Football has taken a liking to the number five. What should have been a “simple” temporary derogation, namely to authorize a team to make five substitutions of players during a match (six in the event of an extension) instead of the three hitherto possible, will finally last a little more than originally announced.
This greater latitude in the rotation of the workforce, which was to be applicable until December, will be possible until the end of the 2020-2021 season, in July 2021. The International Football Federation (FIFA) announced this extension on Wednesday 15 July.
Covid-19 crisis obliges FIFA, through its venerable International Board (IFAB), guarantor of the rules, decided, in early May, to amend “Temporarily Act 3”, which governs replacements.
It was then a question of accompanying the resumption of certain national championships, in particular in Europe, by protecting footballers after weeks of confinement and contactless training.
FIFA considers that the context has not changed sufficiently to put an end to this derogation. “A recent analysis has shown that the reasons for this temporary modification remain valid and that the impact on the players’ health should continue”, explained the proceedings in a press release, while specifying that this decision is applicable “ at the discretion of each organizer ”.
This extension decided by FIFA will hardly surprise those who, as early as May, considered that the implementation of this measure constituted a test balloon before a possible sustainable maintenance.
It is true that some coaches, for example, have been advocating for this development for a while. “It is absolutely necessary, to better manage the minutes, to chain the matches, and allow the players to be in the best possible intensity”, explained Thomas Tuchel, the Paris-Saint-Germain (PSG) coach in December 2019.
The extension of this possibility of making five replacements will comfort those who see it as yet another imbalance in favor of the most powerful clubs. “This provision can only favor the largest numbers, who will be able to make better use of their depth of bank”, had thus underlined, in May, the blog “A bullet in the foot”.
