It is that time of the year again! Delight for football fans as the brand new Premier League season is about to begin. High-intensity football, dramatic managers, boisterous crowd – we are going to see them all for next nine months. While defending champions Manchester City are heavy favourite to retain their silverware once again, there are quite a few changes of rules that will come into place from the upcoming season onwards.
New Premier League 2024-25 rules
Semi-automated offside
The Premier League is set to introduce semi-automated offside technology (SAOT) this season, aiming to significantly reduce decision-making time. Building on the success of the system at Euro 2024, SAOT will employ cameras to track players and the ball, instantly detecting offside positions.
When a potential offside occurs, the technology will send an alert to the VAR, who will then verify the decision. The hope is to cut offside checks by over 30 seconds compared to the previous system. While the technology promises faster and more accurate decisions, there will still be instances where VAR intervention is required, particularly in cases of obstructed vision or subjective judgments.
Stoppage time minutes
The Premier League stated that if a goal is scored and there is a delay of more than 30 seconds between the goal and kickoff, match officials will simply add stoppage time, or the extra time. This is supposed to cause stoppage time to significantly decrease throughout the course of the season. We saw several results-changing goals when the clock was over even the 100′ min mark last season.
Multi-ball system
A new twist beckons in the upcoming edition of the Premier League with the ‘multi-ball system’. Fifteen balls will be distributed around the stadium, with players responsible for retrieving their own replacements from designated cones on the sidelines and not from the ball boys.
To further streamline the process, ball assistants will no longer return balls directly to players but will place them on empty cones. This change aims to reduce time wastage and maintain a consistent flow of action. However, an exception will be made for goalkeepers, with ball assistants behind the goals allowed to return the ball directly.
Match Centre Live launch
A new Twitter account from the Premier League has been launched, named ‘@PLMatchCentre’. This is to provide fans the explanations of all real-match decision details. The account will offer clarity on refereeing calls and VAR interventions, including the role of technology in the decision-making process. While live VAR audio remains prohibited, the Match Centre will share near-live updates from the VAR hub, offering greater transparency into the game’s officiating.
VAR Change
The Premier League has introduced a significant change to VAR for the 2024-25 season as well with the implementation of the ‘Referee’s Call’ system. This new rule aims to reduce VAR interventions and increase the flow of the game. Under the ‘Referee’s Call’, the on-field referee’s decision will stand unless the VAR deems it a clear and obvious error based on the available evidence.
This means subjective calls, such as penalty decisions or fouls, will be left to the referee’s judgment unless there is irrefutable proof to overturn the decision. The league hopes this change will lead to fewer VAR checks and less disruption to the game, while maintaining fairness and accuracy in decision-making.
Substitutions & team news
Another rule adjustment for the 2024-25 PL season also involves the warm-up zone. To align with the increased number of substitutes allowed per game (five), teams can now have up to five players warming up at once on the sidelines. This change is to streamline substitutions and provide more flexibility for managers. Who knows if one has to make five subs at once!
Apart from this, fans will get the team news and team sheets 75 minutes before, as compared to the 60 minutes that was before.
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