The Rules of Football 2025/26 – what’s changed? | OneFootball

The return of the Premier League is etching closer, with some leagues having already got back underway. With that, a fresh set of law changes for the 2025/26 campaign have been introduced.

HaytersTV dive into the major rule revisions that have been implemented by the International Football Association Board (IFAB) to set you on your way for the start of the new season.

8-second rule and referee signals

The eight-second count begins when the goalkeeper has full control of the ball and is not being challenged by an opposing player, with the referee visibly counting down the final five seconds, ensuring the goalkeeper can see the countdown. If opponents begin to pressure or obstruct the goalkeeper during the countdown, the referee will stop the count and award an indirect free kick in favour of the goalkeeper. If the 8 seconds are exceeded the opposing team is awarded a corner kick.

Captain’s privilege

Competitions can now choose to restrict communication with the referee to only the team captain, with this optional rule designed to improve match management and promote respectful dialogue. This was trialled successful in the Bundesliga during the 2024/25 season, and is being introduced to improve on-field behaviour and to enhance cooperation.

Dropped ball procedure

If play is stopped in the penalty area, it restarts with a dropped ball to the defending goalkeeper. If the ball was outside the penalty area, the referee drops it for one player of the team that has or would have gained possession if this can be determined by the referee, otherwise, it is dropped for one player of the team that last touched it. All dropped balls occur at the position when play was stopped.

VAR explanations

Competitions may now opt to have referees verbally announce VAR decisions to the crowd and players. This initiative, tested in several international tournaments including the Club World Cup, aims to improve understanding and transparency for the spectators.

Stricter penalty rule

When taking a penalty, should the taker accidentally touch the ball twice and score a goal, then the spot-kick will now be retaken. In the event of a double touch whereby the ball does not go into the goal, then this will continue to result in an indirect free-kick against the taker.

Assistant referee positioning

During penalties, instead of standing at the goal line, assistant referees should stand in line with the penalty spot, which becomes the offside line for that moment. This is because the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) now monitors goal/no goal and goalkeeper encroachment, so the assistant referee doesn’t need to focus on the goal line. Instead, they assist with offside decisions or other potential infringements.

Ball In and Out of Play

If a team official or off-field player accidentally touches the ball while it is still in play but when it is clearly leaving the field of play, this is penalised with an indirect free-kick with no cards or further punishment.