International Football - FIFA could scrap extra time
FIFA is to consider abolishing extra time at the World Cup and going straight to penalties if knockout matches are drawn, the federation's president Sepp Blatter has said.
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Blatter said in an interview with FIFA's website that too many teams had played defensively at the World Cup in South Africa and football's governing body would look at ways of encouraging more attacking tactics.
"We plan to take the opportunity to look at the concept of extra time," said Blatter, whose remarks differed slightly from an interview he gave to the German magazine Focus last month when he said penalty shootouts could even be used after drawn group matches.
"Often we see teams set themselves up even more defensively in extra time, in an attempt to avoid conceding a goal at all costs.
"To prevent this, we could go directly to a penalty shootout at full time, or reintroduce the golden goal rule. We'll see what emerges from the committee meetings."
Blatter did not discuss penalty shootouts themselves, which many feel are a lottery and devalue the sport, leaving a lasting stigma on the player who misses the decisive kick.
FIFA has so far declined to consider alternatives to shootouts, such as using the corner count to decide drawn matches and reducing the number of players on the field in extra time to open up the game.
The golden goal rule, in which the first goal to be scored in extra time won the match, was used at the 1996 and 2000 European championships and the 1998 and 2002 World Cups.
Intended to encourage attacking play, it turned out to be counter-productive as the fear of conceding a decisive goal prompted teams to use blanket defence.
At Euro 2004, the silver goal was used in which, if a team was leading at end of the first period of extra time, they would win the game. Otherwise the match would continue until the end of the second period.
It was used when a Traianos Dellas header in the first-half of extra time gave Greece a 1-0 win over Czech Republic in the semi-final.
Since then, football has reverted to using the traditional extra-time system in all major international championships, although in South America's Copa Libertadores and Copa America, it is generally not played.
In those tournaments, the possibility of having to play only 90 minutes rather than 120 to get to penalties results in even more defensive tactics.
Blatter said he was not impressed with the opening games in South Africa where the first 16 matches produced only 25 goals and included six draws, two of them goalless.
"In the first few matches of the group stage in South Africa, we witnessed some teams that went out to avoid defeat, that were playing for a draw from the outset," he said.
"This is a topic that I would like to discuss at upcoming football and technical committee meetings. We have to try to find a way to encourage free-flowing football in tournaments like the World Cup, with teams playing to win."
Comment 181 - 200 of 200
Why did my comment not get shown? All I said was to cut down the tourney to 24 teams to get rid of some of the boring games, that would be a good start.
Some of the most exiting moments in the last World Cup were in extra time.
the only thing we need to scrap is SEP BLATTER ! lets tart a blatter out campaign on F B ETC
The game needs goalline and video technology, not Blathere's idiotic proposal to scrap extra time.
It is extremely annoying and frustrating for fans to watch games be decided on wrong referee decisions, when television can replay the situation 10 seconds after the event. Therefore I suggest a tv-referee whom the players or the referee can appeal to in situations where there is doubt concerning the right decision or who can overrule a clear mistake in important situations. FIFA clearly don't want justice to decide football, as proven with Thierry Henry's infamous handball and the recent decision against even just using goalline technology. It isn't even necessary with a chip in the ball, TV pictures can virtually always show if there was a goal or not.
I also think it is unfair in football that a yellow card to a player in one game only punishes the team in a future game instead of the present game. It should also be their immediate opponents who benefit from a yellow card. Therefore I would suggest that a yellow card should send a player off the field for 5-8 minutes like in Team-Handball and Ishockey. Besides I read about experiments in the lower leages in Denmark some years ago that sending players off for 10 minutes for yellow cards reduced the violence in the game by 30%! A short time off the field will cool down heated players and reduce violence and injuries on the field and benefit the immediate opponent instead of a future, which would make the game a lot fairer.
These two suggestions would increase the stoppage time a little, but also increase justice in the game a lot and therefore be well worth it by reducing people's anger and frustration at the referee's mistakes.
Post 186, Ricky
YES,YES,YES,YES,YES,YES,YES,YES,YES,YES,YES,YES,Y ES,YES,YES,YES, Maybe EUROSPORT should conduct a poll on whether or not Blatter and/or Platini should go!!!
The only way to ensure attacking football is that, in the event of a no score draw, you line all the players up on the half way line and the ref gets to take a run up and kick each player squarely in the nuts.
The team with the most players left standing wins the game. If it is a score draw then the ref still kicks each player in the nuts, but no run up this time, he must administer his kick from a standing position.
If any player flinches before the aforementioned kick in the nuts then he is immediately disqualified, and the assistant refs step in and nail him to the goal post...........by the nuts. simple.
Football should be left the way it is, there are too many stupid little rules coming, slowing the game down and making things over complicated for the Ref, not that stopping extra time will confuse the Ref.
Extra time can be the most exciting time in a football match, we need someone new in FIFA who has played football all his life and is an academic.
