UEFA officially continues the five player replacement regulations

DBasia.news – UEFA has issued an official statement to continue the regulation of the five substitutions in all competitions under its auspices. This rule is in effect until the 2020-2021 season ends.

This decision was taken by UEFA after holding a meeting of the executive committee members on Thursday (24/9) local time. The European football confederation discussed a number of other issues at the meeting due to the effects of the corona virus pandemic.

This regulation is not only applied in the Champions League and Europa League. International events such as the UEFA Nation League and the 2022 World Cup play-offs will adopt the same.

The five substitution regulations were first implemented when the competition resumed during the pandemic. The decision was made by the International Football Association Board (IFAB) with the blessing of FIFA.

Player safety is the main reason for the issuance of this regulation. During the pandemic, the competition schedule becomes busy, which moght worn out the player.

The 2020-2021 season starts about one month later than the previous schedule. But the end of the competition will still fall in May next year so that the distance from one match to the game is narrower.

Apart from the tight competition at the club level, the same goes for the national team level. UEFA increased the number of matches during the international break to three to make up for the schedule that was delayed since last March.

“The UEFA Executive Committee has today decided to restore dates lost due to the cancellation of the March 2020 international break and the postponement of the 2020 European Cup until the summer of 2021,” reads an official UEFA statement.

“This is done by extending the March and September 2021 windows in the FIFA international match calendar so that three matches, not two, can be accommodated. This solution has been implemented, with FIFA’s approval, for the October and November 2020 international windows.”

Even so, not all UEFA member countries automatically follow this regulation. England, for example, has returned to three substitutions for domestic competitions, including the Premier League.