FIFA Considers Major VAR Rule Change Ahead of World Cup to Fix Corner Kick Loophole.
Football authorities are reportedly considering a significant change to VAR rules ahead of next year’s World Cup, aiming to prevent key officiating errors that have recently affected Premier League matches.
FIFA is reportedly pushing for Video Assistant Referee officials to be granted the power to intervene when they believe a corner has been incorrectly awarded.
This proposed change comes after a series of controversial decisions in top-flight football, which highlighted the limitations of the current VAR system.
According to reports, the International Football Association Board (IFAB) has discussed the possibility of allowing VAR to review certain factual decisions, such as corners.
While the proposed extension would give referees the ability to overrule incorrect calls, it could technically break Law Five of the Laws of the Game.
That law states that a referee “may not change a restart decision on realising that it is incorrect or on the advice of another match official if play has restarted.”
Despite the potential legal conflict, FIFA could be granted special permission to extend VAR’s powers without formally rewriting the rules. The governing body argues that corner decisions are factual rather than subjective, meaning errors could be corrected quickly without impacting the flow of the game significantly.
An IFAB advisory panel, consisting of former players, coaches, and referees, has reportedly raised concerns that allowing VAR to review corners might slow down matches.
On average, Premier League games feature around 10 corners per match, meaning frequent VAR interventions could disrupt play.
Nevertheless, the proposal has received backing from some Premier League managers, including Nottingham Forest’s Sean Dyche. Dyche called for the change after his side conceded goals from corners that had been incorrectly awarded in consecutive weeks.
Bournemouth’s Marcus Tavernier scored directly from a corner when Forest should have been awarded a goal kick, and the following week, Casemiro scored from a Manchester United set piece despite Forest insisting the ball had stayed in play.
Dyche argued that VAR could correct such errors in mere seconds, avoiding the repeated mistakes that have frustrated teams and fans alike.
“It’s got to change,” Dyche said. “You don’t need three minutes to look at that. It’s a very simple moment. Last week was an incredibly simple, factually wrong decision. That must take five seconds, end of. Surely?”
Dyche continued, emphasising the need for rapid, decisive interventions: “The thing that annoys me the most — and I’m a big fan of VAR — is that someone has got to be able to overrule these decisions, really quickly.
Just go ‘that’s in play,’ it’s deemed out of play, and a goal is scored. Two weeks on the trot. That’s really difficult for any team to deal with.”
In addition to corner reviews, IFAB is also considering giving VAR the ability to intervene in second yellow card incidents if an incorrect booking has been issued.
The proposal is set to be discussed next month, with a total of six out of eight votes required to pass. FIFA holds four votes, while the four British associations have one each.
If approved, these changes could represent one of the most significant extensions of VAR powers in recent years, ensuring that factual errors are corrected more consistently and quickly — a move designed to protect the integrity of major competitions like the World Cup.
With the World Cup less than a year away, football fans and managers alike will be watching closely as FIFA and IFAB debate how far VAR should go in ensuring fair play.