World football governing body, FIFA, has received a proposal to reinstate a bizarre penalty rule in the 2026 World Cup. This comes after the recent revelation by the federation that the 2026 World Cup would feature 48 teams instead of the usual 32.
The main concern is that, with the availability of 48 teams, the top two teams in the group stages may play out to a result that favors them in order to qualify for the next round. And to avoid such a scenario, the technical director of FIFA, Marco van Basten, who is a former Dutch forward, has proposed that there should be some amendments made to the existing rules of the beautiful game, as shown below.
Fifa technical director Marco van Basten has some pretty radical plans to change the game. pic.twitter.com/VdhRuPtx6x
— Paddy Power (@paddypower) January 19, 2017
Out of the proposed rules, one bizarre penalty system used in the early era of the Major League Soccer stands out. Instead of placing the ball 12 yards from the goal line, the penalty taker places the ball 30 yards away, and is given only eight seconds to score. He will have to find a way to put the ball at the back of the net as the advancing goalkeeper tries to stop it. Speaking of the goalie, he is allowed to come off his line, but cannot leave the box.
Here's a video demonstrating how this system was previously used in the MLS
This sounds like an excellent idea for footballers who have high dribbling skills (Messi, Ronaldo and Co) but not that much of an advantage to those who prefer to go for power and precision rather than dribbling. Although the proposal has not been approved, it would be interesting to see how FIFA will come up with the best qualification format for the group stages without compromising the quality of the global tournament.
