At today’s virtual meeting of The IFAB’s Football and Technical Advisory Panels (FAP-TAP), chaired by the Chief Executive of the Irish Football Association, Patrick Nelson, a number of key topics were discussed, with a particular focus on the trials approved at the Annual General Meeting in March, aimed at improving participant behaviour. Following a summary of the Law changes introduced on 1 July 2024 and a possible clarification to be considered for the 2025/26 edition of the Laws, the panel members reviewed the initial feedback on the trial addressing goalkeepers holding the ball for too long during play.

The panels also discussed the global trial to combat “mobbing” of referees, whereby only the team captain can approach the referee in certain situations. The FAP-TAP members were reminded of the additional guidelines issued in July 2024 and the subsequent implementation at the Olympic Football Tournaments. While this approach has attracted significant interest at the top end of the game, FAP-TAP acknowledged that its success is enhanced by compliance from competition organisers, clear communication and collaboration among all participants in adhering to the guidelines.

FAP-TAP likewise received updates on the trials of public announcements following reviews and lengthy checks involving video assistant referees, as well as on FIFA’s tests with Football Video Support, which was successfully implemented on a trial basis at the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup™ in Colombia and is currently being trialled at the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup™ in the Dominican Republic. Furthermore, FIFA informed the members about its global concussion awareness campaign, Suspect and Protect: No Match is Worth the Risk, which was launched in September in partnership with the World Health Organization and has already been implemented by member associations from all confederations.

Additional updates were provided on the ongoing trial in England with referees at grassroots level wearing body cameras, as well as on developments surrounding automated offside technology and the ongoing offside trial. The IFAB’s next gathering will be the Annual Business Meeting on 2 December in London, where the agenda for the Annual General Meeting, to be held in March 2025 in Belfast, will be considered.