There is no doubt in my mind this Blatter and his side kick,Platini have both lost it!!! Rather than address the raging issue of the moment-goal line technology-there is this distraction about extra time. Technology should have been introduced yesterday,so several 'off side' decisions can be overturned. There is also need to introduce a rule whereby a goal will be awarded,all the same,where an out player deliberately handles a goal-bound shot,apart from the offending player being sent off. Talking about being sent off,I think it is time Blatter and Platini are sent off before they kill the game of football!!!!
Bloody Blatter!!... more like Black Adder!... all these decisions he keeps making and changing... he's an idiot!... all to do with money... when are we ever going to learn!!... we need a football brain in Fifa... not a cabbage!!.. instead of extra time being taken away... why not decide it on which team has had the most possesion.. shooting oppertunities,... chances,...to take away extra time... would be ludicrous!! As for for being president he couldnt run a charity shop!!
blatter you're a clown !! resign so somebody with a brain can sort the game out properly.starting with video replays and goal line technology.
Nice one Sepp! Why not go all the way and go straight to penalties and do away with 90 minutes of football?
WHY SHOULD FOOTBALL FANS HAVE TO PUT UP WITH WHAT BLATTER AS TO SAY . INSTEAD OF HIM COMING OUT WITH ALL THIS RUBBISH OF CHANGING THINGS.. TELL US ABOUT HIS PLAYING DAYS IE WHO HE
PLAYED FOR . HOW MANY CAPS HE WON FOR HIS COUNTRY. GOALS SCORED ETC ETC ???? THEN WE WOULD BE MORE INTRESTED IN HIM . PS GOALINE CAMERAS NEEDED.MR BLATTER SO NO MORE SILLY RULE CHANGING AND NEXT TIME YOU ARE AT A FOOTBALL MATCH PUT YOUR WHITE WINE DOWN AND WATCH THE GAME WHICH MIGHT STOP YOU CHANGING THINGS... LOOK FOR OVER THE TOP TACKLING.. PS THE SLY ONES
The World Cup should be a straight knockout tournament.
The group stages are a bore.
play the game till theres a winner . allow all subs to be used . also allow subed players to come back on. you have 25 players on each team. its a team sport . so lets have a game. 11 players on the the field at a time
stop messing about with football rules that dont work lets have attacking football. far better if they got rid of the off side rule unless its inside the box.
as it stands the present rule stops the flow of play .
I think there should be footballing 'committee' so to speak but a real one. Where a rule is created and not only the teams but the fans get to have some sort of vote. That way we'd all vote for the system that causes the most entertainment and even outcome.
In the end, if for example Honduras are playing Brazil and they need a draw to gain enough points to move to knockouts or its a knockout game and they start playing really defensive then surely its the job of the other team to play better and break down that defense?
A strong defense isnt the problem, the problem lies with players wasting time and diving around and goals not being given when the ball is clearly 2ft over the line.
Penalties are the worst case scenario all of the time. For a real football fan, nothing produces more intense emotions than watching a critical penalty shootout involving their favourite team. Penalties require not only a lot of luck but also the calm and patience of individual players rather than team skill and even if that is good, the keeper could still get lucky and dive the right way.
Extra time is there as a means to prevent this happening. Going straight to penalties after 90mins would just remove all excitement and that 'ok, this is our LAST chance' feeling you get when extra time starts.
Platter is just an absolute idiot and before mentioning anything else, Goal Line technology should be introduced. Oh and using a normal football rather than one thats been over-engineered at a University where probably none of them ever played football, that ends up floating about like one of those 'Super-Tele' balls you used to buy as a youngster from a newsagent.
Sack him ffs... the next president will surely introduce the technology.
this sepp blatter should be asked to retire gracefully and stop tryin to ruin everyones interest in the game, we need goalline technology, not scrapping extra time. Boycott the games till hes gone.
Mr Sepp Blatter has lost the plot..this dude is total loony.. How did he get to this exalted post and did this guy played soccer ? The only 2 changes i feel and think Soccer needs is the "GOAL LINE TECHNOLOG AND NEW PRESIDENT AT HELM OF FOOTBALL GOVERNING BODY" This guy is real joke.. Now he thinking of Scrapping Extra time ? Where does guy come from, what planet does he live in ? Vote Yes now..If you Blatter out..WE NEED GOAL TECHNOLOGY AND A NEW PRESIDENT OF FIFA..Thats all the change we need, is nt guys ?
FIFA - (Blatter & Platini) are crooks of the football world, the goaline technology will rumble on in order for England not to get the World Cup - these crooks have always been against England! As for the extra time issue, surely this is a joke? Keep taking the drugs boys!
Blatter needs to take a long hard look at himself and what hes doing to this beautiful game. For years now there have been talks of goal line technology and this day in age its surprising we dont have it. This is costing teams success, but what is Blatter considering. NO EXTRA TIME!!! Im not even going to comment on it any further. That guy just hasnt got a clue.
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