Covid-19: FIFA extends substitution to five

FIFA makes a temporary amendment into football rule governing player welfare as the game set to begins after been suspended to contain to spread of the novel coronavirus. The amendment ensures football teams have the opportunity to use five substitutions in each game to ease players tiredness as they may have to play more than one match in a week to meet calendar schedule.

The football governing body in a media release on its official website says that "...the International Football Association Board (The IFAB) has agreed to make a temporary amendment to the Laws of the Game based on a proposal received from FIFA seeking to protect player welfare. 

For competitions which have either started or are intended to start, but are scheduled to be completed by 31 December 2020, the IFBA has approved FIFA's proposal to introduce a temporary amendment to Law 3 - The Player which will allow for a maximum of five substitutes to be made per team".

The body ensures no team will capitalise on the extension of substitution in time wastage. "...to avoid disruption to the game, each team will only have three opportunities to make substitutions; substitutions may also be made at half-time", the body added.

FIFA said the amendment is in full effect and the decision to implement it remained in the hands of the organiser of each competition. "The decision on whether to apply this temporary amendment will remain at the discretion of each individual competition organiser, while The IFAB and FIFA will determine at a later stage whether this temporary amendment would need to be extended further (e.g. for competitions due to be completed in 2021)".

The body makes the use of Video Assistant Referee (VAR) optional, as competition organiser gets green light to implement the system or cease its. "In relation to competitions in which the video assistant referee (VAR) system is implemented, these competitions are permitted to cease its use upon restart at the discretion of each individual competition organiser. However, where VAR is used, all aspects of the Laws the Game and, by extension, the VAR protocol will remain in place", the body said.