FIFA wants football matches 90 minutes and not half as long. After having experienced stoppages of more than 10 minutes at the 2022 World Cup, the body is considering stopping time in the future. This is not the only desired change.
In Search of Lost Time. Gianni Infantino and his teams like to draw inspiration from Marcel Proust’s famous novel at the moment. FIFA and its arbitration body, the IFAB, hunt down the minutes stupidly lost on football pitches. This was particularly seen during the 2022 World Cup. In Qatar, we witnessed a real explosion in the duration of stoppage time, especially in the first round. The culmination of this policy, the England-Iran match and its 27 minutes of stoppage time in both halves! In addition to VAR, injuries and substitutions, the referees were counting time lost on goal celebrations.
FIFA more flexible on offsides, not with the watch
A habit that players in the world of football will have to get used to. Indeed, the IFAB is considering changing the rules of the game regarding effective time. Marca reveal they will meet next week in London to look into the matter. While in many championships the effective playing time never reaches 60 minutes, we concretely think of stopping the clock whenever necessary: for substitutions, injuries, the use of VAR, celebrations but also during each foul and each touchdown!
We’ll get closer to the NBA style https://t.co/tH0RT7VDYf
— Foot Mercato (@footmercato) March 1, 2023
In the case of celebrations, it is already recorded that this will be counted for the calculation of additional time from next season according to Marca. What lengthen the duration of the meetings and delay the final whistle. Broadcasters will appreciate it moderately, unless FIFA decides to change the time structure of a match. In any case, the stars will have more time to score goals and maybe more space. Indeed, the other change wanted by the IFAB concerns offsides. No more question of offside whistled to the millimeter, the rule would be relaxed in favor of the attackers. These ideas must be discussed for a desired implementation from 2024. More spectacle, longer and more choppy matches. What stick perfectly to the North American market … which will host the World Cup in 2026. Because for the rest, time saving and anti-game, a regulation already exists, even if it is absolutely never applied …