New Laws of the
Game
(fifa.com 2/28/05)
FIFA will be supervising the first
official tests of technical systems that could determine whether the
ball has fully crossed the goal-line at the FIFA U-17 World Championship
2005 to be held in Peru from 16 September to 2 October. This decision
was reached by the International Football Association Board (IFAB) at
its 119th Annual General Meeting near Cardiff, Wales, on 26 February.
The Board also clarified the current
offside rule by further defining the meaning of being "actively involved
in play" and decided to impose stricter sanctions for any tackles deemed
to be endangering the safety of an opponent. From now on, match
officials must also show the red card to players who make dangerous
tackles from the front or the side.
"Was that a goal?" is a question that
always seems to be on the lips of fans, players, coaches and referees,
and not just since England's infamous third goal during the 1966 FIFA
World Cup™ final at Wembley. In recent years, the Board has often
debated whether technology could help match officials make quick
decisions in unclear situations regarding whether a goal has been scored
or not.
At its meeting at the Miskin Manor hotel, the Board listened to a
presentation by long-term FIFA partner adidas, who together with the
German company, Cairos AG and the German Fraunhofer Institute have
developed a system with a prototype of a ball with an embedded
electronic chip. The presentation also outlined the necessary stadium
infrastructure and demonstrated how the entire system would work.
Following the presentation, the International F.A.
Board decided to allow the system to be tested in competitive football
and empowered FIFA to do so at the U-17 world championship in Peru.
FIFA President
Joseph S. Blatter welcomed the Board's decision. "Not a day goes by
without technology making progress. We therefore have a duty to at least
examine whether new technology could be used in football. The Board had
already agreed to test goal-line technology, provided that the systems
were available. The critical issue, however, will be to ensure that such
technology would not affect the Laws' universal nature or the authority
of match officials."
Law 11 - Offside - was also the subject
of several proposals, and as a result, by introducing the new
International F.A. Board Decision 2 for Law 11, the Board also clarified
when a player is to be regarded as "actively involved in play":
" Interfering with play means playing or touching the ball passed or
touched by a team mate.
" Interfering with an opponent means preventing an opponent from playing
or being able to play the ball by clearly obstructing the opponent's
line of vision or movements or making a gesture or movement which, in
the opinion of the referee, deceives or distracts an opponent.
" Gaining an advantage by being in an offside position means playing a
ball that rebounds to him off a post or crossbar or playing a ball that
rebounds to him off an opponent having been in an offside position.
Moreover, the Board clarified the
explanation of a player being offside "if he is nearer to his opponents'
goal line than both the ball and the second last opponent". As a result,
the position of any part of the player's head, body or feet will be the
deciding factor, and not the player's arms.
Further IFAB decisions:
" With respect to Law 3 (The number of players), in National A team
matches, up to a maximum of six substitutes may be used. In all other
matches, a greater number of substitutes may be used provided that the
teams concerned reach agreement on a maximum number and the referee is
informed before the match.
" Regarding Law 12 (Fouls and Misconduct), once a referee has terminated
a match, he cannot change a decision. However, the referee has the
authority to impose disciplinary sanctions from the moment he enters the
field of play until he leaves the pitch after the final whistle.
" In relation to Law 15 (Throw-in), in future all opponents must be at
least two metres from the thrower until the ball is in play.
A number of proposals, such as the
Football Association of Wales' proposal that a player could only be
offside when in the opponents' penalty area, were withdrawn before the
meeting.
The International F.A. Board is
composed of the football associations of England, Scotland, Wales and
Northern Ireland, who each have a vote, together with FIFA, who
represent the other 201 member associations with four votes. For a
proposal to succeed, it must receive the support of at least
three-quarters of those present and entitled to vote. Changes to the
Laws of the Game come into force as from 1 July following the Annual
General Meeting.
In accordance with the principle of
rotation, the 119th Annual General Meeting of the International F.A.
Board was held in Wales by one of the four British associations. Next
year, the IFAB will convene on 4 March.
More: FIFA Memorandum regarding offsides:
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