A few hours before the U21 European Championship, Uefa suddenly surprises with rule change
- Dominik Voss
Dominik Voss
The U21 European Championship kicks off in Slovakia on Wednesday evening. A few hours before kickoff, UEFA announced a rule change. It applies immediately to all UEFA competitions, including the Bundesliga.
A few hours before the start of the tournament, UEFA is changing the punishment for goalkeepers who hold the ball for too long. Previously, an indirect free kick was awarded to the opposing team after holding the ball for six seconds. However, this rule was rarely consistently enforced.
With the start of the U21 European Championship today, the rule is now being changed. As UEFA announced on Wednesday , the referee will now award a corner kick to the opposing team as soon as the goalkeeper has the ball in his hands for more than eight seconds. "The referee will also use a visible five-second countdown to signal the final part of the time limit."
"This rule applies to all UEFA competition matches starting today," the association wrote. This also applies to the Champions League and Europa League. The rule change will also apply to the Club World Cup and the Women's European Championship. The DFB will implement it in all leagues next season, both the Bundesliga and the Kreisliga.
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