Gerard Pique reveals bizarre rule change he would bring into football as the Spain and Barcelona legend claims the sport needs to become more ‘exciting’ to compete with TikTok and YouTube

Barcelona and Spain legend Gerard Pique has issued a warning for football to adapt to appeal to younger audiences and reveals the one rule he would change to help bring the game forward. 

Pique is perhaps one of the greatest defenders of all time, having enjoyed continued success with both Barcelona and Spain, where won the World Cup in 2010 in between European Championship triumphs in 2008 and 2012.

For his club, he was the veteran of nine LaLiga title-winning campaigns, and lifted the Champions League four times and the Copa Del Rey on another seven occasions, as well as winning the Premier League at Manchester United. 

He hung up his boots in November 2022, but has gone on to spear-head a number of projects in the sport, including forming the Kings League, combining the worlds of Twitch streaming and elite football in a five-a-side tournament. 

As such, the Spanish legend is a figure that has not been shy about exploring the need for advancement, and has now revealed how he thinks football must change if it is to retain the attentions of younger audiences. 

He spent the vast majority of his career at the Catalan giants aside from four years at Manchester United from 2004-08

‘One reason we created the Kings League is I saw my kids watching a football match and after ten minutes they were on their phones and their tablets and watching other things at the same time,’ he told The Times. 

‘Football is entertainment, so it is not just competing with other sports. It competes with Netflix, Amazon, YouTube, TikTok. Everyone has limited time. Football for 90 minutes is not as exciting.’

And when asked whether he watches full 90-minute matches, he added: ‘Not really. [I watched] Barca-Napoli, for example, an important game in the Champions League, but the 25th game in the league [season]? I don’t watch them. 

‘Some of Barça, when I can, but not 90 minutes. Maybe 30 or 40 minutes. It’s a trend, it’s happening. It’s unstoppable and you have to adapt.’

He also drew examples from American sports when discussing his second idea for football’s improvement, citing baseball and basketball.

Most sports across the Atlantic are unable to finish in a draw, with the game instead going to overtime to decide a winner, and Pique suggested removing ties would make the sport a more entertaining product.

‘Maybe there are no draws, why not? In baseball and basketball there are no draws. You go to a game and it ends with a draw and the feeling is, “Who won?”

‘Football is afraid of change. It has a huge history, it is very traditional, but change will happen, it has to happen. A 90-minute game that can finish 0-0 is difficult to understand for the new generation.’

The Spanish legend helped form the Kings League which combines Twitch streaming and elite level football in five-a-side games

Pique has been outspoken about football’s need to advance and evolve if it is to retain the attention spans of younger audiences

And when asked if he might be better placed at lawmakers FIFA an UEFA, he added: ‘Very boring. You cannot change a lot. With the processes, the committees, it’s a nightmare.’

Implementing a similar feature in football for example might prove unpopular with many teams and managers already frequently voicing their concerns over player welfare due to fixture congestion. 

Adding extra half hours on to the end of tied games will likely prove even less popular. 

As well as founding the Kings League, Pique has also formed a sports media and investment group – Kosmos Holding – and is the owner of FC Andorra in Spain’s Segunda Division.