Uefa calls added time rules ‘absurd’ and refuses to follow suit
There won’t be massive amounts of stoppage time in this season’s European competitions
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The new stoppage-time rules that English football has enacted this season to avoid time wasting are “absurd” and will not be used in Uefa competitions, Zvonimir Boban, the European governing body’s chief of football, said on Wednesday.
Following Fifa’s approach at the men’s and women’s World Cups, England’s referees body said in July officials would add on the exact time lost to goal celebrations, substitutions and injuries.
The aim is to increase the time the ball is in play, with games now routinely going beyond 100 minutes in total.
Manchester city midfielder Kevin De Bruyne, Manchester United defender Raphael Varane and global players’ union Fifpro have criticised the new approach, saying it will increase player workload in an already packed schedule.
“It’s absolutely absurd,” former AC Milan and Croatia midfielder Boban told reporters in Monaco, “Regarding player welfare, it’s some kind of small tragedy or big tragedy because we are adding almost 12, 13, 14 minutes.
“When you play 60, 65 minutes - I can speak from my experience, especially as a midfielder - when you get tired, it’s the last 30 minutes of the game. And then somebody comes and adds another 15 minutes.
“How often we have spoken critically about the calendar and too many games. We are not listening to players and coaches ... It’s crazy. It’s too much, so we will not do this. Our guidelines are different.”
Uefa’s chief refereeing officer Roberto Rosetti backed Boban and said the governing body had been working for five years to increase the time the ball was in play during its competitions.
“There is something more important than the accuracy of additional time,” Rosetti said. Why do people like the Champions League so much? Because it’s intensive, it’s fantastic, the players never stop.
“We tell our referees to speed up the restart of play instead of focusing on stoppage time.”
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments