Public announcement of arbitral decisions
This is the new element which should be the most noticed, even if it does not change anything in the game itself: from Saturday, the officials will have to announce the decisions of the video assistants (the famous VAR) publicly to the crowd and to viewers, when we need to trust the recovery.
The format should look like this: “Upon review of the play, Montreal’s number 3 extended his arm away from his body, which blocked the ball. This is a hand violation. The final decision is…”
For fans of North American sports, this approach is neither new nor surprising, but soccer has long been reluctant to change these types of conventions. The crowd at a football stadium has its particularities: it will be interesting to see to what extent it will have an effect on refereeing decisions, now that the officials will have to answer to it immediately.
Timed Substitutions
In an effort to reduce time wasting and schemes that impact the integrity of the game, MLS is adding the concept of timed substitution.
Basically, from the moment the sign indicating the numbers of the outgoing and incoming players is displayed by the official on the sidelines, the substitute has 10 seconds to leave the field, regardless of where. If he exceeds 10 seconds, his replacement must wait 60 seconds before setting foot on the pitch. Which therefore means that the team plays 10 against 11 for one minute.
This rule was tested in MLS Next Pro in 2023. Result: 99.7% of substitutions were made in 10 seconds or less. There were only 10 violations out of 3245 changes.
The clock is managed by the central official. We ask him to act at his discretion, with common sense. For example, if the change is made in 11 seconds, it will be up to him to make the decision to apply the rule, in the context of the match.
Treatment of injured people off the field
With the same aim of avoiding loss of time, but also to ensure better safety for the players, the regulations for medical treatment off the field are being introduced on Saturday.
A potentially injured player will therefore have 15 seconds to tell the referee if he needs treatment. If this is the case, the official will signal the medical team to come and evaluate the player. If he requires further treatment, he will be taken off the sidelines and sidelined for a minimum of two minutes, allowing play to resume quickly. The two minutes are calculated from the moment the ball is put into play.
This innovation is believed to help the injured player receive the care they need in a less pressured environment. These are the findings that were made after more than 500 matches since 2022 in MLS Next Pro.
There are exceptions, such as head injuries to goalkeepers, heart problems or fouls resulting in red or yellow cards.
Why now ?
The 2024 MLS season got underway almost two months ago, and each team has already played seven to nine games… so why introduce these regulations now?
It’s quite simple: MLS officials were on strike at the start of the season. We could therefore not implement new regulations with replacement referees. The labor dispute finally resolved a month ago, and now here we are with these new regulations promised before the start of the season.
CF Montreal fans, you may have noticed, last week at Saputo stadium, that the board at both ends of the enclosure displayed the additional time added to both halves. This is because instead of stopping at 45e and the 90e minute as in the past, we now let the clock run until the end of added time and the final whistle from the referee. A new feature for the 2024 season already introduced at the start of the campaign.
We also added the “principle of fairness for return to play”, a protocol which allows two players suffering a head injury at the same time to re-enter the match at the same time.
The league also says it is “strongly considering” the implementation of goal line technology, but has not yet chosen the “different options” available to it.
reference: www.lapresse.ca