Blue cards, sin-bin: Football authorities to trial revolutionary changes

Professional football is set to introduce a blue card as part of sin-bin trials, according to reports.

The new measures could see players removed from play for 10 minutes if they commit a cynical foul or show dissent towards a match official.

IFAB is reportedly set to give the green light for the extended sin-bin trials in senior levels of the game when they conduct their annual meeting in March.

There have already been trials in amateur and youth football in both England and Wales and the sport's lawmaking body agreed in November last year that the new measures should be implemented at higher levels.

Trials in the professional game could commence as soon as the summer, with the FA reportedly set to volunteer the FA Cup and Women's FA Cup as competitions that will carry out the new protocols.

Players would be sent off if they were to receive two blue cards in a match or a combination of a blue and yellow.

It's hoped that the introduction of blue cards will help to reduce the volume of cynical fouls and dissent in the game and should the trials prove successful, the new card could be introduced to the laws of the game.

The Chief Executive of the Football Association, Mark Bullingham said: "I think frustration for fans watching games when they see a promising counter-attack that's ruined by that and the question of whether a yellow card is sufficient for that has led to us looking at whether that should be involved in the protocol as well.

"The starting point was looking at player behaviour and dissent - we're then looking at whether we should extend it into other areas, such as tactical fouls, as well."

However, the likelihood of blue cards being used in a UEFA competition is extremely unlikely, with UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin revealing n January that he was completely opposed to the idea, saying: "It's not football anymore."

More to follow....

bet365 News Team

• • 
  •