English football is set to trial a new regulation this season aimed at eliminating tactical timeouts taken during goalkeeper injury treatments.
The Football Association, Premier League, English Football League, National League, and Women’s Super League have reached an agreement on the measure, which has received authorization from the International Football Association Board (Ifab).
Following discussions led by Pro Ref and chief refereeing officer Howard Webb, a solution was reached involving the temporary removal of an outfield player to offset the time gained during medical assessments.
Under the new trial, if a referee permits a physiotherapist to attend to a goalkeeper, the opposing team’s coach will have 10 seconds to designate an outfield player to temporarily leave the pitch. This player must remain off the field for one minute after play resumes, following a notification to the fourth official.
Should a team fail to select a player within the 10-second window, the team captain will be required to leave the field instead.
The trial will commence this Saturday during the Carabao Cup preliminary round match between Tranmere and Rochdale.
Reports suggest the Australian A-League may also trial a variation of this rule, which would require the captain to always leave the field during such incidents.
The use of goalkeeper treatment to secure tactical timeouts has grown increasingly frequent and controversial. Observers have noted instances where goalkeepers signal for medical attention only to allow their team to congregate for instructions, with the keeper returning to play immediately after the team talk concludes.
Additionally, medical stoppages have been used to disrupt an opponent’s momentum. This issue was highlighted in November when Leeds United manager Daniel Farke accused Manchester City’s Gianluigi Donnarumma of feigning injury to manipulate the rules and break the flow of play.
Separately, Ifab has issued a clarification regarding the mistaken identity rule. This follows a controversial incident at the World Cup where FIFA used the rule to caution two players for simulation: Paraguay’s Miguel Almiron and Switzerland’s Breel Embolo. Embolo’s second caution resulted in a red card during the quarter-final loss to Argentina.
While Ifab noted the clarification will be included in the upcoming VAR protocol review, they cautioned that it may not be implemented until that full review is finalized.
