Goalkeepers who hold on to the ball for longer than eight seconds will be punished by conceding a corner from next season after a rule change by football’s lawmakers, IFAB.
Currently, Law 12.2 states that a goalkeeper has six seconds to release the ball before the opposing team is awarded an indirect free-kick, but this has now been amended, and the change will come into force next season.
On-field referees will be aided in their decision-making by a visual five-second countdown.
“After trials have shown a major positive impact where goalkeepers have been holding onto the ball for too long, The IFAB has unanimously decided to amend Law 12.2,” IFAB said on Saturday after its 139th Annual General Meeting, hosted by the Irish Football Association (IFA) in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
“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 (rather than the current indirect free kick for more than six seconds),” added the statement.
IFAB also supported FIFA’s plan for referees to wear cameras during next year’s World Cup as part of the live match transmission.
IFAB also announced that any competitions will be able to introduce laws meaning only captains of each team can approach the referee. The Premier League adopted that rule this season, and it was enforced at Euro 2024.
The IFAB is comprised of the four British football associations (England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland), with one vote each, and world governing body FIFA, covering the remaining 207 national associations, with four votes.
