VAR, timewasting and subs - new rules for the new season

By

Football issues correspondent

The 2026-27 season will feature an unprecedented number of new laws, mostly designed to tackle tempo disruption and make the game quicker.

These rules were all initially rolled out at the World Cup, but still caused confusion in the first round of the Carabao Cup last weekend.

These changes will be deployed right through English football, from the EFL kick off this weekend, Sunday's Community Shield between Arsenal and Manchester City, to the Premier League and right down to Sunday league - apart from the video assistant referee (VAR), of course.

The idea is to cut out those moments which cause supporters real frustration, and get more football played without adding on loads of stoppage time.

It worked at the World Cup. In Qatar in 2022, the ball was in play for an average of 58 minutes three seconds, or 56.86% of the total match time. This summer, it was 58 minutes 16 seconds but there was far less added time, meaning the ball was in play for 60.43%.

The changes are intended to change player behaviour, rather than be applied as a strict punishment.

However, they could be seen as a negative for teams who were used to using the dark arts to run down the clock and hold on to a result.

Here is what you need to look out for and how the new laws will work.

This is about players who deliberately delay the restart of play, so a countdown does not begin as soon as the ball goes out.

Any tactic which can be judged as disrupting play - including leaving the ball on a cone and dropping the ball for a team-mate - could trigger a countdown.

The referee will blow the whistle to tell the player to hurry up, and to signal the start of the five seconds, while they will visibly make a count by moving an arm up and down.

If the time runs out, the referee will blow the whistle again and give the throw to the other team.

The new rule will not cover setting up for long throws, as these are considered to be set-piece routines. But the countdown may start once players are in position.

And as a deterrent to goalkeepers who take a long time over goal-kicks towards the end of games, he can now give the opposition a corner instead if the keeper takes too long.

Substituted players have 10 seconds to leave the field at the nearest point.

If they fail to do so, the substitute cannot enter the field for at least one minute and the team must play with 10 players.

Middlesbrough's Will Lankshear was the first to be punished in the Carabao Cup tie against Wrexham.

With Boro leading 1-0 in the 80th minute through a Lankshear goal, the striker slowly jogged off the pitch while clapping the fans.

Boro boss Kim Hellberg urged Lankshear to hurry up, but he took too long and substitute Fin Cartwright was told he could not come on immediately.

"I didn't know!" the former Tottenham player said after the game.

The substitute has to stay off until the next break in play, so a team could potentially be left with 10 players for several minutes.

There are a few exemptions - such as if a player is injured or there are security concerns about where they can go off.

Fans have been used to players staying off the field for 30 seconds after the physio has been on the pitch.

Now the time has been upped to one minute. And it is more strict, too.

A player must go off if they cause the referee to stop the game even if they do not request treatment. This is to prevent players trying to break up the opposition's momentum.

It will not apply if a player is down and the ball naturally goes out of play, for instance for a throw or goal-kick.

There are some concerns that one minute is too long, as it could penalise players who are genuinely injured.

There are a handful of exceptions when it will not apply.

If the player who has committed the foul gets a yellow or red card, the injured player now does not have to stay off in all circumstances.

This reduces the potential for tactical bad challenges to get a team reduced to 10 men.

The 'goalkeeper tactical timeout' has become a hot topic in recent seasons.

It is used by a manager to get new instructions to his players, or to impact the momentum of the opposition.

The goalkeeper sits on the turf and signals for the physio, the other players rush to the technical area for a team talk. As soon as the coach has got his message across, the keeper stands up to play on.

All leagues and competitions in English professional football will adopt a new trial to try to eradicate it.

If a goalkeeper asks for treatment, an outfield player, as chosen by the coach, must leave the field for one minute. There is a 10-second time limit to tell the fourth official who is coming off, otherwise the captain must do so.

Simply banning players from going to the touchline would not stop coaches from using the goalkeeper tactical timeout to break up the momentum of the opposition.

Other countries are carrying out a slightly different trial in which the captain of the keeper's team must always leave the field.

There are exemptions similar to outfield players, which include if a goalkeeper has been fouled or is bleeding.

In the modern era, the trend is to take a short goal-kick inside the box, rather than punt it long.

This usually involves one or two defenders inside the penalty area, along with the goalkeeper.

There have been a few confusing situations where it has not been clear if the goal-kick has been taken, and a defender then handles the ball.

Aston Villa's Tyrone Mings came unstuck in a Champions League game against Club Brugge in November 2024, conceding a penalty for handball after Emiliano Martinez kicked the ball to him.

But Arsenal's Gabriel was not penalised when touching the ball with his hand against Bayern Munich earlier that year, after David Raya kicked it to him.

From this season, there will be a consistent approach across all competitions.

Now if the ball is kicked by the goalkeeper or a defender, the goal-kick will be viewed as having been taken.

Any touch of the ball with the hand or arm by a defender will be a penalty, or an indirect free-kick for a backpass if it is the goalkeeper.

There are a couple of new VAR areas for fans to look out for - but not as many as at the World Cup.

Players sent off for two yellow cards: The VAR will be able to look at the second caution for players shown a red card.

There cannot be a review for potential second bookings for players on a yellow.

It has to be a clear error to give the foul and not just a subjective difference of opinion about the card.

Attacking foul before the ball is in play: As part of a trial, there can be a VAR review if there is a foul before a set-piece and it directly leads to a goal, penalty or disciplinary sanction.

The restart would be a retake of the corner. The logic remains that a free-kick cannot be awarded if the ball is not in play.

The VAR will not be able to review defensive fouls before the ball is in play because it is not possible to give a penalty.

Mistaken identity: At the World Cup, the VAR was intervening on simulation. But the Ifab football laws board has since underlined that this is not the correct interpretation of the law change. It should only apply when the referee has, for instance, penalised Team A for handball, but the handball was by Team B.

What won't be changing: Unlike at the World Cup, there will be no VAR interventions on incorrect corners or red cards for players who cover their mouth in a confrontational situation.