Ifab), to change the law for the start of the 2025-26 season.
Where does this apply?
This rule will be implemented worldwide by 1 July, at all levels of the game from elite to amateur.
It will also be in place for the Club World Cup, which runs from 15 June to 13 July.
How will referees punish it?
Referees will punish goalkeepers holding on to the ball for more than eight seconds by awarding a corner to the opposition.
How will referees indicate it?
Goalkeepers will be warned by the referee when they have five seconds remaining to get rid of the ball. The referee will raise their arm and start a visual countdown with their hand.
Wasn't this already a rule?
Yes. Well, kind of, as it was rarely enforced. The current law states if a goalkeeper holds on to a ball for six seconds, then an indirect free-kick is awarded to the opposition.
What have Ifab said about the rule change?
During trials, Ifab said there had only been four instances where goalkeepers have been penalised in hundreds of matches, even with the rule being strictly applied.
Ifab technical director and former Premier League referee David Elleray told The Times: "Good law changes are where you have a very strong deterrent which everybody implements and then the problem effectively disappears.
"If it speeds up the game, if it's more positive, it means that it could be one of those very effective deterrents."
What can we expect?
The Club World Cup features Manchester City and Chelsea, so Premier League fans will be able to see how Ederson, Stefan Ortega, Robert Sanchez or Filip Jorgensen cope with that countdown for the first time.
More corners, at least at the start of the season. Set-piece coaches will start receiving even more air-time.
Early casualties. We already know how strictly rules are enforced when they are first brought in - just ask Declan Rice and Leandro Trossard, who both got handed second yellow cards early this season for delaying the restart.
The sound of the crowd sarcastically counting down when the opposition goalkeeper picks up the ball>
Expect players to get involved, too. If a team is trailing in the dying minutes of a game and a goalkeeper has the ball, there will be players who tell the referee to count quicker... or even count for them.
Positive results in trials across England, Italy and Malta have prompted the games rule-makers, the International Football Association Board (Ifab), to change the law for the start of the 2025-26 season.
Where does this apply?
This rule will be implemented worldwide by 1 July, at all levels of the game from elite to amateur.
It will also be in place for the Club World Cup, which runs from 15 June to 13 July.
How will referees punish it?
Referees will punish goalkeepers holding on to the ball for more than eight seconds by awarding a corner to the opposition.
How will referees indicate it?
Goalkeepers will be warned by the referee when they have five seconds remaining to get rid of the ball. The referee will raise their arm and start a visual countdown with their hand.
Wasn't this already a rule?
Yes. Well, kind of, as it was rarely enforced. The current law states if a goalkeeper holds on to a ball for six seconds, then an indirect free-kick is awarded to the opposition.
What have Ifab said about the rule change?
During trials, Ifab said there had only been four instances where goalkeepers have been penalised in hundreds of matches, even with the rule being strictly applied.
Ifab technical director and former Premier League referee David Elleray told The Times: "Good law changes are where you have a very strong deterrent which everybody implements and then the problem effectively disappears.
"If it speeds up the game, if it's more positive, it means that it could be one of those very effective deterrents."
What can we expect?
The Club World Cup features Manchester City and Chelsea, so Premier League fans will be able to see how Ederson, Stefan Ortega, Robert Sanchez or Filip Jorgensen cope with that countdown for the first time.
More corners, at least at the start of the season. Set-piece coaches will start receiving even more air-time.
Early casualties. We already know how strictly rules are enforced when they are first brought in - just ask Declan Rice and Leandro Trossard, who both got handed second yellow cards early this season for delaying the restart.
The sound of the crowd sarcastically counting down when the opposition goalkeeper picks up the ball>
Expect players to get involved, too. If a team is trailing in the dying minutes of a game and a goalkeeper has the ball, there will be players who tell the referee to count quicker... or even count for them.