Do you already know the new FIFA rules? Soccer, like any competitive sport, is mutant. Since its creation more than 100 years ago, its rules have changed dramatically, new ones have emerged and others have adapted to the new times. Now FIFA, the highest governing body of world football, has officially put into force since June 1 several substantial modifications to the regulations.
These modifications are important not only because they will eventually reach the last llanera league in the world in the 11 against 11 association soccer format and its derivatives, but also because they will officially come into force for the Gold Cup that starts on June 15 and in which Mexic, and the Copa América that begins on June 14 , both luxury laboratories for the new provisions.
The new FIFA rules have caused mixed reactions and various controversies for messing with some guidelines that are final and that can affect the results of the matches. In total there are 7 new provisions that truly modify old notions of football.
For example, that quite technical rule that in goal kicks you could only send a teammate outside the area is eliminated and now you can pass even inside the rectangle; the specialized notion that “the referee is an object on the field” is also eliminated and now every time the ball touches the judge, the match will be stopped and resumed with a bounce to the ground.
But perhaps the modification that is causing the most anger is that of the hands in the area and the penalties. Before, a hand could be submitted to the referee’s discretion under the notion of whether it was intentional or not; those that had no intention were not penalized with a criminal charge. Now all hands will be credited with a maximum penalty, regardless of how it was given, just the fact that the ball makes contact with the player’s upper extremity.
“It was a very long and painstaking job checking and collating the details,” says George Cumming, Director of Development (Refereeing and Education) at the Scottish Football Association and one of the sponsors of the changes. “On several occasions, there was a temptation to make some major changes to the original, but the alternatives were not what was desired. And the Board always insisted on the fact that if in doubt, continue to use the status quo. We had to avoid making changes just for the sake of changing something. After all, the Rules have been around for almost 60 years!”
The 7 new FIFA rules
We leave you with this punctual summary of the rules that apply as of June 1 for world soccer endorsed by FIFA, although they will surely apply to amateur leagues in all countries. We owe this excellent summary to the Ecuadorian Football Federation, which had the good sense to spread it on its social media accounts.
1. HAND:
Penalize hands in the area; any detected goal that was with the hand, will be definitively annulled without exception. Also any voluntary or involuntary hand will be sanctioned as a penalty.
2. FOULS:
In the distance between the players and the barrier, if team “A” is going to take a free kick and team “B” sets up its barrier, the players of team “A” must be at least one meter away from this barrier.
3. Penalties:
The play will be cut off on penalties if at the moment the shot is taken the goalkeeper saves it or hits the post. The play will end and a goal kick will be sanctioned and with this any counter that may occur will be avoided.
4. Cards:
The coaches will receive yellow and red cards. The verbal warnings of the DTs will be eliminated and instead a red or yellow card can be drawn like any player.
5. Goal kick:
When the goalkeeper clears the ball, it can be played within the same area. This replaces the rule that should exit this.
6. Changes:
When it is the departure of a player, they will no longer have to leave the field of play, but from any side they will be able to leave the field of play.
7. Referees:
If the ball hits the referee, the play must be stopped and it will be resumed with a bounce to the ground, preventing any team from being harmed by it.
