FIFA to test new changes to Offside Rules after Arsene Wenger’s proposals
Arsene Wenger’s calls for a change to the offside rules are seemingly set to bear fruit with the world governing body for football, FIFA, set to trial the new proposals.
Wenger has been vocal in his calls for the offside rules to be changed. The former Arsenal manager has served as FIFA’s Chief of Global Football Development since he left the Gunners in 2018.
Source: Twitter
Under the current dispensation, a player is often deemed offside when any part of his body that can play the ball is ahead of the last defender. This has often led to lengthy Video Assistant Referee(VAR) checks, with goals being ruled out due to the tightest of margins.
What is Wenger proposing?
The legendary former manager wants the whole body of a player, not just a part, to be ahead of the last defender for it to be deemed as offside.
FIFA is now set to heed to Wenger’s proposals, with Sweden becoming the first league to put the proposed changes to use. As Sports Joe reports, the country’s men’s U-21 and women’s U-19 leagues will use the new rules before it moves to other leagues in the Netherlands and in Italy.
After the trial, FIFA will sit down to discuss its impact and possible adoption before it is forwarded to the International Football Association Board(IFAB) which approves any permanent rules of the game.
