New Rule: Referees to Award Corner Kicks If Goalkeepers Hold the Ball for Over 8 Seconds
The International Football Board (IFAB), the organization responsible for developing the rules of the game, unanimously approved changes to Rule 12.2 (indirect free kick) this Saturday. Under the new guideline, if a goalkeeper holds onto the ball for more than eight seconds, the referee will award a corner kick to the opposing team instead of an indirect free kick.
Following the 139th Annual General Assembly held in Belfast, the IFAB announced several amendments to the rules of the game, which FIFA will implement at the Club World Cup starting on June 14.
The IFAB detailed that the modification to Rule 12.2 means that if a goalkeeper retains the ball for over eight seconds (with the referee conducting a visual countdown of five seconds), a corner kick will be awarded to the opposing team, replacing the previous indirect free kick rule for retainment exceeding six seconds.
Among the other approved amendments, effective from July 1, is a revision to Rule 3.10 regarding team captains, introducing guidelines for competitions that wish to implement the principle that only the captain may address the referee in specific situations.
“The IFAB agreed that enhanced cooperation and communication between captains and referees, often confronted with verbal and/or physical disagreements during decision-making, can help foster higher levels of fairness and mutual respect, which are core values of the game,” the statement read.
The organization added that “competition organizers, players, and referees must collaborate to adhere to these guidelines.”
Per IFAB’s approval, Rule 8.2 will stipulate that “if the ball is out of the penalty area when play is stopped, it will be dropped for the team that had or would have had possession of the ball if evident to the referee; otherwise, it will be dropped for the team that last touched it. The ball will be dropped where it was situated when play was interrupted.”
Additionally, Rule 9.2 (ball in play) will include changes indicating that “an indirect free kick will be awarded without disciplinary sanction if a team official, substitute, substituted player, or temporarily off the field player touches the ball as it is leaving the field and there was no intention to interfere unfairly.”
Regarding the VAR protocol, the rules will state that competitions have the option for the referee to make an announcement following a VAR review or extended VAR check, and that “since the VAR can monitor goal/no goal decisions and goalkeeper encroachment, the assistant referee must position themselves in line with the penalty spot, which is also the offside line.”
The IFAB supported FIFA’s commitment to trial body cameras worn by referees in their competitions, aimed at identifying potential future uses and developing quality and safety standards. FIFA confirmed its intention to implement this system in the upcoming Club World Cup as part of the live match broadcast.
Additionally, it was decided to proactively seek competitions to conduct further offside trials, targeting the promotion of attacking football and scoring opportunities. FIFA will conduct these trials in some of its upcoming tournaments and also informed IFAB that it will expand the trials utilizing Football Video Support (FVS) – a cost-effective system requiring very few cameras, successfully tested in various FIFA competitions in 2024.
