The 2025/26 Premier League season kicks off, and a series of new rules will officially take effect as the new season begins. The International Football Association Council (IFAB) has introduced several rule changes to the new season, many of which h...
The 2025/26 Premier League season kicks off, and a series of new rules will officially take effect as the new season begins.
The International Football Association Council (IFAB) has introduced several rule changes to the new season, many of which have been tested at the FIFA Club World Cup this summer. These changes include clarifications on goalkeepers’ time to hold the ball, close to referees, and re-telection rules. One of the most eye-catching tweaks involved goalkeepers. The previous six-second rule was rarely strictly enforced, and is now changed to an eight-second limit. In the past, if the goalkeeper held the ball for more than six seconds, he might be awarded an indirect free kick.
Former World Cup final referee and current FIFA referee committee chairman Kolina said in an exclusive interview with GIVEMESPORT that the previous penalties were too severe, which led to the referee's unwillingness to execute.
He said: "The goalkeeper holds the ball for a long time, sometimes even 25 seconds. This is a very long time in the game. The reason for not enforcing this rule is that there is an imbalance between violations and punishments, and the judgment of an indirect free kick in the penalty area is a very strict sanction. Therefore, the referees are very hesitant about it." According to the new rules, if the goalkeeper holds the ball for more than eight seconds, the referee will award the opponent a corner kick.
"We asked the goalkeeper if six seconds are enough, and they said that sometimes more time is needed to reorganize the team. So we decided to extend it to eight seconds, but the goalkeeper must know that the referee will now strictly enforce the law, no longer an indirect free kick, but a corner kick." This new rule has been applied only twice in 63 games at the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup.
"Only two times the goalkeeper was punished... The pace of the game was accelerated, and we saw the goalkeeper quickly ejecting the ball in about four seconds, which was good for the rhythm and viewing of the game."
Another change was designed to improve the player's behavior towards the referee. Only the captain can discuss the penalty decision with the referee. If the captain is a goalkeeper, a player on the court can be appointed as a representative before the kickoff.
"We need to purify the image of the game. I don't think it's a good thing to see the referee surrounded by five or six or more players. Letting the captain take responsibility is a win-win solution because the captain is more responsible, and the referee is willing to explain the penalty to the captain at critical moments."
In addition, the rules for re-telephone after the game is interrupted, the penalty kick and the accidental off-field interference have also been adjusted. The Premier League has also released guidelines on how to enforce these rules, including providing a visual countdown for goalkeepers and clear roles for pre-match captains.
The Premier League will continue to adopt the "referee penalty" method, that is, unless VAR believes there is an obvious error, the on-field penalty will remain unchanged. This method reduces the average VAR delay time from 64 seconds to 39 seconds. The independent Key Match Events (KMI) group report shows that the referee correctly handled 86% of the key events in the 2024/25 season, the same as the previous season. After VAR review, this figure rose to 97%, while VAR errors decreased from 31 to 18.
Semi-automatic offside technology (SAOT) introduced at the end of last season will be used throughout the season, saving 27 seconds per offside penalty. In addition to the rules change, PGMOL also directed the referee to take a stricter stance on certain fouls. For example, pulling an opponent in the penalty area will be more likely to be awarded a penalty and there will be only one warning. Fouls will also be subject to more severe penalties. The camera worn by the referee, semi-automatic offside technology and VAR announcements in the field will be used to improve transparency.
Corina said that announcing the referee decision in the stadium can help fans understand the key penalty and its reasons: "We started to try the so-called VAR referee announcement after the 2022 World Cup, which worked very well. We not only announced the decision itself, but also explained the background and reasons, which helped people better understand."
He thought it would be easier to implement this measure in his own national leagues because there is no language barrier: "For example, in the FIFA Club World Cup, Anthony Taylor made the referee announcement in English, which worked very well, and everyone understood the background of the penalty. I think this is a very positive move and I look forward to it being implemented in the Premier League."
Starting this season, Premier League referees will explain all VAR reviews in the stadium through the public broadcast system, except for obvious offside penalty. The large screen will display images or clips of all overturned decisions and confirmed invalid goals.
Coriner also talked about the use of semi-automatic offside technology, which he said helped assistant referees make decisions faster and more confidently: "Sometimes assistant referees choose not to raise the flag when a promising offside may translate into scoring opportunities. They are advised to do so only when it is difficult to judge offside positions. But I am worried that they have done a little too much. I don't think one-meter offside is difficult to judge for top assistant referees. So we recommend that they be bolder in this regard."
"However, we have implemented this semi-automatic offside technology, which provides assistance when the offside position exceeds 20 cm, gives them more confidence to make decisions because they are supported."
This technology performed well in the Club World Cup and reduced the delay in offside decisions. Corina called it "the final step after some trials conducted in previous FIFA games."
For the new Premier League season, you can expect:
- Faster re-telection: Goalkeepers will face pressure to serve quickly.
- Structured Communication: The captain will be responsible for communicating with the referee.
- More clear enforcement: Some fouls, especially in the penalty area, are more likely to be awarded a penalty.
- More transparent VAR: Fans will be on-site to learn about review decisions in real time.
- Faster offside penalty: Assistant referees can make decisions faster with the support of technology.
source:7m vn