By: Roland James | Columnist | WBN NEWS Africa | August 23, 2026

The Premier League will introduce a series of new measures for the 2026/27 season aimed at reducing time-wasting, improving match flow and making officiating more consistent.

The Premier League has confirmed that players who receive on-field injury treatment or assessment will have to leave the pitch and remain off it for at least one minute after play restarts. This replaces the previous 30-second period used in the competition.

Referees will also have greater powers to deal with delays at throw-ins and goal-kicks. A five-second visual countdown will be used when a team is deliberately delaying the restart. If the throw-in is not taken before the countdown expires, possession will be awarded to the opposition. A delayed goal-kick will instead result in a corner for the opposing team.

Substitutions are also being tightened. Players being replaced will have 10 seconds to leave the pitch after the substitution signal. If they take longer, the incoming substitute will have to wait until the first stoppage after one minute has elapsed following the restart.

Another important change concerns VAR. A red card resulting from a clearly incorrect second yellow card can now be reviewed. The updated VAR protocol also allows mistaken-identity decisions to be reviewed, while competitions have the option of reviewing clearly incorrect corner decisions where the error can be corrected immediately without delaying the restart.

Meanwhile, English professional football will trial a separate measure for goalkeeper injuries. When play is stopped because of a goalkeeper injury, the manager will nominate an outfield player to leave the pitch for at least one minute after the restart, subject to specific exceptions. The trial is designed to prevent injury stoppages from becoming opportunities for tactical instructions or deliberate disruption.

The changes reflect football's continuing effort to protect playing time while maintaining player welfare. The Premier League says it will “maintain stronger measures to reduce time-wasting and disruption tactics,” while IFAB says the measures are intended to “protect effective playing time.”

With the 2026/27 campaign approaching, the new rules promise a faster, more disciplined and potentially more exciting Premier League. The ultimate hope is that less time is lost and more of the game fans love is played on the pitch.





Editor: Joseph James Udoh

WBN Global News Desk
📩 newsdesk@wbnn.news The advantage---

TAG: #Sports News #Premier League #Football #EPL #VAR #Soccer #Football Rules #2026 Season #WBN Africa #Africa Edition #WBN Africa News #WBN News Africa #Update #Africa #Roland James

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