BLUE WHAT?
Huge football rule change set to be introduced with BLUE CARD and players dumped in 10-minute sin bin
Players around the world could soon find themselves in a time-out zone if they fall afoul of the rules
FOOTIE chiefs are set to introduce a major disciplinary change with the addition of BLUE CARDS.
And any player shown one will face a 10 minute spell in a SIN-BIN, in shock plans set to be announced on Friday.
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If implemented at the top level, blue cards will be the first major disciplinary change since the introduction of yellow and red cards back in 1970.
Players will be shown the blue card if they are guilty of committing a cynical foul, or if they show dissent towards the referee, linesman or fourth official.
These offences are all currently punished with a yellow.
However the threat of a 10-minute time-out in the sin bin would be a bigger deterrent.
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And should a player receive two blue cards in a game they will be sent off, the same as for two yellows.
So the days of tactical fouling and players stopping promising attacks or counters with shirt pulls - such as Italy star Giorgio Chiellini's brutal tug on England star Bukayo Saka in the Euro 2020 final - could soon come to an end.
Six trials in minor leagues in Wales began this season with blue cards in operation, although that had to be stopped as permission was not granted.
The concept, though, is likely to be backed and officially on the agenda for the Ifab annual general meeting at Loch Lomond on March 2.
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Blue Murder
By Martin Lipton
IT’S a sin for football to allow cynical cheats to get away with it.
So introducing ten-minute sin-bins would be a big step forward for the game.
In truth, it does not matter what card the referee shows - blue, green or pink.
What matters is that, if the trial - which will not include the Prem or EFL at this stage - is a success, then it could become part of top tier professional football by the end of the decade.
The argument is simple: Nobody likes what Fifa refs’ chief Pierluigi Collina describes as “anti-football action”.
That is a deliberate, cynical act to stop a potential break by fouling a rival with absolutely no attempt to play the ball.
If teams who do that have to spend the last 10 minutes of a game a man short, they could pay a real price, rather than just picking up a yellow card and “taking one for the team”.
Sin bins for dissent might be a tougher argument to progress, although it might just give refs some respect back.
But having players sat by the side of the pitch, powerless as their man-short side concedes a last-gasp winner, might actually change the way players behave. And it will be a statement of intent.
If Ifab gives the green light, professional leagues will be able to apply to be trial guinea pigs from next season.
But there are no plans at this stage for the FA to adopt any trial schemes in the Prem, EFL or FA Cup.
Laughing Chiellini relives blatant foul on Saka in Euro 2020 final
Tony Scholes, the Prem’s chief football officer, said: “We've discussed sin bins with Ifab, in the same way we've discussed all the potential law change trials.
"I don't think sin bins will be available to us as a top competition anyway, yet.
"That's whether or not we wanted to use them.
"But they will not be used by the Premier League next season."
SunSport understands it could be incorporated into FA competitions including the Trophy and Vase, but will NOT be introduced into the FA Cup.
Neither Euro 2024 nor next season's Champions League will include sin bins after protestations from Uefa chief, Aleksander Ceferin.
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Uefa, however, could be forced to implement the disciplinary protocol if the trials are successful.
The other two trials will be for only captains to be allowed to approach and talk to referees and for refs to be allowed to stop the match for official “cooling off periods” if there is a major fracas between players.
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