Officially … changing the handball rule in football

The International Football Association Council (IFAB) announced that cases of unintentional handball that lead to a goal or a team getting a chance to score, will not be considered a violation as of next July.

On Friday, the council responsible for enacting the laws of the popular game issued a statement in which it also clarified new rules and amendments to cases of touching the ball by hand.

IFAB also indicated that the referee should “use his judgment” regarding the position of the player’s arm or hand when the ball touched him, before he blows his whistle indicating a hand touch.

“Since the handling of handball cases was not always consistent due to the incorrect application of the law, the council members emphasized that not every touch of the ball by the player’s hand or arm is a violation,” the statement said.

The announcement comes a day after the controversial decision in the match between Tottenham and Fulham in the English Premier League, which saw the annulment of a goal for the owners of the land scored by Nigerian Josh Maga, after an unintentional handball from his Gabonese teammate Mario Limina.

One of the main controversies over handball in recent seasons has been over the state of whether or not arm position is considered normal when the ball hits it.

Source: AFP