What rule changes would you like to see in the world of soccer?

17 Comments

1. 

   Asko

   July 28, 2022 at 9:30 am

   Stopping clock on goal kicks, subs, injuries.

   Reply
2. 

   Lovac1

   July 28, 2022 at 7:54 am

   1. The player has to leave the field for 5 minutes after receiving yellow card.

   2. If the physio comes on the field and the game is stopped, the injured player must stay 5 minutes on the sideline, except if he needs to be subbed which can happen immediately. The injured player can limp off of the field, get help, and come back immediately.

   3. I like the hockey rule where refs can call embelishment and infraction at the same time. I’d like to see same rule in soccer where refs can give yellow cards for diving and foul simultaneously instead of splitting hairs. It would discourage diving.

   Reply
3. 

   Darren

   July 25, 2022 at 5:17 pm

   No more substitutions during “Injury Time”.

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4. 

   TK

   July 25, 2022 at 4:29 pm

   I would like to see more yellow cards handed out. Keep better track of accumulating fouls, both when targeting specific players (like grealish or Neymar) or the players committing them. Should be 4 fouls (committing- count resets after receiving a yellow, targeted-every foul against that player after 4 is automatic yellow).

   Reply
5. 

   Tony

   July 25, 2022 at 11:34 am

   I would recommend a couple of changes to the game:

   1. Make the 4th referee handle substitutions while the game keeps running. The game should not stop for substitutions. This should improve the flow of the game, eliminates interruptions and results in less added time for substitutions at the end of the game. Also, the winning team will not be able to use substitutions as a time wasting tactic anymore.

   2. Eliminate off-sides all together. This means less controversy and less VAR interruptions to review off-side calls. I cannot think of a negative impact from this rule change.

   Reply
   • 

     JP

     July 25, 2022 at 11:39 am

     Just change the offside rule so only offsides if the body is completely beyond the final defender. Aligns more with the NHL offside where the play is ok so long as any part of the skate is on or above the blue line. Eliminating it all together would alter the game to make it unrecognizable.

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     • 

       dave

       July 25, 2022 at 6:45 pm

       @JP, to build on NHL, I like that replay rescinds goals for offside by way of challenge, and that the challenging team loses something of value if they lose the challenge. Perhaps it is losing a sub and sub-window in soccer
       .
       CONMEBOL international games are often more forgiving with offside than UEFA. Instead of the line-drawing nonsense, CONMEBOL replay often eyeballs how bad it is with ties going to the offense. Not as permissive as you suggest, but in that direction. The women’s Copa 2022 has not even been using VAR

       Reply
6. 

   cmasia

   July 25, 2022 at 2:11 am

   1) From this day forward, only the captain can speak to a referee.
   Watching grown men remonstrate and beg is not attractive.

   2) Move to a “Rugby Clock”.
   Some guy hits the turf and tries to sell he got hit with sniper fire?
   Stop the clock.

   3) Extra time? GONE!
   Clock stops for a goal. 30 seconds.
   Clock stops on a substitution. 30 seconds.
   Clock stops on an injury or a fraud on the floor.

   Reply
   • 

     dave

     July 25, 2022 at 6:22 pm

     @cmasia, your suggested timing rules are similar to NCAA soccer. Count down is from 45:00 with clock signaled to stop by ref for goals, injuries, cards, time wasting, etc. The crowd and announcer often give the “10-9-8…” chant at the end of a half much like you sometimes hear just before kickoff. Timing certainty changes end game strategy a bit

     Reply
   • 

     TheOriginalTom

     July 26, 2022 at 9:35 am

     Rugby timing I agree with. No “buzzer beaters”, when the clock is out the half or game ends on out of bounds or goal. And more exact clock management for injuries, goal celebrations, and substitutions. And free kicks where 10 yards is requested.

     Reply
7. 

   jason

   July 24, 2022 at 11:30 pm

   1. Offsides has to be loosened up. Give the benefit of doubt to the attacker. Plus seeing defenders raise their arms all the time instaed of actually defending is annoying. Standard needs to be full body with a visable gap of air. Not a finger tip.

   2. Sin bins. Yellow card means you are off the field for 5 minutes. Maybe certain fouls you are off for 3-5 mins too

   Reply
8. 

   Kyle

   July 24, 2022 at 7:07 pm

   ‪A rule that mls next has put in which could be interesting is when a player gets a red card, they have to miss the next match against the same opponent instead of the next match.

   Also make the length of the red card vary like if it’s early in first half, in theory ‬that is a 2-4+ game suspension depending on the severity of that red if you include the red they got sent off for plus the games they’ll be missing for. If it’s a 1 game suspension, it should be treated like college football’s targeting rule to where if it’s a first half red card,
   They miss the rest of the game they’re in and then they can’t play for the first half of the following games. They can be named as a sub , but can’t be used as a sub until halftime ,

   Reply
9. 

   Buckles

   July 24, 2022 at 12:30 pm

   I like the idea of no more penalty shootouts. I like golden goal but they don’t need two 15 min halves of silver goal. Just one 30 min period of silver goal first. Then 30 min of golden goal. They can incorporate a break into that and substitutions as well.
   The offside adjustment I agree with also. It keeps the spirit of the rule. Leave everything else alone.

   Reply
   • 

     Tom McCool

     July 24, 2022 at 4:27 pm

     I would like to see the backpass to the GK changed so that no matter how the pass is delivered, the GK has to play the ball. No more catching from a header. There are bigger time wasters but this one is easy to eliminate.

     Reply
10. 

    Ivan

    July 24, 2022 at 11:50 am

    Pubic hair offside rule has to go. Goes against the spirit of the game, and against the rule as originally designed.

    The waiting 5 minutes to raise the flag by the linesman is also a shocker. Has to go. Offside is offside.

    While at it, VAR has to go as well. It has sucked the joy out of football.

    Reply
11. 

    Tim Bhoy

    July 24, 2022 at 8:56 am

    Prohibit any club that has gone into liquidation by ripping off more than 240 creditors to re-emerge as a different club, yet Call it the same club, simply by adding “the” before former club’s knickname.

    Follow, follow me here. If NY Yankees went bust, another owner buying the remnants of the old club, re-naming it as “The Yankees”, then insisting hid new club was the same as the old club.

    Reply
    • 

      TheOriginalTom

      July 26, 2022 at 10:28 am

      Why does this issue bother you?

      Reply