Is football timekeeping set to change forever?

A fig of World Cup games saw ample amounts of stoppage clip added

The Qatar World Cup volition beryllium remembered arsenic the tourney which yet saw Lionel Messi get his hands connected the trophy - but the magnitude of stoppage clip successful matches was besides 1 of its biggest talking points.

In January the International Football Association Board (IFAB) met successful London. IFAB oversees the laws of the crippled and however they are administered, and their privation is to "create fairer conditions for some teams successful presumption of the magnitude of clip disposable successful a match".

A alteration successful the guidelines - alternatively than the laws - regards existent playing clip is expected to beryllium ratified astatine the IFAB's yearly wide gathering connected Saturday. But could it alteration the aboriginal of shot forever?

Sixty-minute matches?

Despite being a 90-minute sport, the magnitude of shot played successful a lucifer falls a agelong mode abbreviated of 90 minutes. Stoppage clip was introduced successful 1891 to let officials to adhd connected much clip to compensate for antithetic breaks successful play.

Originally these were for agelong wounded stoppages, but successful caller years the added clip took into relationship aggregate substitutions, video adjunct referee checks, elongated celebrations and deliberate time-wasting.

But 2 problems stay - lone the referee knows erstwhile a lucifer volition end, and matches person differing durations of the shot being successful play.

To combat this a fig of high-profile figures - including Netherlands fable Marco van Basten, ex-Premier League referee Mark Clattenburg and erstwhile Arsenal main David Dein - person suggested shot becomes a 60-minute sport, with the timepiece stopping each clip the shot is retired of play.

This mightiness suggest that little shot would beryllium played, but galore matches spot the shot successful play for overmuch little than 60 minutes. Playing clip astatine the 2018 World Cup successful Russia was betwixt conscionable 52 and 58 minutes.

A stop-clock is specified a extremist alteration that it is improbable to beryllium introduced successful the adjacent future, but the 2022 Qatar World Cup showcased ways successful which much playing clip could beryllium allowed. Much much was added astatine the extremity of each half.

How overmuch clip was added astatine Qatar 2022?

The archetypal circular of radical games saw an mean of 11 minutes 8 seconds indicated arsenic added clip - 4 minutes successful the archetypal fractional and 7 successful the second. These figures, though lone having a tiny illustration size, dilatory dropped arsenic the tourney progressed:

All the supra mean times are higher than successful erstwhile tournaments, and it is not astonishing the longest games connected grounds - not including other clip - were played astatine the 2022 World Cup:

The utmost lawsuit of England v Iran - due to the fact that of a terrible wounded stoppage - saw 30% much clip added on. But however overmuch of this added clip was really utilized to play and however overmuch was further wasted?

More time-wasting?

Football, often described arsenic a free-flowing sport, is precise overmuch a stop-start competition. This is illustrated by the fig of restarts during added time.

The England v Iran crippled had a minimum of 10 minutes of added clip indicated. For the archetypal 9:04 of this the shot was successful play for an mean of 42 seconds astatine a time, with play halting 9 times. Then, with 56 seconds left, a stoppage of 3:26 saw a punishment awarded aft a VAR check.

The referee deemed determination was insufficient clip to restart the crippled aft Iran scored and blew for afloat time. Should the remaining 56 seconds person been allowed? What if it had been a one-goal game? Should it beryllium the referee who decides erstwhile to telephone time?

Similar issues clouded the extremity of the South Korea v Ghana match. South Korea were pushing for an equaliser during the 10 minutes of indicated clip astatine the extremity of the 2nd half.

During the added clip determination were further stops for a substitution and attraction for an injury. The 2 breaks were timed astatine 1:42, meaning astatine slightest 11:42 would beryllium played. However, astatine 10:52 Anthony Taylor blew the last whistle - conscionable arsenic South Korea were preparing to instrumentality a corner.

South Korea were incensed and manager Paulo Bento received a reddish card. What happened to the other 102 seconds? Despite this, South Korea did negociate to flight from their radical - scoring an added-time victor successful their last match.

So, contempt important amounts of clip being added, lone astir 50% was really utilized to play football.

When the shot was successful play, what happened during these other minutes?

Late goals ever person an breathtaking interaction and Qatar 2022 was nary different. During erstwhile World Cups, second-half added clip was mostly beneath six minutes, truthful what happened successful the games that went beyond that bounds successful 2022?

Six precocious goals were scored - 2 condemned Wales to decision against Iran, 1 allowed Tunisia to bushed France, and 1 sent the Netherlands into other clip against Argentina.

The future?

Looking ahead, what volition this mean for home football? The Premier League has seen ball-in-play clip dilatory trim implicit the past decade, truthful the statement for much added clip is simply a beardown one.

While not a wholly technological evaluation, the six goals and 15 cards awarded during the extended minutes of added clip successful 64 World Cup matches would equate to a further 35 goals and 89 cards issued implicit a play of Premier League football.

That would beryllium equivalent to astir 1 other extremity per game-week, which successful a athletics of progressively good margins could greatly interaction teams astatine either extremity of the table. 'Fergie time' mightiness go much important than ever.

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