Governing body IFAB announces rule change for 2025-26 season

The international governing body, IFAB,  for the rules of football have announced their rule changes for the 2025-26 season, with one rule in particular standing out. Goalkeepers will now officially be allowed to hold the ball for longer, but the punishment for exceeding the limit will be much harsher.

Currently the rule is that a goalkeeper may hold the ball for a maximum of six seconds once taking possession with their hands, before they are then required to release it. However if they do exceed that time, referees tend to encourage them to hurry up, with no real punishment befalling them. IFAB have reportedly identified it as one of the areas in which the most time is wasted, with goalkeepers using it to slow the game down, and in some cases holding it for as long as 20 seconds.

The new rule introduced by IFAB, as recounted by Sport, will allow goalkeepers to maintain possession with their hands for a maximum of eight seconds. After five seconds, referees will signal to the goalkeepers with their hands that their time to use the ball is expiring, and should they go past the eight seconds, then the opposition will be awarded a corner kick.

As with any new rule, how strict officials are with it remains to be seen. This was one of a series of alterations, most of them minor. Competitions can now permit referees to draw a line with the free-kick wall foam so that only the captain can speak to them, with players not complying at risk of a yellow card penalty.

Notably there was no alteration with regard to the double-touch penalty rule, after Julian Alvarez’s unfortunate fate in the Champions League. However this likely occurred too close to the announcement to consider it in this year’s adjustments, after UEFA announced they would be discussing a law change to avoid penalising the penalty taker for slipping.