This is a new unexpected side effect of the pandemic coronavirus that has crippled the world of sport. Friday, may 8, the International Football Association Board (Ifab), the body which determines and is changing the rules of the game of football, has authorized the passage of three to five changes per game to help limit the risk of injury after two months of complete stop of the competition. At the same time, the institution has made optional the use of the VAR. Explanations.

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Five replacements provisionally allowed

Marked by the terrible pandemic of Covid-19, which has already caused more than 250,000 deaths in the world, resulting in the stoppage of all sports competitions and the one-year deferral of the olympic Games and the Euro the year 2020 should also be distinguished by the introduction of “temporary” of the opportunity to operate up to five substitutions per game, with a sixth possible change in extension. This amendment to the law 3 – Players, who between ” effective immediately “, will apply to all competitions until the end of 2020, provided that the organisers are adopting, have announced jointly by Fifa and the Ifab.

The international Bureau and Fifa have stated that they will determine “later” if this option may be extended until the end of 2021, and will then apply for the Euro or the Copa America, postponed from 2020 to 2021. To avoid unduly disrupt the course of the meetings, each team will have a maximum of three opportunities to make changes during the game. In addition, these changes will be made at half-time. The double and triple replacements will therefore be much more frequent. Finally, for competitions like the champions League, the Europa League, or the Cup of France, which allow an additional change in the case of an extension, each team will have an opportunity to replace additional. “This amendment, which is effective immediately, is intended to help the teams to cope with a schedule condensed and different weather conditions, two elements that can have an impact on the well-being of the players “, said Fifa.

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An idea came to Spain ?

This change to five replacements should take effect immediately in Germany, where the Bundesliga will resume closed from Saturday, may 16, announced on Thursday the German football League (DFL). In Spain, the football federation (Real Federación Española de Fútbol – RFEF) had not waited for the green light from the Ifab to launch this initiative. The RFEF had already announced on Thursday she would propose “in exceptional circumstances” the opportunity to make five changes from team that ” in all the national categories “. This initiative has been communicated to The Liga, which has shown its support for this measure, in the statements of its president, Javier Tebas.

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But, the royal Spanish football Federation goes further, stating that it was she who had proposed the idea to Fifa, ” there are more than a month “. However, the idea is not entirely new either. The use of five replacements was already in force in some competitions of young people, as it did during the qualification matches for the Euro 2021 U21, deferred to 2022.

The VAR becomes optional

In addition to announcing the opportunity to make five changes until the end of 2020 at least, the Ifab has also made an announcement regarding the use of the VAR. Gradually introduced from 2016 in the world of football, the video support to the arbitration will not be mandatory in the event of recovery of a championship during the outbreak of coronavirus. If the video support to the arbitration is functional, it will have to be used the same way as it was before the health crisis, with a protocol unchanged. “If the tournament organizers so decide, the competitions in which the support video to the arbitration is implementation may cease to use this technology as soon as their recovery. However, if the use of video support to arbitration is preserved, all the aspects of the Laws of the Game and, by extension, of the protocol to support video to the arbitration, remain in force “, thus explained the Ifab and Fifa.

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constantly changing, the rules of football have been changed several times over the past sixty years, but very rarely on a provisional basis. The first replacement was authorized in 1958, although at the start, the goalkeeper and a player of the field could not be changed in case of injury. The first change without the condition of the injury has been introduced in 1967. Then, we had to wait until the World Cup in Mexico in 1970 to have two replacements, while the third has not been authorized after 1992. On their side, yellow cards and red cards were introduced only in 1970, while shots on goal were introduced in 1974. Finally, the golden goal is one of the few measures used for a limited period, introduced in 1992 and abolished in 2004. The five changes will suffer the same fate ?

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