IFAB’s no-brainer. Pressure builds on rule makers to bring in concussion sub protocols

January 30 – The push from the Premier League and Major League Soccer, amongst many others, for temporary concussion substitutions (TCS) feels increasingly like an overdue correction rather than a tweaking of the rules.

Football’s lawmakers at IFAB (International Football Association Board) will review the proposal at next month’s Annual General Meeting in Cardiff, and will be under pressure to enact change as more than 25 leagues and unions are urging approval for formal trials. The list of backers includes the Premier League, MLS, Serie A, the French LFP, FIFPRO, the European Leagues Association and the World Leagues Association.

The case is straightforward: the game has changed, the speed has increased, the collisions are heavier, and the medical understanding of brain injury is far clearer than when the substitution laws were written.

Recent diagnoses of dementia among former professionals with long histories of repeated heading and concussion exposure have shifted this from theoretical risk to documented consequence. Against that backdrop, resisting temporary concussion substitutions looks increasingly indefensible.

Ahead of IFAB’s Annual Business Meeting in London, stakeholders formally requested permission to run TCS trials. The Premier League also submitted its own request, backed by the EFL and the PFA, arguing the measure is squarely in the interests of player welfare. There is also quiet surprise in league circles that TCSs were not referenced in IFAB’s post-meeting communication, despite reportedly being discussed at length.

Previous resistance centred on ongoing trials for additional permanent concussion substitutions. With that test period now complete, supporters argue the last procedural obstacle is gone.

Crucially, the competition concerns, which have been IFAB’s sticking point, have already been addressed. The Premier League has developed a framework designed to prevent tactical abuse so that if one team uses a temporary concussion substitution, the opponent receives an additional substitution as well, preserving competitive balance. An independent oversight group would review every incident via video to confirm medical legitimacy.

The offer to share trial data with FIFA and IFAB removes another barrier.

At a time when football is finally starting to confront the long-term neurological cost paid by past generations, this is the rare reform that is medically sound, operationally practical, competitively fair, and long overdue.

In other words, a no-brainer — in every sense.

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