26/27 Everything you need to know about the new rules to be put in place in the League

Football doesn't stop. Not a month after the end of the World Cup, and the start of LaLiga 26/27 is just around the corner. The domestic competition will begin on August 15 with the Alavés-Getafe match in Mendizorroza (19:30). Everything is ready for a new exciting season, as well as new arbitration rules that seek greater dynamism in the game.

The first novelty for the new season relates to the time limit for a player to leave the field when he or she is replaced by a teammate. According to the CTA, the player represented "must leave the playing field within ten seconds of the display of the replacement sign or, if there is no sign, of the referee's signal for the replacement to take place".

In this regard, if he does not do so within those ten seconds — except for safety/protection or injury — he must also leave the field, "but the substitute cannot enter the playing field until a minute after the resumption," he said.

In addition, "the replacement player shall be punished if he delays the resumption of the game by more than ten seconds. The replacement may not be revoked or a second substitute player used," he adds. "If the replacement's entry is delayed, the replacement shall be completed after the player has left the playing field. Therefore, if the substitute player commits an offence punishable by a red card after that time, the substitute may continue to participate in the game."

With regard to the replacement of a doorman, he says, "The doorman is required to leave the field because of the goal line. If it takes too long, the substitute will be allowed in immediately and the doorman will be punished." When there are several changes at once, "all players who are to be replaced will have to leave the playing field within ten seconds of the final replacement," the CTA said.

Vinicius and ￮

As for injuries, a player who is treated on the field, or a player who causes the game to stop, or a player who delays the resumption, "must leave the playing field and stay out for a minute after the game is resumed," says the CTA.

However, there are exceptions, such as "not requiring medical attention, going out voluntarily during a play or a pause, unless the resumption of the game is delayed; being a goalkeeper; having a match between several players on the same team; hitting the head; or bleeding, among others," he explains.

In addition, the IFAB (International Fotball Association Board), the governing body of football rules, has authorized the CTA to conduct a series of tests aimed at breaking the opponent's pace or gaining time to manage the alleged injuries of the goalkeepers.

Luka Sucic, injured, leaves the field with the medical services of the Royal Society during a match.

The basic rule will continue as before, but if a team gets an advantage by resuming the game inappropriately, but the opposing team gets the ball right away, the referee can let the play continue with an advantage, that is, an error will be rectified with another error or illegality, in order to compensate for the first error.

Similarly, if the game has not been halted due to a lack of play, or to the removal of the ball from the side, or something like that, it will be handed over to the team that has supposedly retained or recovered possession of the ball, leaving it on the ground.

Judge Iosu Galech, photo: Europa Press.

The referee may punish those teams that delay the running of the ball from the side and from the goal. In the case of the side cards, the possession of the ball may become the possession of the opposing team, while in the goal shots the corner may be marked for the opposing team.

Unai Simon playing the ball during a game. Photo: Europa Press.

If a goalkeeper plays the ball in the doorway and a teammate then touches it intentionally with his hand or arm in the area, a penalty will be ordered. This action is the result of the clash between Atlético de Madrid and FC Barcelona in the quarter-finals of the Champions League 25/26. Marc Pubille intentionally stopped the ball after his teammate Juan Musso put the ball in play.

One of the main developments concerns the VAR protocol, which may intervene if the referee has shown a yellow or red card to a player who is mistaken. The review will only allow the identity of the sanctioned footballer to be corrected, but not the infringement itself, unless it is included in a case that can already be reviewed, such as goals, penalties or direct red cards.

In addition, the VAR, if it is immediately and prior to the resumption of the game, may also correct the clearly misplaced door cards and check the second yellow cards when they derive from a clearly incorrect decision.

Jose Luis Guzmán at the VAR during a Osasuna match. Photo: Europa Press.

The CTA also established the criterion on one of the increasingly common images in green areas: footballers who cover their mouths when talking to their peers or opponents. The arbitration body will not, in itself, consider such conduct as grounds for expulsion, but warns that it may be punished with a yellow card when it occurs in a situation of confrontation, protest or similar, that is, when it is done with the intention of concealing communication.

This law, known as the Vinicius Act, caused a great stir at the last World Cup. Paraguayan Miguel Almiron and Ecuadorian Piero Hincapié were expelled for gagging a rival. Let us remember that the origin of this measure lies in the 25/26 Champions League clash between Benfica and Real Madrid, when Argentine Prestianni threw racist insults at Vinicius, covering his mouth with his shirt to prevent the cameras from intercepting his words.

The Argentinian Prestianni talking to Vinicius, covering his shirt in his mouth.

The CTA has also confirmed that hydration breaks can only be applied when the temperature reaches 32 degrees if they have been foreseen prior to the measurement, but no automatic hydration breaks will be established, but the referee will allow players to drink during natural breaks in the game when the weather requires it.

Hydration break in the World Cup final. Photo: Europa Press.