Goalkeepers to concede corners for time-wasting - IFAB

IFAB approves new rule: Goalkeepers holding the ball over 8 seconds will concede a corner kick instead of an indirect free kick, effective from 25/26

 

Referees will now award corner kicks if a goalkeeper holds on to the ball for longer than 8 seconds in a new law that takes effect from next season. (Photo credit: ESPN)

Goalkeepers could now put their team under pressure by conceding corner kicks for time-wasting, according to the new approved rule by the International Football Association Board.

Many times in the Premier League we’ve seen goalkeepers delaying the restart by hanging on to the ball for too long, with Arsenal’s David Raya coming to mind; however, holding on to the ball longer than eight seconds would automatically lead to punishment.

The current law forbids goalkeepers from holding on to the ball longer than six seconds; if caught guilty, an indirect free kick would be awarded from where the goalkeeper is standing. This would now be replaced by the newly approved law by IFAB.

Trials for the new law were held in the league 2 of the Premier League, lower tiers in Italy, and the Maltese leagues, with three goalkeepers punished in England; the success of this has prompted the IFAB to approve the law for the upcoming 2025/2026 season.

The amendment means that if a goalkeeper holds the ball for longer than eight seconds (with the referee using a visual five-second countdown), the referee will award a corner kick to the opposing team.

The IFAB explained that referees have become reluctant to enforce the six-second law because a free kick offers the opposition too much advantage, as the chance of scoring is high, whereas they had no possibility of scoring when the offence occurred, as they did not have possession of the ball.

It added that managing a free kick so close to the goal is "often extremely difficult, especially if it is to be taken from 9.15 m from the goal or closer, when the defenders have to be on the goal line between the goalposts."

However, the IFAB firmly believes that "a goalkeeper holding the ball for too long is an unfair tactic because the opposing team has no possibility to regain possession, as the goalkeeper cannot be challenged when in control of the ball."